1913 : il y a cent ans naissait la Société d’histoire de la pharmacie

1913 : A hundred years ago, the «Société d’histoire de la pharmacie » was born The «Société d’histoire de la pharmacie » was chronologically the first society for the history of pharmacy in the world. It was initiated by a triumvirate : Eugène-Humbert Guitard (1884-1976), a young graduate of the «École des chartes » , Charles Buchet (1848-1933), director of an important pharmaceutical cooperative named «P harmacie central de France » , and Paul Dorveaux (1851-1938), the librarian of the Superior School of Pharmacy of Paris. Those three men were perfectly complementary : the pharmacist Buchet was the «financial » , the doctor Dorveaux was the «strategist » and Guitard was in charge of the practical realization. To carry out this project, they appealed to men of good will. Finally, on February 1, 1913, seventy founding members gave birth to the «S ociété d’histoire de la pharmacie » . These founders came from diverse backgrounds. Some of them, such Dorveaux, belonged to the «S ociété française d’histoire de la médecine » , founded ten years ago. Others were members of the S upervisory Committee of the «P harmacie centrale de France » . A third group consisted of university teachers, as Léon Guignard, the former director of the Superior School of Pharmacy of P aris. There was also some archivists and writers, for example Camille Bloch, Ferdinand Brunot and, of course, Eugène-Humbert Guitard. The largest contingent was made up of French historians and collectors, like Antoine Balland and Charles-Henri Fialon. There was also four foreign founders : the Danish John William Schibbye Johnsson (1868-1929), the American Edward Kremers (1865-1941), and the Germans Hermann Emil Schelenz (1848-1922) and Karl Sudhoff (1853-1938). All of them were correspondents and friends of Paul Dorveaux. As Guitard wrote in 1938, Dorveaux office was, at that time, the «world center » of the studies of history of pharmacy. Morever, according Guitard, the new group could have be called «S ociété internationale d’histoire de la pharmacie » . The term «international » seemed unfortunately too connoted at this time (synonymous of workerism !). So it was abandonned. The World War I has partially ended this aspiration to international cooperation. France and Germany was far apart from each other. And World War II further complicated this situation. France has organized its first international Congress of History of Pharmacy at Paris in 1973 : it was already the 21st Congress organized by the International Society for the History of Pharmacy ! Fortunately, two others followed : in 1995 and 2013.La Société d’histoire de la pharmacie naquit en 1913 à l’initiative d’Eugène-Humbert Guitard, Charles Buchet et Paul Dorveaux. Dans le cadre de cette conférence, l’auteur s’intéresse principalement aux premiers membres étrangers de la Société : le Danois John William Schibbye Johnsson, l’Américain Edward Kremers et les deux Allemands Hermann Emil Schelenz et Karl Sudhoff. Ces parrainages internationaux durent beaucoup à Paul Dorveaux.Lefebvre Thierry. 1913 : il y a cent ans naissait la Société d’histoire de la pharmacie. In: Revue d'histoire de la pharmacie, 101e année, N. 383, 2014. pp. 357-366