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Weathervane Newsletter Summer 2001
"Every Careful Person Should Know", Virtual Exhibit Examines Early Advertising
University of Massachusetts graduate intern John Erhardt spent the bulk of the spring semester examining and cataloging the extensive collection of Pro-Brush material housed at Historic Northampton. He noted that these materials reflected important developments in American history and culture. As he sifted through the records and documents, Erhardt began to conceive of an exhibit that would illustrate these findings. The result is Every Careful Person Should Know: Advertising Strategies of the Pro-Brush Corporation, 1886-1930, a virtual exhibit Erhardt designed for Historic Northampton's website.
Founded in 1843 by an Englishman, A.P. Critchlow, the enterprise used an early form of plastic to manufacture ornate cases for a popular new wonder: the daguerreotype. When these became outdated by advances in photography the company, changing hands several times, began to cast about for other products to manufacture and market. After several false starts, the company (now called the Pro-Phy-Lac-Tic or Pro-Brush Corporation) hit upon the ideal use for their material: the toothbrush. Formerly made of hand drilled bone in a labor intensive process, the new plastic toothbrush could be mass produced with ease. The problem now became finding a market for this new-fangled product in a culture where the toothpick was the instrument of choice.
Through early advertising campaigns, Erhardt shows how the toothbrush manufacturer and the emerging profession of dentistry joined forces to promote "dental hygiene" as a scientific advance over custom and patent medicine. By the 1930s, marketing strategies had turned from substance to style, as healthy teeth became not just desirable in themselves, but symbols of attractiveness and allure. Bad teeth on the other hand meant not just personal discomfort, but shame, insecurity and social ostracism. Erhardt shows through examples of ads, how campaigns became very sophisticated, targeting specific markets based on age and gender.
Every Careful Person Should Know can be viewed online at www.historic-northampton.org.
Contents Historic Northampton.