594 
Prof.  George  F.  H.  Markoe. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
t.  November,  1896. 
About  1862  Mr.  Markoe  entered  the  store  of  Mr.  Joseph  T. 
Brown,  then  one  of  the  leading  pharmacists  of  Boston,  and  he 
remained  here  for  eleven  years,  the  last  three  years  as  a  partner. 
In  1872  a  branch  store  was  established  in  the  Roxbury  district, 
and  in  1873  Mr.  Markoe  severed  his  connection  with  Mr.  Brown, 
and  became  proprietor  of  the  Roxbury  store.  Now  his  earlier 
studies  and  his  broad  views  of  pharmacy  were  manifested  in  the 
business  which  he  established  as  a  manufacturer  of  chemicals. 
He  was  possessed  of  considerable  of  that  qualification  so  neces- 
sary to  a  chemist — mechanical  ingenuity — and  he  was  seldom  at  a 
loss  for  apparatus,  though  his  stock  of  utensils  was  not  large. 
He  was  quick  to  see  the  importance  of  a  new  method  or  a  new 
chemical,  and  he  found  time  to  do  some  experimental  work.  He 
was  the  first  in  this  country  to  manufacture  chloral,  which  he  did 
on  a  commercial  scale,  but  found  it  unprofitable.  He  also  distilled 
a  quantity  of  oil  of  bay  when  that  product  was  attracting  its  early 
attention.  He  had  a  quantity  of  fresh  leaves  sent  to  him  from  South 
America,  which  he  subjected  to  distillation,  and  also  made  a  par- 
tial analysis  of  the  oil.  His  results  were  reported  to  the  American 
Pharmaceutical  Association  in  a  paper  which  he  presented. 
At  this  time  he  was  doing  a  considerable  business  in  the  manu- 
facture of  phosphoric  acid,  which  he  made  by  the  old  process  of 
oxidizing  phosphorus  with  nitric  acid.  This  was  a  slow  method 
and  required  close  watching,  and  when,  one  morning  when  his 
stock  was  low,  he  received  an  order  for  a  carboy  of  the  acid,  to  be 
delivered  within  three  days,  he  set  seriously  to  work  to  devise  a 
quicker  process.  All  day  long  he  studied  upon  the  problem  with- 
out success,  and  when  he  retired  at  night  his  mind  was  still  on  it. 
In  the  early  morning  he  awoke,  and  the  thought  suddenly  came  to 
him  that  phosphorus  pentabromide,  which  was  easily  made,  could 
be  oxidized  quickly  to  phosphoric  acid  by  means  of  nitric  acid,  with 
the  formation  of  volatile  by-products.  He  arose  immediately  and 
made  an  experimental  test.  This  worked  satisfactorily  and  he  set 
about  the  larger  quantity.  At  the  specified  time  the  acid  ordered 
was  ready  for  delivery. 
The  greater  part  of  his  time  during  the  years  at  the  Roxbury 
store  was  spent  in  his  laboratory,  and  he  gained  a  considerable  repu- 
tation as  an  analytical  and  consulting  chemist. 
During  all  this  time  he  was  actively  engaged  in  the  affairs  of  the 
