Artifact of the Month: October 2020

Ryus Drug Company

After fighting in the Civil War, Joseph Ryus and his family moved to Texas where he entered the pharmaceutical drug business. Years later the family relocated to Washington and the lure of riches in Alaska called them north. On his way to Nome for the 1898 gold rush, Joseph passed through Ketchikan and our burgeoning island community caught his attention. The retirement of the Ketchikan Drug Company created an opportunity for Ryus and his sons Floyd and Leroy. The Ryus Drug Store, located on the waterfront at Front and Dock Streets, opened in 1901.

While the Ryus Drug Store enjoyed many early successes, it was plagued by tragedy. A 1906 fire in the restaurant next door destroyed both buildings. The family rebuilt and after Joseph's death a few years later, his son Floyd, who had studied pharmacy, took over. In 1927, Floyd tragically drowned and the business was partially destroyed by another fire. By 1940 Ketchikan businessman Lyman Ferris owned the drugstore. The store and the entire "Ferris Block" burned to the ground in 1958.

This month's featured artifact is a small pillbox from the Ryus Drug Store for a 1950 prescription. The pillbox is currently on display at the Tongass Historical Museum in the Ketchikan is... exhibit.

Object credit:
Ketchikan Museums: Tongass Historical Society Collection, THS 76.3.2.43

Photo caption & credit:
Ryus Drug Company at Front and Dock Streets, circa 1906.
Ketchikan Museums: Tongass Historical Society Collection, THS 62.4.3.125