Health Info Libr J. 2001 Sep; 18(3): 144-52.

Elizabeth Blackwell--the forgotten herbalist?

Madge B.

Head of the Health Care Information Service, The British Library, London, UK. bruce.madge@bl.uk

This article looks at the work of Elizabeth Blackwell (1707-1758), by all accounts the first British female herbalist. To raise funds to free her husband from debtors prison, she produced her hand drawn, engraved and coloured 'Curious Herbal' in 1735. Using the copies of the herbal in the British Library, the article will look at the circumstances surrounding production of the herbal, her influences and sources used, including the people who recommended production of the book to the Society of Apothecaries and some of the current projects to put her name back on the map.