A VISITOR attraction will help the University of Sunderland mark a milestone in its history.

The university is celebrating 100 years of pharmacy education and Beamish, The Living Museum of the North will hold a live virtual tour of its Edwardian chemist shop on Friday, to mark the occasion.

Rosie Nichols, keeper of social history at the County Durham museum, said: “We are thrilled to be part of the Sunderland School of Pharmacy’s centenary celebrations; to be able show everyone what pharmacy would have been like when Hope Winch first entered the profession and then when the first students were training at the School.”

In March 1921, Hope Constance Monica Winch arrived in Sunderland with the ambition to set up the finest pharmacy department in the North East.

Three students and 25 ex-servicemen were the first to attend and thanks to Hope’s vision and determination, over the last century many thousands of young people have studied at the Sunderland School of Pharmacy.

Those who attend the virtual tour will see all of W Smith’s Chemist’s old shop paraphernalia, ointments and products and learn how medicines were made and pharmacists were trained in the 1900s.

Sunderland School of Pharmacy helped set up the exhibit.

Ms Nichols said: “We already had a lot of objects in the collection that we collected from pharmacies that had been established since the 1900s and some a little bit earlier.

“But everything was dirty, we didn’t know what the contents were, and we were a little bit worried about putting those on display with visitors and staff working with them on a daily basis.

“So, the School were very kind in helping us clean things so that they are able to be in this room today. They also very kindly helped us figure out what the substances inside would have originally looked like. We’re social historians here, we’re not scientists.”

Rosie added: “They also trained members of our staff in traditional pharmaceutical techniques such as pill and balm making and took us around the School, and we got to wear lab coats and that was very exciting.”

Dr Adrian Moore, head of the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Sunderland, recently shortlisted as University of the Year, in this year’s THE – Times Higher Education – annual awards.

He said: “In this the centenary year of Pharmacy education in Sunderland, I can’t think of a better way to reflect on that journey than first exploring the day-to-day pharmaceutical services offered by a typical regional Edwardian pharmacy; then for us to take the opportunity to consider how pharmacy care and services, the role of the pharmacist and the pharmacy profession have evolved and transformed for the benefit of patients, carers and their communities.

“The pharmacy profession continues to offer expanding opportunities and I am inspired by the future prospects.”

Register for the Beamish live virtual tour at eventbrite.co.uk

 

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

 

 

You can also follow our dedicated County Durham Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.

 

 

For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

 

 

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054