Leslie Keeley
Encyclopedia
Leslie Keeley was an American
physician, originator of the Keeley Cure.
Born in St. Lawrence County, N.Y
., Keeley graduated at the Rush Medical College
, Chicago
, in 1863, and later entered the Union Army
as a surgeon
. At the end of the war he moved to Dwight
, Ill.
, where he began his private medical practice. There, in 1880, he opened a sanatorium
for persons addicted to the immoderate use of alcohol
and opium
. He asserted that "Alcoholism is a disease and I can cure it." His treatment centered on a secret preparation that he said contained bichloride of gold
. However, chemical analysis revealed that the proprietary tonic contained 27.55% alcohol plus ammonium chloride
, aloin and tincture of cinchonaa but no gold. His hypodermic injections contained sulphate of strychnine, atropine and boracic acid.
In 1890, Keeley began selling franchises and by 1893 there were 92 Keeley Institutes in the US, Canada, and Mexico and that number grew to over 200 and expanded to Europe.
In 1939, Time magazine reported that "Unvarying is the traditional Keeley routine. An incoming inebriate pays $160, plus room and board, must stay for 31 days. His weekly whiskey ration is gradually tapered off: eight ounces the first day, six ounces the second, four ounces the third, none from there on. Four times a day he gets gold chloride injections; every two hours he takes a tonic." At its height, the clinic in Dwight treated 700 patients per day.
Keeley claimed that when his medicine was administered according to his directions, it had no injurious effects and that 95 per cent of the patients were permanently cured. If they did return to drinking, he insisted that they were cured but that they drank because they choose to do so, not because they were still addicted.
Keeley published numerous articles in the popular press in addition to pamphlets promoting his therapy, and wrote and wrote The Morphine Eater, or From Bondage to Freedom (1881) and the Non-Heredity of Inebriety (1896).
The Keeley Institute in Dwight was the last to close, doing so in 1966. Despite the modern assumption that Keeley's therapy was merely a successful example of quackery, Keeley is remembered as one of the first to treat alcoholism as a medical problem.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician, originator of the Keeley Cure.
Born in St. Lawrence County, N.Y
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
., Keeley graduated at the Rush Medical College
Rush Medical College
Rush Medical College is the medical school of Rush University, a private university in Chicago, Illinois. Rush Medical College was one of the first medical colleges in the state of Illinois and was chartered in 1837, two days before the city of Chicago was chartered, and opened with 22 students on...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, in 1863, and later entered the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
as a surgeon
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
. At the end of the war he moved to Dwight
Dwight, Illinois
Dwight is a village in located mainly in Livingston County, Illinois, with a small portion in Grundy County, Illinois. The population was 4,260 at the 2010 census. Dwight contains an original stretch of the famous U.S. Route 66, and uses a railroad station designed in 1891 by Henry Ives Cobb. It is...
, Ill.
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, where he began his private medical practice. There, in 1880, he opened a sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
for persons addicted to the immoderate use of alcohol
Alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits. They are legally consumed in most countries, and over 100 countries have laws regulating their production, sale, and consumption...
and opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
. He asserted that "Alcoholism is a disease and I can cure it." His treatment centered on a secret preparation that he said contained bichloride of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
. However, chemical analysis revealed that the proprietary tonic contained 27.55% alcohol plus ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride NH4Cl is an inorganic compound with the formula NH4Cl. It is a white crystalline salt that is highly soluble in water. Solutions of ammonium chloride are mildly acidic. Sal ammoniac is a name of natural, mineralogical form of ammonium chloride...
, aloin and tincture of cinchonaa but no gold. His hypodermic injections contained sulphate of strychnine, atropine and boracic acid.
In 1890, Keeley began selling franchises and by 1893 there were 92 Keeley Institutes in the US, Canada, and Mexico and that number grew to over 200 and expanded to Europe.
In 1939, Time magazine reported that "Unvarying is the traditional Keeley routine. An incoming inebriate pays $160, plus room and board, must stay for 31 days. His weekly whiskey ration is gradually tapered off: eight ounces the first day, six ounces the second, four ounces the third, none from there on. Four times a day he gets gold chloride injections; every two hours he takes a tonic." At its height, the clinic in Dwight treated 700 patients per day.
Keeley claimed that when his medicine was administered according to his directions, it had no injurious effects and that 95 per cent of the patients were permanently cured. If they did return to drinking, he insisted that they were cured but that they drank because they choose to do so, not because they were still addicted.
Keeley published numerous articles in the popular press in addition to pamphlets promoting his therapy, and wrote and wrote The Morphine Eater, or From Bondage to Freedom (1881) and the Non-Heredity of Inebriety (1896).
The Keeley Institute in Dwight was the last to close, doing so in 1966. Despite the modern assumption that Keeley's therapy was merely a successful example of quackery, Keeley is remembered as one of the first to treat alcoholism as a medical problem.
- Keeley cure - a proprietary method of treatment for the alcohol and opium habits by means of gold chloride. (The American Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 1938 edition.)