Ron Reiff
My Dad was born in 1918 in Warren. He told me that Piso was a really good cough syrup. If you knew what was in it; it’s no wonder!
Opium, morphine, hashish, and marijuana topped the laundry list of dangerous drugs that were in it. Ezra Hazeltine was the marketing genius that made all of America aware of the stuff. Macaja Talbott mixed it up while Myron Waters backed it with big bucks. Like all businesses, Piso started small. By the late 1800s, Piso was being advertised in magazines with artwork from Norman Rockwell.
I have always been somewhat confused about where Piso built their plant. From what I’ve read, they erected a very impressive multi-building complex at the foot of Liberty Street on the “island.” I remember seeing some of the “ruins” of the facility down by the river and where the parking ramp is today.
Piso’s brand name originally was: Piso’s Cure for Consumption. It was produced in small bottles for 25 cents. Consumption was the nickname for tuberculosis. Needless to say, the elixir didn’t cure a thing. What it did of course was make the patient high. Many people ended up hooked on it which led to a strong customer base.
From the end of the Civil War, Piso started being pressured by the government to remove the cannabis, morphine, hash, and most of the drugs that promoted getting high, By the early 1900s Piso’s cure for consumption was relegated to an alcohol-based formula that treated patients to little more than the same thing they’d get with a good stiff shot.
Through the Depression era Piso sales continued to decline, Marketing was restricted to simple artful name banners in magazines. By the late 30s, most of the Piso brand remedies were off store shelves, The company tried making a few other health-related products but failed to compete with other national brands. In 1947, the remains of the Piso plant along the river were removed. The area became a parking lot that catered to downtown employees who needed day-long service,
Today if you’re lucky you can find Piso bottles for sale. Prices for one can range from less than $10 to $100 or more!
