Edward Robinson Squibb (1819-1900) was a physician, chemist, and pharmacist who dedicated his career to ensuring that drugs were pure and effective. He became a leader in the struggle for national standards for pharmaceuticals and federal regulation of the industry. According to his biographer, Lawrence G. Blochman in Doctor Squibb: The Life and Times of a Rugged Individualist, "Uniformity and purity became a lifetime passion with Dr. Squibb, a crusade which was to embrace all pharmacy."

Edward Robinson Squibb was born on July 4, 1819 in Wilmington, Delaware to James and Catherine Harrison (Bonsall) Squibb. The family consisted of two sons and three daughters, but all three girls died in one year, followed soon after by their mother in 1831. James Squibb then moved his two boys to Darby, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, to be closer to his relatives. A few years later, Squibb's father suffered a debilitating stroke. Squibb and his...