From the very start, public policy was one of primary interests of the new association and in 1876 CPA first proposed a state Pharmacy Act. It was noted at the time that, whereas in some other states legislation to control the practice of pharmacy originated with the medical profession, it was the pharmacists themselves, as represented by the CPA, who instituted action for self-regulation here. And remember, at this time there were no narcotics laws, no FDA, no pure drug laws, and no rules of ethical conduct.
Despite the enthusiasm, the Pharmacy Act would not pass until 1881. But when it did, it created the Commission of Pharmacy, another CPA idea, which continues to regulate the profession to this day.
One of the Pharmacy Commission’s first jobs was to create and administer a practical licensing exam by which to measure a candidate’s fitness for the pharmacy profession.
The first class of pharmacists to pass this exam included 4 women: Sarah Adgate of Farmington, Eleanor Bird of Waterbury; Sarah Troy Swinnerton of Bridgeport; and Ellen Wilson of Rockville. Sarah Adgate was the only registered pharmacist in Farmington at the time, and was the owner and proprietress of her own store. But it would not be until 1901, some 20 years later, that women are first mentioned as attending an annual meeting.