The case of D.W. Bancroft’s curious cure-all

A few years ago, John Haffner was digging in his White River Junction backyard when his shovel hit a glass bottle buried underground. Then he found another, and another — all with words like “remedy,” “tonic” and “quick cure” embossed on them. John wants to know why there are so many of these old bottles around and, more importantly, what was in them? Local historian and independent reporter Kelby Greene is on the case, unraveling the snake oil sensation that swept the Green Mountain State. You can find the web version of this story here . Reporting for this story was supported by a grant from Vermont Humanities, in partnership with the Vermont 250 Commission and JAM, Junction Arts and Media. For more, check out the podcast series Roadside Vermont . This episode was reported by Kelby Greene and produced by Josh Crane. Editing and additional production from the rest of the BLS team: Sabine Poux and Burgess Brown. Our executive producer is Angela Evancie. Theme music by Ty Gibbons; other music by Blue Dot Sessions. Special thanks to Catherine Hurley, Shirley Duso and Creighton Hall. As always, our journalism is better when you’re a part of it: Ask a question about Vermont Sign up for the BLS newsletter Say hi on Instagram and Reddit @bravestatevt Drop us an email: hello@bravelittlestate.org Make a gift to support people-powered journalism Tell your friends about the show! Brave Little State is a production of Vermont Public and a proud member of the NPR Network.

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The case of D.W. Bancroft’s curious cure-all is an episode from Brave Little State by Vermont Public Radio.

This episode is 20:14 long.

This episode was published on Dec 18, 2025.

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