A PODCAST FROM IMMORTAL PERFUMES

The Scent

Archive

Curious histories, bottled

EP 02 - APRIL 29, 2026

THE DOCTOR AND THE ATOMIZER

How a Civil War veteran in Toledo accidentally invented the perfume atomizer

Dr. Allen DeVilbiss was sick of shoving goose grease down his patients' throats to treat infections. So he built the first atomizer in his Toledo shed from an oil can and a rubber ball. His son Thomas turned this medical device into Art Deco masterpieces that would change how America wore perfume.

YOUR HOST

JT Siems

PERFUME HISTORIAN · EDUCATOR · WRITER

JT Siems is the founder of Immortal Perfumes, a Seattle-based literary micro-perfumery. Obsessed with history, she is a perfume historian, educator, writer, and international award-winning perfumer.

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STORICAL HALLOWEEN SPECIAL: MERCY BROWN AND THE NEW ENGLAND VAMPIRE PANIC
JT Siems JT Siems

STORICAL HALLOWEEN SPECIAL: MERCY BROWN AND THE NEW ENGLAND VAMPIRE PANIC

We all know about Eastern European vampires but did you know that right here in America we had our own vampire panic? Yup. It turns out New England was kind of a scary place the first 200 years of colonial and then American rule. Listen to today’s episode to learn about the New England Vampire Panic and Mercy Brown, the teenaged purported vampire.

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