Thomas A Moskey


Company Names, addresses, dates:
  Weller & Moskey, 8th & I Streets SE Washington DC (1910-1917) 1
  Thomas A Moskey, 3411 M Street NW Washington DC (1917-1937) 1
  Thomas A Moskey, SE Corner Lee Highway & Glebe Road (4740 Lee Hwy), Arlington VA (1937-1975) 1,2
  Dulles Professional Pharmacy, Sully Road, Sterling VA (1975-1980+) 2

Notes:
Thomas Andrew Moskey Sr (1883-1955) and his son Thomas Andrew Moskey Jr (1914-1990) were druggists1,2.
Moskey Senior got his pharmacy license in 1907, and opened the Weller & Moskey drugstore in Washington DC in 1910. In 1917, he opened a new drugstore near Key Bridge in Georgetown, then moved to 3411 M Street.
In 1936 he had a new building constructed at the southeast corner of Lee Highway and Glebe Road in Arlington VA - see the blueprints of that building further down on this web page. He moved into that building in 1937. In 1943, Moskey Senior retired, and Moskey Junior took over the drugstore 1.

One thing that is confusing, is that Preston's Pharmacy occupied that same Moskey building in later years. I have not yet determined the years that it was called 'Thos. Moskey' and the years that it was called 'Prestons', but a photo from circa 1955 depicted a sign saying "PRESTON's DRUGS" on the Moskey building. Thomas Moskey Jr's obituary2 claims he started working at the Moskey Building in 1940 and ran that business until 1975, with no mention of it changing locations or changing it's name to Preston's.

In 1975, Moskey Jr opened a new drugstore called the Dulles Professional Pharmacy in Sterling VA2.

The bottle below labeled "MOSKEY'S CHILD'S SYRUP" was a medicine that was produced by Moskey. The ingredients are listed on the label, and it includes 5% alcohol, which seems odd for a child's medicine, but I beleive that was not unusual in those days.


Bottles:

moskey_08 This is a 5.7" clear machine-made bottle with a label:

label: MOSKEY'S / CHILD'S SYRUP / ALCOHOL 5% / CONTAINS NO OPIATES / ... PREPARED BY / THOS. A. MOSKEY / PHARMACIST / ARLINGTON, VA. / CONTENTS 4 OZS.



Other Items:
moskey_01 This is a 2"x3" cardboard pill box, with a label from 1946 that says:
label: ESTAB. 1910 / THOS. A. MOSKEY / PHARMACIST / COR. LEE HIGHWAY & GLEBE RD. ARLINGTON, VA. / ... 4-1-46 ...



Moskey Drug Store building:
 The building that Moskey had built in 1936/1937 was on the corner of Lee Highway and Glebe Road. Moskey's WW-II draft card lists the store's address as 4740 Lee Highway. The current address of this building seems to be 4736.
I've seen a photo of what appears to be the same building, but it says "PRESTON'S DRUGS". It was posted on facebook, and the person posting it said it was from 1955. I don't know what years this building was occupied by Preston vs. Moskey.
Below are some of the original blueprints of the building.

moskey_blueprint_00 Blueprint dated 7-22-36, Clifton B. White architect, titled "STORE & APARTMENT BLDG FOR DR THOS A MOSKEY".
It shows a large parking area between the buiding & the 2 crossroads. That area is much smaller today - I'm guessing that's because the cross roads got widened.
moskey_blueprint_01 This is an earlier blueprint, dated 2-26-36.
It's page 1 of 7.
moskey_blueprint_05 This is page 5 of 7.
It shows the view as seen from Glebe Road, and shows the signage for the drug store.
moskey_blueprint_06 This is page 6 of 7.
It shows the view as seen from Lee Highway, and shows the signage for the drug store.
moskey_blueprint_07 This is page 7 of 7.
It shows the view as seen from rear of the building.



1 Washington Evening Star, Oct 1, 1955, page 45 (obituary for Thomas Moskey Sr)
2 Washington Post, Jan 21, 1990, page C9 (obituary for Thomas Moskey Jr)



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This page last updated on October 16, 2021.