Havre de Grace, Maryland, for example, tried to prevent people from Philadelphia from crossing the Susquehanna River to Maryland. [63], Merchants worried more about Rush's theory that the fever arose from the filth of Philadelphia and was not imported from the West Indies. As a public health official, he was determined to stop the disease from spreading. Ok, so I'm on a roll here reading about disease and epidemics! On the 19th a woman Rush visited died within hours. The water treatment was also advocated by Dr. Edward Stevens, who in mid-September claimed it had cured Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, of the fever. The city is hit with an incurable and unknown disease which kills about 50% of the people affected. LitCharts Teacher Editions. He wiped the patient's cloaths, comforted [him] arranged the bed, [and] inspired with courage, by renewing in him the hope that he should recover. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. [80] Allen and Jones noted that some blacks had worked for free, that they had died at the same rate as whites from the epidemic, and that some whites had also overcharged for their services. Almost everyone who couldabout 40% of the populationtravelled north to Germantown or west across the Schuylkill. An American author of more than 35 nonfiction and fiction books for children, young adults, and general audiences, including more than 30 about American history. I didn't even notice that until now. Drawing on firsthand accounts, medical and non-medical, Murphy re-creates the fear and panic in the infected city, the social conditions that caused the disease to spread, and the arguments about causes and cures. Dr. William Currie: Believed that the fever came from a shipment that came from the West Indies and claimed that it was not the yellow fever. From the Center for the History of Medicine in the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine. An interesting aspect is the courageous role that African Americans played which was largely ignored by history. You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles. I especially appreciated the final chapter, that brings the story of yellow fever's current effects on the world, and possible future effects. As the mortality rate increased, they had to hire men to get anyone to deal with the sick and dying. It contains pictures and illustrations, including pages from a list compiled of the dead. He is able to describe how horrid this period of time was for history with solid research and amazing facts. He also left a diary. [88] A 2004 paper in the Bulletin of the History of Medicine reexamined Rush's use of bleeding. The mortality rate peaked in October before frost finally killed the mosquitoes and brought an end to the outbreak. On September 10, he published a guide to treating the fever: "Dr. The reason for this cover-up was partly economic. Philadelphia, then the nation's capital, was the most cosmopolitan city in the United States. [9], After two weeks and an increasing number of fever cases, Dr. Benjamin Rush, a doctor's apprentice during the city's 1762[10] Yellow Fever epidemic, saw the pattern; he recognized that yellow fever had returned. Like. In a memoir published in 1794, Devze wrote of Girard: I even saw one of the diseased [discharge] the contents of his stomach upon [him]. in San Francisco, California during the San Francisco plague campaign. An American Plague offers a fascinating glimpse into the conditions in American cities at the time of our nation's birth while drawing thought-provoking parallels to modern-day epidemics. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), Current one is: October 11. Devze later became a world authority on yellow fever. At the turn of the 20th century, the world was gripped by a plague pandemic that had spread from China to port cities around the globe. Doctors used his treatments while rejecting his etiology of the disease. Interesting history of Philadelphia at the time. The epidemic depopulated Philadelphia: 5,000 out of a population of 45,000 died, and chronicler Mathew Carey estimated that another 17,000 fled. Ive had this book for years and YEARS and it took an actual pandemic to get me to read it . Instant Purchase. The college published a letter in the city's newspapers, written by a committee headed by Rush, suggesting 11 measures to prevent the "progress" of the fever. She graduated from Georgetown University in 1984. [35] The Committee acted quickly: after a report of 15-month-old twins being orphaned, two days later the committee had identified a house for sheltering the growing number of orphans. Carey added that the "efficacy of bleeding, in all cases not attended with putridity, was great. Benjamin Rush, a Philadelphia physician and signer of the Declaration of Independence, became highly regarded for his work during the 1793 epidemic. Terrifying Story of the Yellow. Philadelphia, then the nations capital, was the most cosmopolitan city in the United States. [74][pageneeded], The Governor created a middle path: he ordered the city to be kept clean and the port policed to prevent infected ships, or those from the Caribbean, from docking until they had gone through a period of quarantine. 3.0 (2) eBook. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of An American Plague by Jim Murphy. Knowledge of the plague outbreak eventually managed to spread outside of California. The fever killed 4000-5000 residents of Philadelphia within a 4 month period. [81] In March 1794, the Mayor's Committee published its minutes. Most churches had stopped holding services, and the post office moved out of the area of the highest number of cases. Major scientific advancements in medicine toward the end of the 1800s and early 1900s allow doctors to definitively determine the female mosquito Aedes Aegypti as the cause. He falls ill twice and peddles a controversial cure that involves poisoning, purging, and bloodletting. The Yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends at the Arch Street Meeting House drew 100 attendees, most from outside the city. the great prices paid did not escape the observation of that worthy and vigilant magistrate, Matthew Clarkson, mayor of the city, and president of the committee. [13], Then the largest city in the US, with around 50,000 residents, Philadelphia was relatively compact and most houses were within seven blocks of its major port on the Delaware River. In the final chapters, the fever finally subsides. Wongs death marked the beginning of the United States first plague epidemic, which infected at least 280 people and killed at least 172 over the next eight years (the actual numbers of cases and deaths may be higher). [52] The Quaker John Todd, who attended the meeting, contracted the fever and died of it. Comment. Almost all of these cases occur in the western United States. It also sparked heated medical debate among the physicians (who knew very little about the disease). The plague is often considered an allegory for war and military occupation, and Camus drew from his own experience to describe the isolation and struggle of the novel. Rush's Directions for Curing and Treating the Yellow Fever", outlining a regimen of self-medication. "[11] Adding to the alarm was that, unlike with most fevers, the principal victims were not very young or very old. It is an exciting portrayal of a somber event in our national history, which helped us better understand the full impact of this tragedy and disease. But instead of alerting the public, city and state officialsincluding the governor of Californiadenied there was any plague outbreak at all. At the first sign of symptoms, "more especially if those symptoms be accompanied by a redness, or faint yellowness in the eyes, and dull or shooting pains about the region of the liver, take one of the powders in a little sugar and water, every six hours, until they produce four or five large evacuations from the bowels" He urged that the patient stay in bed and "drink plentifully" of barley or chicken water. Unlike doctors from an earlier era, Kinyoun used a microscope to study microorganisms his patients couldnt see. [44], Woodbury and Springfield, New Jersey; Chester, Pennsylvania and Elkton, Maryland, were among towns that accepted refugees. Known today to be spread by infected mosquitoes, yellow fever was long believed to be a miasmatic disease originating in rotting vegetable matter and other putrefying filth, and most believed the fever to be contagious. He strongly discounted the traditional treatment for severe fevers, which was to wrap patients in blankets, give them camomile tea or Madeira, and try to bring on sweats. Evans, who is best known for his portrayal of Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has had a successful career in both film and television. a destructively numerous influx or multiplication of a noxious animal : infestation. He said that Rush had written: "Mosquitoes (the usual attendants of a sickly autumn) were uncommonly numerous"[79], In the first week of September 1793, Dr. William Currie published a description of the epidemic and an account of its progress during August. By the middle of October, 100 people were dying from the virus every day. Observations upon the origin of the malignant bilious, or yellow fever in Philadelphia, and upon the means of preventing it :addressed to the citizens of Philadelphia. Natives thought that newcomers especially had to undergo a "seasoning" and were more likely to die of what were thought to be seasonal fevers in their early years in the region. The massive morbidities from the common illness of influenza were mysterious and frightening. [48] The men noted that the first nurses from the Free African Society had worked without any pay. . On October 13, he wrote in his diary:[51]. Efforts to clean the city did not defeat the spread of the fever, as the mosquitoes breed in clean water as well as in dirty water. The author Jim Murphy describes a disease called the yellow fever and how it affected the residents of Philadelphia. The publisher Mathew Carey published a short pamphlet later in the fall in which he described the changes that had occurred in the life of the city: "Those who ventured abroad, had handkerchiefs or sponges impregnated with vinegar of camphor at their noses, or smelling-bottles full of the thieves' vinegar. Like all hospitals of that time, the Pennsylvania Hospital did not admit patients with infectious diseases. During the 1793 Yellow Fever epidemic in Philadelphia, 5,000 or more people were listed in the official register of deaths between August 1 and November 9. From the creators of SparkNotes, something better. On the 31st, a white flag was hoisted over Bush Hill with the legend, "No More Sick Persons Here. PDFs of modern translations of every Shakespeare play and poem. The medical community and others in 1793 did not understand the role of mosquitoes in the transmission of yellow fever, malaria, and other diseases. Elizabeth Drinker, a married Quaker woman, kept a journal for years; her account from August 23 through August 30 tells the quickening story of the spread of the disease in the city and the rising toll of deaths. It has been stated that Jim Murphy created an impeccable book that draws the reader in while at the same time creating fear. Quick lime should be thrown into the privies and the chambers whitewashed." Gotta read it to find out more! She has enjoyed writing since second grade. Allen and Jones wrote that they were thankful that "we have been the instruments, in the hand of God, for saving the lives of hundreds of our suffering fellow mortals. Lots of people were fleeing the city, including President George Washington. Yellow fever, or American plague as it was known at the time . "Burning of nitre will correct the corrupt air which they may contain. . And I'll say it again, things went on and the world didn't end, and the country didn't collapse in on itself, all kinds of things didn't happen. I found this informative and very readable. Devze refused to believe that yellow fever was contagious and he disapproved of Rushs aggressive treatments. 2 likes. This is a partial list of digitized materials available in Contagion: Historical Views of Diseases and Epidemics. chose to stay and act by breaking laws. 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