The Bite that Changed America
Man can capture an elephant, train a lion, and totally obliterate a species from this earth. If man can do all that surely he will have dominion over something as small and meek as a mosquito. The Yellow Fever epidemic of 1793 proved this notion to be false as this disease, transmitted solely by the bite of a female mosquito, wiped out one tenth of Philadelphia’s population in four months. Some make the mistake of seeing this as an isolated event but this epidemic was as far-reaching as the disease itself since it forever changed America’s Government, public health system and African American community.
Since Philadelphia was, at the time, the capitol of the United States of America the epidemic proved to be traumatic not only to the city but the government as well. In early August 1793 Philadelphia was booming. Immigrants from all over the world were rushing into America’s most Cosmopolitan city, which also happened to be the political center of the country. Residents included the President, George Washington, and his wife Martha, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton and most members of Congress (Kolsky 1) .
On August 19 people started talking about the very recent death of Peter Aston due to what most assumed to be just a common autumn illness (Gum 2). Prominent doctor and signer of the Declaration of Independence,Benjamin Rush, identified Aston’s disease, which by that time had already taken more lives, as Yellow Fever (Kolsky 1). Though the medical communitie’s grasp of this disease, now known as Malaria, was rather primitive at the time they did know it was rapidly spreading and deadly. This fact became blantantly obvious to the public as the city began to lose people at a rate of ten fatalitie...
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...radox. It was isolated to Philadelphia yet affected all of America due to the governmental changes the epidemic forced. It was tragic that nearly 5,000 people lost their lives but the creation of an organized medical society, board of health and advances in medicine that came out of the epidemic saved(and continue to save) a countless number of lives. Though the African American community was attacked after the epidemic for their “barbarity”, they defended themselves, as a community, for the first time and their actions will always be remembered as the shining moments in white man’s darkest days. The epidemic may have ceased in the winter of 1793 but all these effects can still be seen today. Finally “the Yellow Fever epidemic of 1793 can be considered a crucial part of the history of human strength and fortitude during unbelievably difficult times” (Gum 6).
“Future nations will know by history only that the loathsome smallpox has existed and by you extirpated”. This quote comes from Thomas Jefferson to Edward Jenner, he founder of the smallpox vaccine. It would only be 100 years later that Jefferson would see his dream fulfilled, but not without struggle. In House on Fire, author William H. Foege shares his first hand view of the lengths that society needed to go through to rid the world of the disease that had plagued it for so long. The story of the fight against smallpox extends long before our efforts for global eradication and is a representation of how society deals with widespread disease. House on
For instance, many were chronically unemployed or unpaid, lived in unbearable conditions in shacks, exposed to malnutrition, and had severe health diseases, which include tuberculosis, syphilis, hookworm, pellagra, and high death rate (Jones, Bad blood: The Tuskegee syphilis experiment, 1993). According to Jones (2008), “Syphilis is a highly contagious disease caused by the Treponema pallidum, a delicate bacterium that is microscopic in size and resembles a corkscrew in shape. Three stages mark the development of the disease: primary, secondary, and tertiary” (p. 2). In the author’s book, it identified the struggles that African Americans faced on a daily basis. For instance, the author revealed the most prominent time of history was during the Great Depression, Progressive era and other eras. This population in particular had limited access to health care. Only a few of this population had access to adequate medical care; however, majority of them never saw a physician. In fact, the African American physicians were limited, but the whites refused to treat or provide services. During the 1930s, the Depression Era was one of the eras that had the greatest impact on this population. This is the time when whites dominated the United States, exploitation with racism, poverty, and health care was a fee for services, making it
As the days went by and the number of deaths began to increase, the Board of Health in London began to improve people’s living conditions by creating the indoor restroom, This, however, caused more problems for the people of London, due to the lack of a proper sewage system, “London needed a citywide sewage system that could remove waste products from houses in a reliable and sanitary fashion,...,The problem was one of jurisdiction, not execution,”(Page 117). London didn’t have a place where the sewers could lead off to which keep the disease spreading when people used the restroom. After months of battling the type of disease London was faced with, Mr. Snow convinced the Board of Health to remove the water pump that was on Board Street. By getting rid of this pump, Mr. Snow helped stop major outbreaks from recurring, “The removal of the pump handle was a historical turning point, and not because it marked the end of London’s most explosive epidemic,..., It marks a turning point in the battle between urban man and Vibrio cholera, because for the first time a public institution had made an informed intervention into a cholera outbreak based on a scientifically sound theory of the disease.”(Page 162- 163). This marked the end of the London epidemic and how the world of science
Blackbird's book, like many similar autoethnographic texts, is a combination of autobiography, history, ethnography, and polemic. He opens with a conventional reference to inaccuracy in current histories. In the course of correcting the record he relates the story, preserved by elders of his nation, of a smallpox epidemic during the height of the French and Indian War, about 1757. Blackbird's story is unique because of the unusual disease vector.
This book follows an esteemed doctor and a local clergyman who, together, are the heart of an investigation to solve the mystery of the cholera epidemic. In 1854 London was ravaged by a terrible outbreak of cholera, where within the span of mere weeks over five hundred people in the Soho district died. London, at the time, was a city of around two and a half million people, all crammed into a small area with no system for sewage removal. With overflowing cesspools, improper drainage of all the human and animal waste, and no system for guaranteed clean water, the people of London were in a bad state. They were essentially dumping all of their feces into their drinking water supply, a perfect environment for cholera to thrive.
Henretta, James A. and David Brody. America: A Concise History, Volume I: To 1877. 4th ed. Boston:
Henretta, James A., Robert O. Self, and Rebecca Edwards. America a Concise History. Vol. 1: To 1877. Boston: Bedford / St. Martin's, 2013. N. pag. Print. Pages 195, 196, 198-199
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin is a representation of the new prospect of upward mobility in colonial America during the 18th century and the development of the Age of Reason, which assisted in the conception of the idea of the “American Dream”; a dream that includes fundamentally social ideals such as democracy, equality, and material prosperity. Furthermore, Franklin’s autobiography exemplifies a significant shift in focus from religion to enlightenment and reason. Additionally, there were forces specific to Benjamin Franklin's Philadelphia, that played an important role in his perspectives and the changes that occurred within colonial America during the 18th century.
Glasner, Joyce. “Yellow Fever.” Canada’s History 91.3 (2011): 46-47. Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 Mar. 2014.
William Penn, an English entrepreneur, had an unforeseen impact on the history of the United States of America. In the late 1600’s and early 1700’s, Penn was already a champion for democracy, religious freedom, and anti-slavery movements. Through his good relations both the nobility of England, and the Indians of Pennsylvania, Penn was able to secure an entire state for many years to come. Credited with establishing the city of Philadelphia, name after his ideal of ‘brotherly love’, William Penn left a lasting impression on the United States of America. He was one of the first to propose a unification of the American English colonies into one State. Though he is not often remembered today, Penn is often honored as a man ahead of his time. French philosopher Voltaire credited many times, saying:
The book jumps to a distressing story about Peter Los in 1970 in West Germany who became ill due to smallpox. After ten days he was hospitalized but medical staff did not realize he had smallpox, which is highly contagious. Preston gives vivid descriptions of the disease and how it ravages the body. Los survived his illness, but caused an epidemic that killed many others that had become exposed to him. “Today, the people who plan for a smallpox emergency can’t get the image of the Meschede hospital out of their minds.
In the book Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775-82 by Elizabeth A. Fenn, the author provides a fresh outlook on the face of North America during the time of the American Revolution. Fenn provides the reader with a perspective of the American Revolution from the vantage point of the variola virus and its effect on the population of North America. Her thesis for the book is, “While colonial independence reshaped global politics forever, the contagion was the defining and determining event of the era for many residents of North America. With the exception of the war itself, epidemic smallpox was the greatest upheaval to afflict the continent in these years.” Fenn does not discount the war, but rather, provides more information about the era of the American Revolution and the role of smallpox within that time period. Considering the author’s argument, Fenn clarifies the diverse impact that smallpox had on North Americans depending on their race and social status during the American Revolution.
Mosquitoes have been a major annoyance to humans for the millions of years of our developing ecosystems throughout the world, and they will be until we do something about them. But should we really do something to get rid of them? The common use of insecticides and pesticides is much too dangerous to use on the entire planet, and we really don’t know enough about the mosquitoes to get rid of them. What is the purpose of the mosquito? What could happen to the human race if we continue to use insecticides? What would happen to the global ecosystem if we rid of mosquitoes? Humans don’t always think major, environment-affecting decisions like these all the way through, which is why mosquitoes should be kept alive for the sake of the ecosystems of the world, and especially for humans.
Murphy, Jim. An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic 1793. New York, New York: Clariton Book, 2003. Print.
“We were in the center of a dying city.” Thinks Mattie in Fever, 1793, by Laurie Halse Anderson, a historical fiction novel. This book is about the yellow fever epidemic of August through November in 1793. The main character, Matilda, overcame many hardships including the pestilence itself. The theme of Fever 1793 is perseverance, because she doesn’t give up even when she is emotional. Secondly, she fights through her hardships. Lastly, she never stopped believing that people she cared about were alive.