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H I S T O R I C E V E N T : T H E Y E L L O W F E V E R E P I D E M I C Issue 22
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BY KT LAMARRE, F BLOCK
The Yellow Fever Breakout 1793 People fled to the country as the watched their neighbors and family fall dead on the streets. Thousands were recorded dead after yellow fever swept across Philadelphia in 1793. Deaths were caused by the fever as well as starvation because farmers fled and refused to return to the city. The Yellow fever breakout was considered a time period of terror and loss due to the number of deaths, number of orphans and insufficient food and goods.
Tragedy of death The most tragic result of the yellow fever breakout was the number of deaths. According to History.com, this day in history: Oct 11 “The death toll from a yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia hits 100 on this day in 1793. By the time it ended, 5,000 people were dead.” During that time, only places that had experienced the fever often knew how to help it. Consequently, the American doctors only knew to bleeding their patients which had no true positive effect. Almost all victims died until Dr. Jean Devèze from Santo Domingo came to bush hill hospital with an effective idea. According to Harvard University Library Open Collections Program, “A French-born merchant from Santo Domingo named Stephen Girard stepped up and recommended his compatriot, Dr. Jean Devèze, to head the hospital.” Bleeding and spices were not helping the patients so it was a miracle when Dr. Jean Devèze stepped in. History leads us to believe there were 5,000 fatalities in Philadelphia after the epidemic and there were still casualties despite the hospitals and medicine. Most people caught the fever from human contact, mosquitoes and insufficient cleanliness. Bathing often was not a common thing in that time and people tried to care for their sick loved ones, therefore, the fever caught them as well. The fever was first spread through mosquitoes on rats but people caught it from others as well. The fever originated from refugees coming from the West Indies. History.com also says, “The virus, like malaria, is carried and transferred by mosquitoes.” Out of 50,000 people in Philadelphia, 5,000 were dead by the end of the epidemic. That is 10% of the population dead. Following all the adult deaths, a shocking amount of orphans were crammed into orphanages. The loss of lives in 1793 was so significant and it immensely damaged the country.
Map of Yellow Fever deaths in 1793
Lone orphans Due to the loss of lives, another horrible result of the Yellow Fever Epidemic was that many children were orphaned with no family left. According to The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, “The unwilling victims of Yellow Fever were not just the infected. Children often suffered from a milder case of Yellow Fever while adults severely suffered. The number of orphans increased as parents became casualties to the fever.” After a child was stranded, people would find them and bring them to orphan homes in the hope that the children had a better chance there. They were mistaken. The orphanages were filled to the brim and people had to transform empty houses into more rooming areas. Also, there were not enough staff so the ratio of children to adults was unbalanced. Children were therefore not well cared for and they were not getting the attention they needed to help them through the tough times. Children need to be nurtured after the loss of family but instead, they were squished into small houses with hundreds of other kids. Not only was the insufficient help a problem, there was not enough food to go around. Children were starving. Many caught the fever with help from the fact that they were too weak. Supplies dwindled, and with so many children, the orphanages struggled to keep children alive. The lack of food and goods, insufficient help, and crowded living spaces were the most major causes of the harsh life that orphans lived in the year 1793.
Hungry people Inadequate food and supplies lead to the fatalities of the Yellow Fever epidemic. When news of the epidemic spread, those with money fled to their summer homes. Including the farmers. Laurie Halse Anderson says, “I thought about what Mrs. Bowles had said. Was the fever really keeping the farmers away? But how could city people eat if the market closed.” (Fever 1793 pg 155)The poor were stuck with no local food. The markets closed and those who had supplies kept them for themselves. Also, after hearing of the illness, traders and visitors ceased to come into the city leaving the healthy with no food other than what they had stored. With the dry weather not helping, people could not even grow their own food. Laurie Halse Anderson writes. “The garden looked dead.” (Fever 1793 pg 127) After the epidemic, people still struggled to get back on their feet because the food was scarce until more grew with the farmers back to provide it. The insufficient food was a terrible part of the yellow fever epidemic and many died from it.
The Yellow Fever epidemic was a tragic event in American history. Philadelphia suffered many losses, damage to the production of goods and many children being left with no one to care for them. The fever shook Philadelphia in 1793 causing major damage to daily life and the production of goods. Now, we have cures for many fevers and vaccines to prevent them but we still do not have answers to stopping cancer and malaria.
Once one person in the family fell ill, almost always, the rest of the family got sick.
Dr Benjamin Rush was a physician in 18th-century America and his idea of healing was bleeding and using spices on patients
Lexicon Shift- lady's underskirt Chamberpot- Pot used to go to the bathroom when there were no toilets Satchel- Bag with long strap Wraith- demon/ghostly image of someone Cooperage- a cooper's business or premises. Drawstring- a string in the seam of the material of a garment or a bag, which can be pulled to tighten or close it. Lamplighters- a person employed to light street gaslights by hand. Clothespress- A chest, closet, or wardrobe in which clothes are kept. Lass- Young lady Mob cap- a large soft hat covering all of the hair and typically having a decorative frill, worn indoors by women in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Turncoat- a person who deserts one party or cause in order to join an opposing one. Ninny- a foolish person.
Fun facts --Known as the "American Plague" --Turns skin yellow --First vaccine made by Max Theiler in 1930's ---2 types : urban and jungle
WORKS CITED 2010, SAMUEL A. GUM SUMMER. THE PENNSYLVANIA CENTER FOR THE BOOK - YELLOW FEVER EPIDEMIC OF 1793. WEB. 04 JUNE 2017. "THE YELLOW FEVER EPIDEMIC IN PHILADELPHIA, 1793." OPEN COLLECTIONS PROGRAM: CONTAGION, THE YELLOW FEVER EPIDEMIC IN PHILADELPHIA, 1793. WEB. 03 JUNE 2017. "YELLOW FEVER BREAKS OUT IN PHILADELPHIA." HISTORY.COM. A&E TELEVISION NETWORKS. WEB. 03 JUNE 2017.