Smallpox Epidemic Of 1775 Research Paper

The more fake or failed lymph failed to protect people against smallpox, the more cowpox fell into ill repute. “While the deluded patient vainly supposed himself secured from the attacks of the smallpox, his imaginary safety leads him into situations where his life is endangered,” Waterhouse wrote, leaving vaccination open to doubt or “contempt”. The worst failure occurred at Marblehead, Massachusetts, which suffered a disastrous smallpox outbreak during a vaccination campaign. Using “virus” that his seafaring son had taken from a pustule on the arm of a sailor vaccinated in London, Dr. Elisha Story vaccinated his daughter on October 2, 1800. Two weeks later she broke out with what Story believed was cowpox but was actually smallpox. Waterhouse was meanwhile supplying Story with vaccine that was either contaminated or inactive. The epidemic eventually sickened 1,000 people, killing 68 of

Smallpox blankets were intentionally used to infect Native Americans during the French and Indian war. These blankets were given to them from the British as a way to get rid of them, so they can win the war and eventually get more land. By giving the infected blankets to the Natives they accomplished their goal. There is a significant amount of evidence that proves this such as letters, records from the smallpox hospital, documents from William Trent during the time of giving the blankets, and practice of inoculation. Biological warfare was used against the Natives according to the letters from Jeffery Amherst to Colonel Henry Bouquet suggesting the use of smallpox to narrow down the native population.

Residents of crowded European cities were familiar with many infectious diseases, but the people of Salem did not expect to be crippled by smallpox. Between mid to late 17th century, the New England colonies experienced multiple smallpox epidemics, Boston alone had a 14.1% mortality rate with more than 800 deaths among inoculated persons. (CITE #4) Cotton Mather was a renowned preacher who had studied medicine at Harvard. Although he advocated inoculation, which would have helped alleviate

In her book, Pox Americana, Elizabeth A. Fenn takes on the challenge of writing about a little-known topic with large gaps in the existing research. Fenn states in the foreword that the previous research about smallpox focused on specific locations, "often with vague but tantalizing references to a larger background pandemic." I commend Fenn on her attempt to write about that large epidemic and I think that she successfully combined the facts and figures that spanned an entire hemisphere into her book.

The army was undernourished and living in crowded quarters. They were also getting sick with disease such as typhoid, typhus, smallpox, dysentery, and pneumonia. These diseases contributed to the death of 2,500 soldiers by the end of winter. Women of enlisted men provided valuable services that the army needed,such as laundry and nursing.

Declan Wylie The war of 1812 was a conflict that lasted two and one half years and was fought between the United States and the United Kingdom. The United States declared war on June 18, 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions brought about by the British war with France, the impressment of American merchant sailors into the Royal Navy and more. An estimated 22,200 people died during this war. People believe that the main cause of death was bullets and cannon balls but, in truth, the most deaths were caused by the lack of proper medical care and knowledge.

Under General Washingtons leadership, one-hundred and fifty-two soldiers were killed and five-hundred and twenty-one wounded. General Washington led his exhausted and drained army to Valley Forge to prepare for battle with the return of warm weather. Valley Forge was already below freezing point, and the Continental Army was forced to live there in those damp and crowded living quarters. Conditions in the camp were terrible. Most of General Washington's army didn’t have much clothing to wear during this winter leading to a harsh winter. Diseases such as typhoid, dysentery, typhus, and pneumonia began to take over the camp. An estimated two thousand died in Valley Forge due to disease. Morale plummeted and some of General Washington’s men decided to leave the

The history of the United States began with Virginia and Massachusetts; their histories begin with epidemics of unidentified diseases. Smallpox was the worst and the most amusing diseases that were out. Smallpox were just killing down all the Native Americans, they didn’t know what to do with it all. The epidemic destroyed half of the Cherokee in 1738, in 1759 almost half of the Catawba’s, in the first years of the next century two-thirds of the Omaha’s and perhaps half of the population between the Missouri River and New Mexico.

Under the leadership of General Washington, one-hundred and fifty-two soldiers were killed and five-hundred and twenty-one wounded. General Washington led his starving and freezing soldiers to valley forge for the winter and led some of his soldiers to dislike his leadership and leave the camp at Valley Forge. Valley Forge was a cold place, and the Continental Army was forced to live in damp and crowded living quarters causing disease to be all over the place. Conditions in the camp were horrible. General Washington's army of approximately twelve thousand had problems getting clothes or food to help them. Diseases such as typhoid, dysentery, typhus, and pneumonia ran rampant. An estimate of two thousand soldiers died in Valley Forge just from disease or lack of food. Morale plummeted and some of General Washington’s men decided to leave the

Only 2,898 out of 12,000 soldiers fell ill during December of 1777 but the numbers rose when the new year came. By February 1778 there were only 8,000 soldiers left and the illness count rose to 3,989. That is over 1,000 more soldiers sick in less than a month! I do not have as strong an immune system as some people so I feel as if I would get sick from being around all the infected soldiers. Between December 1777 and June 1778 according to Document A 1,800 to 2,500 soldiers died. That is a lot of

Despite the disappearance of the plague, smallpox still ran rampant throughout the world. The terrible disease continued to kill millions of Europeans every year. An inoculation created in the early 1700s was a somewhat successful solution and thousands of Europeans underwent the operation to engraft their skin with smallpox (Doc 2). However, new, more efficient solution came in the form of Edward Jenner, who created the first smallpox vaccine by collecting cowpox from an infected person and inserting it into another individual’s arm (Doc 6). Edward Jenner’s new vaccine was virtually harmless and was the most efficient vaccination to date. The smallpox vaccine eradicated the disease in Europe and eventually, the entire world. Smallpox was the last great disease that Europeans faced and its elimination allowed Europe’s population to grow and

Ann Becker the author of the article “Smallpox in Washington's Army: Strategic Implications of the Disease During the American Revolutionary War,” discusses in her article of the disease Small Pox affected the how the militaries powers while they fought during the American Revolutionary War. Becker explains how during the war nearly took out a large population of the American military because so many soldiers were impacted by the disease. This then affected how the fought during war. Becker states that the virus was extremely deadly and contagious; she stated “It was the most deforming and lethal of the plague-like epidemics of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.” The soldiers who suffered through this disease, rarely got over it, and

In 1776, Washington's army was in the mist and battling the British forces. The British, who were aware of the risks of smallpox, made it mandatory for all British soldiers to be inoculated.

Although most people would not object to the idea that diseases played some sort of role in the Civil War, few truly realize the extent of their influence. As it was stated previously, diseases affected the Northern soldiers and the Southern soldiers in different ways and to different extents. Those differences will be examined later in this paper. There are some issues relating to diseases, however, that affected soldiers in general, not particularly one side of the war. Those factors will be observed here.

The earliest case of smallpox according to a journal published in the US National Library of Medicine titled, “Edward Jenner and the History of Smallpox and Vaccination” was recorded as early as 1122 BC. (Riedel “Smallpox the Origin of a Disease”). Mankind’s triumph over this horrible disease was initiated by an English doctor named Edward Jenner. Through observations and experimentation, Jenner would create a procedure now known as vaccination. (Riedel “Edward Jenner”). During the next two centuries, vaccinations would be used worldwide to stop the spread of small pox. After the successful worldwide vaccination campaign led by the World Health Organization, small pox was eradicated worldwide in 1980. As a result of the eradication of smallpox according