Yellow Fever in Philadelphia, 1793

Background

infected mosquitos in western coast of Africa

originated from a monkey

1793 wasn't the first epidemic

Began: August 1793
Ended: November 1793
Death Toll: 5,000 out of 51,000

Theories on how it spread

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person to person

"troubled atmosphere;" miasma

blood vessels vs. fluids or humors

Republicans believed that the foul air was the sole cause due to their distrust in the city life

Federalists believed that the French and Haitians caused it due to their fear of the radical movements

Benjamin Franklin's atmospheric electricity

God

Racially motivated

African Americans received less cases of Yellow Fever

Responses to combat Yellow Fever

most people chose to flee

African Americans stayed to caregive

the poor couldn't financially pick up and move

surest chance of survival

abroad = quarantine and stop trade

miamsa = cleansing the city

God = prayers and appeals for mercy

Benjamin Rush believed in purging and bloodletting; republican viewpoint

A gentler approach which included cinchona bark and wine

Unresolved Historical Issues

A Short Account of the Malignant Fever Lately Prevalent in Philadelphia

political leaders changed their view on the medicine world

provided better care for the sick

sanitation became more mainstream

Rush's ideas grew into the medical realm

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Symptoms

yellow skin

yellow eyes

purple blotches under the skin

black stools

vomit