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Yellow Fever in the U.S.A.
Although yellow fever is most prevalent in tropical-like climates, the northern United States were not exempted from the fever. The first outbreak in English-speaking North America occurred in New York City in 1668, the most well known case of Yellow Fever in the U.S.A. one afflicted Philadelphia in 1793. The following picture depicts major cases and issues in the U.S.A. revolving around Yellow Fever. -
Begin of Philadelphia in peril!
In the late summer of 1793, refugees from a yellow fever epidemic in the Caribbean fled to Philadelphia. Within weeks, people throughout the city were experiencing symptoms. By the middle of October, 100 people were dying from the virus every day. -
George Washington flees?
President Washington. continued to meet until he left the city on September 10 for his scheduled vacation. This vacation had him travel to many places, to his house on Mount Vernon, and a period of time that included laying the cornerstone on September 18 of the new US Capitol. He laid this cornerstone in the City of Washington. -
Dr. Rush contracts Yellow Fever
Every day Dr. Rush was tired after working and bleeding many patients. But on this day, Dr. Rush felt worse. The irony set in, an the person working to save Yellow Fever ended up being the one to contract it. Through all of the pain, Dr. Rush still visited patients, and ended up being part of the few that survived Yellow Fever. -
Town Meeting
Mayor Clarkson approached City Hall ready for a devastating town meeting. Dr. Rush two days earlier had contracted Yellow Fever, and now their most famous doctor had become one of the infected. At the meeting, they decided that $1,500 would be spent on coffins and medicine, and over $37,600 would be spent to find a cure for Yellow Fever. That was a fortune! -
Peak
During the first two weeks of October, Yellow Fever hit an all time high in the death rate in Philadelphia. 100 people were dying from the virus every day, and caring for the victims strained public service. -
Yellow Fever subsides
Eventually, a cold front eliminated Philadelphia’s mosquito population and the death toll fell to 20 per day by October 26. This was a big change from earlier in the month, where people where dying like flies. This is way Yellow Fever was killed, not Dr. Rush, not the government, but frost. -
The unofficial official death count
An official register of deaths listed 4044 people as dying between August 1 and November 9, 1793 based on grave counts, so the total was probably higher. Everyone working for the city, such as newspaper writers, priests, and other religious leaders that had not left for a better life reported the number and names of victims, based on the Mayor's Committee.
