Page 22 - April-May 2020 Neat

22 The Yellow Fever Outbreak of 1793

The Yellow Fever cowrote an account of Philadelphia’s African lasting about seven to ten days, can inflict a
Americans during the epidemic. Beckoning to mortality rate as high as fifty percent. In the
Outbreak of 1793: Nine the city’s desperate call for help, Jones and Allen second phase, the returning fever is
accepted the work of burial detail and hired five accompanied by damage to the liver and
Observations and Lessons men to assist the effort. Carey later revised his kidneys. The fever can cause delirium; the liver

work to include the important role of African damage often leads to yellowing of the eyes and
by Brian Patrick O'Malley Americans during the crisis. skin, a discoloration for which yellow fever is
named. In the second phase, a sufferer might
Two rival physicians offered different bleed from the nose, mouth, eyes, or urinary
treatments for yellow fever, but comparably tract.
“I often thought that the situation of a people in
gripping descriptions of the ordeal. Benjamin
a bombarded city, was not much worse, and on
Rush was a champion of bleeding and mercurial The yellow fever outbreak in Philadelphia lasted
some accounts not so bad; we had no respite
purges. Jean Devèze, a French-born refugee from August into November 1793. Benjamin
night nor day.” Writing to a friend in his native
from the slave revolt in Santo Domingo (now Rush believed that by the second week of
Massachusetts, newspaper publisher John Fenno
Haiti) arrived in Philadelphia August 7, 1793. September, Philadelphia had “not less than
was trying to convey the effect of the 1793
Devèze advocated milder treatments than Rush 6,000 persons ill with the fever.” Mathew Carey
yellow fever outbreak on Philadelphia. “Such a
and his disciples. Despite their different estimated that from August 1 through November
scene was never before realized in this country;
approaches to medicine, the two doctors left 9, Philadelphia suffered 4,031 deaths. In the
and may GOD of his infinite mercy, preserve us
similar accounts of a distressed city. fourth edition of his narrative, Carey adjusted
from experiencing any thing similar.”
the total to 4,041; Carey reiterated a caveat from
Yellow fever has two phases, separated by one his first edition, that the count from burial
Fenno founded the Federalist newspaper Gazette
day of remission. The first phase, of three to four registers was not the complete number of deaths.
of the United States in New York City in 1789,
days, involved fever, nausea, backache, Also consulting burial registries, Rush put the
and when the federal government moved to
vomiting, and loss of appetite. Jones and Allen death toll at 4,044.
Philadelphia in 1790, he relocated there with his
recalled that sufferers “were taken with a chill, a
paper. Another publisher and Philadelphia
head-ache, a sick stomach, with pains in their Despite Fenno’s hopes that America in the future
resident, Mathew Carey, a native of Dublin,
limbs and back. This was the way the sickness in would be spared from anything like
Ireland, wrote a pamphlet detailing the yellow
general began.” For many lucky patients, the Philadelphia’s yellow fever outbreak, particular
fever epidemic called, A Short Account of the
remission was genuine. For others, the worst of incidents might remind Americans of the initial
Malignant Fever.
the fever was ahead. Rush warned, “The public reaction to the 1980s AIDS crisis or the
remission on the third day, was frequently such 2020 Coronavirus outbreak. Here are nine
In response Carey’s claim in his pamphlet that
as to beget a belief that the disease had run its important observations on the 1793 outbreak,
black nurses charged exorbitant rates, Methodist
course, and that all danger was over. A violent some of which may ring familiar today.
ministers Rev. Richard Allen, later founder
attack of the fever on the 4th day removed this
(1816) of the African Methodist Episcopal
deception.” The second phase of yellow fever, (Continued on Page 23)
(A.M.E.) Church, and Rev. Absalom Jones