How many people died in the 1878 yellow fever epidemic in Memphis?

How many people died in the 1878 yellow fever epidemic in Memphis?

By the middle of September, 19 of the Howards had been stricken with yellow fever. Ten died of the disease. Memphis emerged from the yellow fever epidemic of 1878 a much different city than before. More than 5,000 residents had died and many who fled the city never returned.

When was yellow fever in Memphis?

Yellow Fever devastated the city of Memphis in the 1870s. In 1873, 2,000 were killed by the disease. When the disease returned in late July 1878, 25,000 residents fled the city. Between August and October of 1878, the disease killed more than 5,000 people.

How did the yellow fever affect Memphis?

As many as 25,000 Memphians fled the city, and of the residents who stayed, 17,000 caught the fever and 5,150 of those died. The loss of over 30,000 people led financial crisis for the city, and in 1879, the state legislature revoked Memphis’ city charter. The effects of the fever, however, were not all negative.

How long did the yellow fever epidemic last in Memphis?

With the horrors of the 1873 epidemic fresh on their minds, roughly 25,000 residents fled the city within two weeks. The fever raged in Memphis until mid-October, infecting over 17,000 and killing 5,150. Over 90 percent of whites who remained contracted yellow fever, and roughly 70 percent of these died.

When was the worst yellow fever outbreak?

The virus affects multiple organ systems and causes internal bleeding; it can be fatal. Yellow fever broke out in Boston in 1693, Philadelphia in 1793 and Norfolk, Virginia in 1855, but the worst American outbreak of yellow fever occurred in the Mississippi River Valley in 1878.

Where did the yellow fever start?

Yellow fever virus originated in Africa and was brought to the western hemisphere during the slave trade era, with the first epidemic reported in 1648 in the Yucatan. Over the ensuing 200 years, outbreaks occurred widely in tropical America, the North American coastal cities, and Europe.

What was the population of Memphis in 1878?

48,000
In 1878, not long after Reconstruction ended, Memphis appeared likely to emerge from the ashes of Confederate defeat as one of the regal cities of the New South. Her population had doubled during the 1860s in spite of war and occupation, and by 1878 it had reached nearly 48,000.

What type of victim is usually affected by yellow fever?

Most cases of yellow fever occur in sub-Saharan Africa and tropical South America. Humans and monkeys are most commonly infected with the yellow fever virus. Mosquitoes transmit the virus back and forth between monkeys, humans or both.

What caused yellow fever in 1878?

Yellow fever, which is carried by mosquitoes, originally came from West Africa and was brought to the United States on ships carrying enslaved workers. The disease requires warm weather to survive and thrives in wet and hot summers when mosquitoes can breed prodigiously.

What ended yellow fever?

The yellow fever epidemic was over. After World War II, the world had DDT in its arsenal of mosquito control measures, and mosquito eradication became the primary method of controlling yellow fever. Then, in the 1940s, the yellow fever vaccine was developed.

How many people died due to the yellow fever?

Yellow fever epidemics caused terror, economic disruption, and some 100,000-150,000 deaths.

How many died in the yellow fever epidemic?

What animal did yellow fever come from?

Yellow fever (YF) is an African mosquito-borne infection of primates. It is caused by a virus of the Flavivirus genus of the Flaviviridae family. In its natural habitat, it is transmitted between monkeys by forest-dwelling primatophilic Aedes mosquitoes. The virus and its vector (Ae.

How long did the yellow fever epidemic last?

Major American Epidemics of Yellow Fever (1793-1905)

What caused yellow fever?

Yellow fever is caused by a virus carried by mosquitoes. You can develop this disease if you are bitten by a mosquito infected with this virus. This disease is common in South America and in sub-Saharan Africa. Anyone can get yellow fever, but older people have a higher risk of severe infection.

What stopped yellow fever?

Does yellow fever still exist today?

Today, yellow fever is endemic in tropical and subtropical regions of South America and Africa. While the development of a yellow fever vaccine (Theiler won a Nobel prize for this work) has saved countless lives over the years, the global burden of this disease is still high.

What was the worst yellow fever epidemic?

What year was the yellow fever the worst?

The Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 struck during the summer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the highest fatalities in the United States were recorded.