276— Poverty and Pathogens in 19th Century Rochester, New York; Poorhouses and other Public Housing

Legislation in the early 19th century resulted in the construction of public housing in the form of poorhouses and orphanages by many states to provide housing for those in need (Huddleson 2012). Reports on the conditions of these facilities within New York State show that many of them lacked adequate sources of water for washing, proper ventilation, and sanitary conditions for the inmates (Stuhler 2013). These conditions, along with crowding in many of the facilities led to the increased spread of pathogen borne diseases such as measles, typhoid fever, tuberculosis (consumption), and pneumonia. By analyzing the death records from patients of these public housing projects from Mt. Hope Cemetery and other sources, this study will compare mortality rates from these diseases from Rochester area facilities and the general population of Rochester. It is predicted that mortality rates from infectious diseases will be higher in the public housing projects than in the general population. This study will explore the effects of urbanization on the impoverished population in 19th century Rochester.