Submission Type
Poster
Abstract
Epidemic typhus is a disease caused by the bacteria R. prowazekii, and spread through the vector of human body lice. Historically, typhus outbreaks have been associated with “social maladies”: poverty, war, natural disasters, and other factors that bring about the overcrowded and unhygienic living conditions where typhus spreads most easily. In a study I conducted last year, I learned that between 1847 and 1850, 17.5% of the 169 adult deaths in the Monroe County Poorhouse were attributed to typhus (also called “ship fever”). In a sample of 205 people buried in Mount Hope Cemetery (Rochester's general population) during the same time frame, typhus only accounted for 1.5% of deaths, less than a tenth of the proportion in the poorhouse. For this project, I examine the social factors and historical context, especially structural violence and stigma, that contributed to this huge discrepancy. This research should highlight how infectious disease is entwined with social structures.
Recommended Citation
Ryan, Audrey, "254 - “Ship Fever”: Contextualizing Epidemic Typhus in Mid-19th Century New York" (2025). GREAT Day Posters. 78.
https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/great-day-symposium/great-day-2025/posters-2025/78
254 - “Ship Fever”: Contextualizing Epidemic Typhus in Mid-19th Century New York
Epidemic typhus is a disease caused by the bacteria R. prowazekii, and spread through the vector of human body lice. Historically, typhus outbreaks have been associated with “social maladies”: poverty, war, natural disasters, and other factors that bring about the overcrowded and unhygienic living conditions where typhus spreads most easily. In a study I conducted last year, I learned that between 1847 and 1850, 17.5% of the 169 adult deaths in the Monroe County Poorhouse were attributed to typhus (also called “ship fever”). In a sample of 205 people buried in Mount Hope Cemetery (Rochester's general population) during the same time frame, typhus only accounted for 1.5% of deaths, less than a tenth of the proportion in the poorhouse. For this project, I examine the social factors and historical context, especially structural violence and stigma, that contributed to this huge discrepancy. This research should highlight how infectious disease is entwined with social structures.
Comments
Sponsored by Kristi Krumrine