Diphtheria Grips Lewis County
A tragic account of a local diphtheria outbreak that has claimed multiple children and left families in mourning.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A correspondent at Centerville, Lewis county, sends us the doleful narration following: We have the diphtheria here. Sam Mills lost two little girls, who were buried last Saturday. Mr. N. B. Kelsey has also lost one little girl, and has two more children who are dangerously ill. Mr. and Mrs. Kelsey are also complaining of their throats. Mrs. C. Crosby has been attending the sick, and she came down with the disease last night. Mr. Crosby has sent his children out of town to Mr. Tallin's. People are much frightened. Dr. Warren is a celebrated physician and it is said never fails in diphtheria and scarlet fever.
“The people are much frightened.”
Public health crises were constant threats in the 1880s, handled locally before the rise of modern epidemiology. This report illustrates the intimate, localized fear of contagion before vaccines and antibiotics transformed such outbreaks from death sentences into manageable public health issues.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.