1775–1782 North American smallpox epidemic facts for kids
The 1775–1782 North American smallpox epidemic was a terrible sickness that spread across North America. Smallpox first arrived in America with Christopher Columbus's voyages. This disease caused a lot of harm and led to the deaths of at least 130,000 people starting in 1775.
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What Was Smallpox?
Smallpox was a very dangerous disease caused by the variola major virus. The most common type of smallpox often killed about 30 out of every 100 people who got it. The virus could spread through body fluids or by touching things that had the virus on them. Usually, you needed to be face-to-face with someone to catch smallpox from them.
Only humans could carry the smallpox virus. This meant it couldn't spread through insects or other animals. People with smallpox could spread it for about 24 days after they got sick. There was also a time when people could spread the virus even if they only had mild symptoms like a fever, headaches, body aches, or sometimes vomiting.
Smallpox During the Revolutionary War
This big smallpox outbreak happened during the American Revolutionary War. At that time, there wasn't much medical help available to protect soldiers. Army camps were often crowded and dirty, which made it easy for diseases to spread. Because of this, smallpox was a huge threat to the Continental Army, which was led by George Washington.
No one knows exactly where the outbreak started. But it wasn't just in the colonies on the East Coast or in areas where battles were happening. The disease spread all over North America.
In 1775, smallpox was already raging in Boston, which was controlled by the British. It also affected the Continental Army during their invasion of Canada. During Washington's siege of Boston, the disease broke out in both the American and British camps. Many enslaved people who had escaped to the British side in the South also caught smallpox and died.
In the South, the disease reached Texas. From 1778 to 1779, New Orleans was hit especially hard because it was a crowded city. By 1779, smallpox had spread to Mexico, causing tens of thousands of deaths. By the end of the epidemic, it had crossed the Great Plains, reaching as far west as the Pacific coast, as far north as Alaska, and as far south as Mexico. It infected almost every part of the continent.
One of the saddest parts of the epidemic was how many Native Americans it affected. The disease likely spread through the travels of the Shoshone Indian tribes. Starting in 1780, it reached the Pueblo people in what is now New Mexico. It also appeared in the trading posts of the Hudson's Bay Company in 1782. Smallpox affected almost every tribe on the continent, including those on the northwestern coast. It's thought to have killed nearly 11,000 Native Americans in the western part of what is now Washington. This reduced their population from 37,000 to 26,000 in just seven years.
Stopping the Spread: Quarantine
Even though people didn't know much about viruses back then, English colonists in North America understood that keeping sick people separate helped. They knew more about smallpox than almost any other infectious disease. People widely believed there were only two ways to protect yourself: quarantine (isolation) or inoculation (getting a small dose of the disease to become immune). Many people feared inoculation and chose isolation instead.
People who were known to be sick were sent to remote places. There, they could let the disease pass without infecting others. If needed, the quarantine could be made bigger. This meant cutting off entire towns from the rest of the colonies until the disease was gone.
Colonists and English officials were quick to set up rules for quarantine to protect everyone. One of the earliest examples was a quarantine in 1647 by Puritans. They wanted to stop diseases from spreading from ships arriving from the Caribbean.
In 1731, a law called "An Act to Prevent Persons From Concealing the Smallpox" was passed. This law made it mandatory for heads of households to report smallpox in their homes to officials in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Homes with sick people would then have a red flag placed outside. In South Carolina, guards were posted outside infected homes, and notices about the infection had to be put up. Many colonies used islands to quarantine people arriving by ship. This helped stop smallpox from coming in through trade or travel. By the late 1700s, almost all colonies had quarantine laws to reduce the huge damage smallpox could cause.
When George Washington took charge of the Continental Army, he knew how dangerous smallpox was to his soldiers and to the war effort. He became "particularly attentive to the least Symptoms of Smallpox" among his men. Washington was ready to quarantine any soldier showing symptoms, using special hospitals if needed. After a smallpox outbreak in Boston, Washington took even more steps to protect his men. He kept his soldiers away from the sick people of Boston. He also refused to let his soldiers have contact with people fleeing Boston who might carry the virus. Some retreats by the Continental Army can even be linked to Washington's desire to avoid smallpox and his carefulness with his troops.
Stopping the Spread: Inoculation
Inoculation, also called variolation, was a method used in many parts of the world. It wasn't common in Europe, except for Wales, where it was reportedly used as early as 1600. The practice became more widely known over a century later thanks to Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. She had her own children inoculated against smallpox, even though many people were worried and disagreed with it.
Inoculation involved putting a small amount of infected material into a healthy person's body. The hope was that they would get a mild form of smallpox, recover, and then be immune to future infections. For those who survived, the inoculations worked. These people became immune to smallpox.
It's easy to understand why people were concerned about inoculation. Most ordinary people couldn't grasp why you would intentionally infect a healthy person with a potentially deadly disease. So, many were hesitant to have themselves or their family members inoculated. Sometimes, these fears were proven right, as some people who were inoculated still died from the smallpox they were exposed to. Also, there was a risk that inoculated patients could accidentally spread smallpox to others.
When important people like John Adams and Abigail Adams chose to be inoculated, it helped make the practice more accepted. But there was still a lot of progress to be made.
George Washington and Inoculation
George Washington played a big part in improving public health in America. While working with the Continental Army, Washington saw how smallpox and other diseases spread quickly through army camps. This often happened because the living conditions were cramped and dirty. Washington understood how destructive smallpox and other diseases like malaria, diphtheria, and scarlet fever could be. He was one of the first to suggest widespread health programs, such as mandatory inoculation.
Washington also knew about disease from his own life, not just from war. He had suffered from many illnesses himself and had seen his family members get sick. This made him a key figure in setting up American public health programs.
Besides quarantine, another way Washington kept his men healthy was through inoculation. Washington, like others at the time, didn't fully understand how the virus worked. However, he and others realized that men who had already gotten smallpox and recovered were unlikely to get sick a second time. So, Washington quickly saw the advantage of having these immune soldiers. During an outbreak in Boston, Washington sent troops made up only of men who had already had smallpox. This way, he could protect his soldiers and take advantage of Boston's weakness during the smallpox outbreak in March 1776.
At first, George Washington didn't want to inoculate his troops. He believed he could keep them healthy through cleanliness and quarantine. But as he saw many of his men get sick with smallpox, his policy changed. First, Washington realized that quarantine and trying to keep things clean weren't enough to keep his vital troops healthy and ready to fight. Also, many important people in colonial society were having themselves and their families inoculated. Eventually, even George Washington's wife, Martha Washington, was inoculated.
Not long after this, Washington started inoculating the American troops. Washington knew there were dangers in inoculating these men; some patients did die from the infection caused by inoculation. However, keeping his men healthy was more important than the risks. Almost all Continental soldiers were inoculated against smallpox.
Washington, who had survived smallpox himself, understood the danger it posed to his men. He said, "Necessity not only authorizes but seems to require the measure, for should the disorder infect the Army . . . we should have more to dread from it, than from the Sword of the Enemy." This meant he felt it was absolutely necessary because smallpox was more dangerous than the enemy's weapons.
However, it wasn't just Washington's decision. Local officials worried that inoculating soldiers might accidentally spread smallpox among civilians. But Washington kept pushing, and he managed to get most of his soldiers inoculated. Besides the growing popularity of the practice, Washington's decision to inoculate his troops was also very smart. He understood the huge impact an epidemic would have on his army.
At first, more British soldiers were immune than Americans. This was because inoculation was more accepted in Europe, and many British soldiers had gotten smallpox as children and become immune. So, a smallpox epidemic among Americans could have been disastrous for their cause. With his men at Valley Forge inoculated, Washington felt more confident, knowing his soldiers wouldn't be struck down by the smallpox virus.
John and Abigail Adams and Inoculation
Both John and Abigail Adams knew a lot about sickness. They had seen many family members, and themselves, get sick. So, Abigail made sure to teach her children about the dangers of disease and how to avoid it. These lessons included cleaning practices and using home remedies. The Adams family understood the harm smallpox could cause and feared its lasting effects.
In July 1764, John Adams set an example by choosing to be inoculated before it was a commonly accepted practice. Even though the methods were basic at that time, Adams survived and gained immunity. Adams described the inoculation process in a letter to his wife:
"Dr. Perkins demanded my left arm and Dr. Warren my brother's [probably Peter Boylston Adams]. They took their Lancets and with their Points divided the skin about a Quarter of an inch and just suffering the blood to appear, buried a thread (infected) about a Quarter of an inch long in the Channell. A little lint was then laid over the scratch and a Piece of Ragg pressed on, and then a Bandage bound over all, and I was bid go where and do what I pleased...Do not conclude from any Thing I have written that I think Inoculation a light matter -- A long and total abstinence from everything in Nature that has any Taste; two long heavy Vomits, one heavy Cathartick, four and twenty Mercurial and Antimonial Pills, and, Three weeks of Close Confinement to an House, are, according to my Estimation, no small matters."
By doing this, John Adams set an example for many. When he was inoculated, the practice was still very controversial and mistrusted by most. This was because some people who were inoculated died from the disease. Also, there was always the risk that inoculated patients could accidentally infect others. However, Adams understood that the benefits of inoculation were much greater than the possible risks.
With a background in medicine, Adams worked to teach others about his findings and beliefs. John Adams was a leading figure in the American Revolution. He played many important roles and was well-known. Adams was able to spread his modern ideas about public health programs like inoculation by using his influence during that time.
In July 1776, Abigail and their four children—Charles, Nabby, Thomas, and John Quincy—were all inoculated.
See also
In Spanish: Epidemia de viruela norteamericana de 1775-1782 para niños
