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Fever Season: The Story of a Terrifying Epidemic and the People Who Saved a City
While the American South had grown to expect a yellow fever breakout almost annually, the 1878 epidemic was without question the worst ever. Moving up the Mississippi River in the late summer, in the span of just a few months the fever killed more than eighteen thousand people. The city of Memphis, Tennessee, was particularly hard hit: Of the approximately twenty thousand who didn't flee the city, seventeen thousand contracted the fever, and more than five thousand died-the equivalent of a million New Yorkers dying in an epidemic today.Fever Season chronicles the drama in Memphis from the outbreak in August until the disease ran its course in late October. The story that Jeanette Keith uncovered is a profound-and never more relevant-account of how a catastrophe inspired reactions both heroic and cowardly. Some ministers, politicians, and police fled their constituents, while prostitutes and the poor risked their lives to nurse the sick. Using the vivid, anguished accounts and diaries of those who chose to stay and those who were left behind, Fever Season depicts the events of that summer and fall. In its pages we meet people of great courage and compassion, many of whom died for having those virtues. We also learn how a disaster can shape the future of a city.
268 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 2, 2012
About the author
Jeanette Keith
10 books4 followersJeanette Keith grew up in rural Tennessee, obtained a PhD from Vanderbilt University, and is currently a history professor at Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania. Her scholarly work has won awards from the Organization of American Historians and the Southern Association for Women Historians. Her most recent book, Fever Season, is written for a general audience, and reflects her interest in the impact of disease on human history.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
February 15, 2013
Mosquitoes transmit a virus that causes Yellow Fever. The virus originates in tropical climes, and is believed to have come to America from ships carrying slaves from Africa. After a few mild days, the disease can cause headache, nausea, and fever. Some victims recover and have lifelong immunity, but in ~15% of cases the fever returns, the heart, liver, and kidneys fail, and delirium sets in. The skin of victims turns dark yellow (hence Yellow Fever, also called "Bronze John"), they start hemorrhaging internally, and then may vomit blood so coagulated that it looks like black coffee grounds. Only a few people who vomit black survive, and their convalescence is slow.
In 1878, a long summer, a virulent viral strain, and a lack of understanding of how Yellow Fever is transmitted conspired to create a particularly terrible epidemic. The fever spread up the Mississippi Valley from New Orleans up to Illinois, killing ~18,000 people. Memphis was particularly hard-hit, due to geography and because corruption had left it without a modern water infrastructure. Instead, city dwellers stored their water close to their homes in barrels and cisterns, perfect for a Ae. aegypti mosquito infestation. And because Americans didn't realize mosquitoes transmit Yellow Fever until Walter Reed et al proved it in 1901, the doctors and nurses in 1870s Memphis could not effectively prevent the epidemic from spreading. They advised the uninfected populace to leave Memphis (due to quarantines in other areas, the refugees ended up in camps), provided what little medical care they could, and spent much of their time begging the rest of the US for food and charity and passing what supplies they had out. By the time cold weather hit and ended the epidemic, two-thirds of Memphis had contracted the fever, and more than a quarter of those had died.
Keith draws together personal journals and letters, newspaper articles, mortality reports, and city documents to create a multi-faceted portrait of the 1878 epidemic in Memphis.
In 1878, a long summer, a virulent viral strain, and a lack of understanding of how Yellow Fever is transmitted conspired to create a particularly terrible epidemic. The fever spread up the Mississippi Valley from New Orleans up to Illinois, killing ~18,000 people. Memphis was particularly hard-hit, due to geography and because corruption had left it without a modern water infrastructure. Instead, city dwellers stored their water close to their homes in barrels and cisterns, perfect for a Ae. aegypti mosquito infestation. And because Americans didn't realize mosquitoes transmit Yellow Fever until Walter Reed et al proved it in 1901, the doctors and nurses in 1870s Memphis could not effectively prevent the epidemic from spreading. They advised the uninfected populace to leave Memphis (due to quarantines in other areas, the refugees ended up in camps), provided what little medical care they could, and spent much of their time begging the rest of the US for food and charity and passing what supplies they had out. By the time cold weather hit and ended the epidemic, two-thirds of Memphis had contracted the fever, and more than a quarter of those had died.
Keith draws together personal journals and letters, newspaper articles, mortality reports, and city documents to create a multi-faceted portrait of the 1878 epidemic in Memphis.
January 2, 2013
I was born in Memphis and lived there until I was midway through middle school. It's changed a lot since then, but I still consider it home and hold it close in my memories. I've gone back when I could - to eat barbecue and look at the river. The Mississippi River is at its widest point at Memphis and if you grew up with it you'll be spoiled forever for any other river - it's just that breathtaking, insinuating itself into your veins.
When I was in elementary school I was fortunate to be admitted to the first year of the Talented and Gifted program at my school (which is now an "optional school" with an emphasis on enriched learning and college prep). It was a lifesaver for me because it was so much more challenging and I got to do some really cool things. One of the projects I did was a slide presentation and written report (no PowerPoint back in those days) on the Yellow Fever epidemic described in this book. It was so amazing to realize that so many people could be felled by mosquitos, although I wasn't really surprised. Mosquitos were an ongoing problem in the city when I was a child and I can remember the trucks out spraying for them in the summer and the kids in school who become ill with mosquito-born disease. Mosquitos are very serious and scary little bugs.
I became very interested in parasites and infectious disease and their influence on evolution when I was in college and graduate school for biological anthropology and remain fascinated to this day. All this is leading up to my reason for getting this book. So far as I know there hasn't been a good modern book on the epidemic and I wanted to know more.
Fever Season tells a story of heroism and chicanery, of the beginnings of the breakdown of barriers between the races and the subsequent breakdown, and most of all of an event that changed the city itself forever in ways that no one could have imagined. Ms. Keith's book is a fascinating and detailed account of the epidemic and the sociocultural and political context that informed how it was fought. You cannot wrap your brain around how many people died and how fast. In a chapter on the clergy who stayed you realize that almost all of them died and the ones that came to replace them died, too. Doctors, nurses, wealthy businessmen, poor whites and blacks - almost everybody died. The story is staggering, inspiring, poignant, maddening, and in many ways terrifying. You see, there still isn't a cure for yellow fever, and an outbreak today would spread and spread and kill and kill without serious (and probably unconstitutional) quarantine efforts.
Fascinating, deeply researched, and well-written, Ms. Keith will hold your attention to the bitter end. The world will look different to you after you read this book whether or not you have a connection to Memphis. Try and keep the mosquito population down, y'all.
When I was in elementary school I was fortunate to be admitted to the first year of the Talented and Gifted program at my school (which is now an "optional school" with an emphasis on enriched learning and college prep). It was a lifesaver for me because it was so much more challenging and I got to do some really cool things. One of the projects I did was a slide presentation and written report (no PowerPoint back in those days) on the Yellow Fever epidemic described in this book. It was so amazing to realize that so many people could be felled by mosquitos, although I wasn't really surprised. Mosquitos were an ongoing problem in the city when I was a child and I can remember the trucks out spraying for them in the summer and the kids in school who become ill with mosquito-born disease. Mosquitos are very serious and scary little bugs.
I became very interested in parasites and infectious disease and their influence on evolution when I was in college and graduate school for biological anthropology and remain fascinated to this day. All this is leading up to my reason for getting this book. So far as I know there hasn't been a good modern book on the epidemic and I wanted to know more.
Fever Season tells a story of heroism and chicanery, of the beginnings of the breakdown of barriers between the races and the subsequent breakdown, and most of all of an event that changed the city itself forever in ways that no one could have imagined. Ms. Keith's book is a fascinating and detailed account of the epidemic and the sociocultural and political context that informed how it was fought. You cannot wrap your brain around how many people died and how fast. In a chapter on the clergy who stayed you realize that almost all of them died and the ones that came to replace them died, too. Doctors, nurses, wealthy businessmen, poor whites and blacks - almost everybody died. The story is staggering, inspiring, poignant, maddening, and in many ways terrifying. You see, there still isn't a cure for yellow fever, and an outbreak today would spread and spread and kill and kill without serious (and probably unconstitutional) quarantine efforts.
Fascinating, deeply researched, and well-written, Ms. Keith will hold your attention to the bitter end. The world will look different to you after you read this book whether or not you have a connection to Memphis. Try and keep the mosquito population down, y'all.
June 30, 2014
Wait…
What just happened?
So, funny thing happened as I was reading a story about Yellow Fever- it suddenly turned into a three chapter ending about Robert Church founding the Blues-based Memphis we all know and love today. The problem was that, he was totally absent from the part of the book about Yellow Fever. He was introduced in the beginning along with the other “cast” of characters that would lead us through their personal experiences during the Yellow Fever outbreak of 1878. … And then the author states that we don’t know what happened to Mr. Church during the Outbreak. He might have fled the city with the other refugees, he may have been out of town on business, or he may have stayed and protected his property. We really have no idea… what we do know is that afterwards he became a very rich man of color, unusual for his time. It’s just so awkwardly tacked on to the end of this book, with incredibly loose tie-ins to the fever that it detracts from the overall story, which would have been more poignantly ended on the slow recovery of Memphis shortly after the fever.
It’s called a thesis people. I am a firm believer that history books need them, maybe not spelled out like you're some college student, but you need to know what it is. Your readers should be able to figure it out. Without a guiding principle your book meanders and doesn’t know where it should end.
For composition I would give this book a 2.5, it was going great until the end. For story telling it get s a 3.0, there was a good use of first-hand accounts and an effort to stay away from dramatization while accurately reflecting the horrors the volunteer nurses and doctors were seeing (finding decayed corpses in alleys where people just dropped from the fever and died alone, no one knowing they were there, children covered in flies as black blood burbled from their mouths) but frequently I wanted to know more and we would already be off on some other topic, a 4.5 for the extra effort illuminating the daring of minorities- woman and African Americans, the tensions between poor whites and others, Catholics and protestants, and so on. It was a good social history. In the end, it averages to a 3 for me. Everything was new information, and it was interesting, I just wish the story had felt more guided.
To read my review of my Natural Disaster Themed read which included 10 different disaster books click link: Here!
What just happened?
So, funny thing happened as I was reading a story about Yellow Fever- it suddenly turned into a three chapter ending about Robert Church founding the Blues-based Memphis we all know and love today. The problem was that, he was totally absent from the part of the book about Yellow Fever. He was introduced in the beginning along with the other “cast” of characters that would lead us through their personal experiences during the Yellow Fever outbreak of 1878. … And then the author states that we don’t know what happened to Mr. Church during the Outbreak. He might have fled the city with the other refugees, he may have been out of town on business, or he may have stayed and protected his property. We really have no idea… what we do know is that afterwards he became a very rich man of color, unusual for his time. It’s just so awkwardly tacked on to the end of this book, with incredibly loose tie-ins to the fever that it detracts from the overall story, which would have been more poignantly ended on the slow recovery of Memphis shortly after the fever.
It’s called a thesis people. I am a firm believer that history books need them, maybe not spelled out like you're some college student, but you need to know what it is. Your readers should be able to figure it out. Without a guiding principle your book meanders and doesn’t know where it should end.
For composition I would give this book a 2.5, it was going great until the end. For story telling it get s a 3.0, there was a good use of first-hand accounts and an effort to stay away from dramatization while accurately reflecting the horrors the volunteer nurses and doctors were seeing (finding decayed corpses in alleys where people just dropped from the fever and died alone, no one knowing they were there, children covered in flies as black blood burbled from their mouths) but frequently I wanted to know more and we would already be off on some other topic, a 4.5 for the extra effort illuminating the daring of minorities- woman and African Americans, the tensions between poor whites and others, Catholics and protestants, and so on. It was a good social history. In the end, it averages to a 3 for me. Everything was new information, and it was interesting, I just wish the story had felt more guided.
To read my review of my Natural Disaster Themed read which included 10 different disaster books click link: Here!
October 19, 2020
Yellow fever hit Memphis, Tennessee in 1878 and killed 18,000 people. Keith skillfully describes the shattering experience, as citizens struggle to survive or help others to do so.
No one of that era understood that yellow fever was caused by mosquitos that lay their eggs in cisterns, buckets and other containers of standing water. Although many “cures” were touted, none were successfully, and the Memphis would soon be under a city-wide quarantine.
As has been seen in other epidemics, the people who rise to become leaders and risk their lives in doing so are surprising: “sporting men” and prostitutes often labored courageously, while pillars of the community abandoned their families and caught a train out of town. A mystery, but apparently true: Catholic and Episcopalian clerics remained; many Baptist ministers fled.
Because it happened a little over a decade after emancipation – and the city had a significant Black population – issues and tension regarding race become a part of the story, as citizens must work together in ways they had not before. Blacks in positions of authority, such as the Police, become crucial to the maintenance of order. Women, too, become heroic figures.
But in the aftermath of the epidemic, Jim Crow and sexism become rigidly enforced and only white men are invited to be honored at events thanking those who rallied to the city. In that respect, it would seem that little was learned from the illness and deaths of so many people.
An enlightening book to read, as the world faces more epidemics and pandemics.
No one of that era understood that yellow fever was caused by mosquitos that lay their eggs in cisterns, buckets and other containers of standing water. Although many “cures” were touted, none were successfully, and the Memphis would soon be under a city-wide quarantine.
As has been seen in other epidemics, the people who rise to become leaders and risk their lives in doing so are surprising: “sporting men” and prostitutes often labored courageously, while pillars of the community abandoned their families and caught a train out of town. A mystery, but apparently true: Catholic and Episcopalian clerics remained; many Baptist ministers fled.
Because it happened a little over a decade after emancipation – and the city had a significant Black population – issues and tension regarding race become a part of the story, as citizens must work together in ways they had not before. Blacks in positions of authority, such as the Police, become crucial to the maintenance of order. Women, too, become heroic figures.
But in the aftermath of the epidemic, Jim Crow and sexism become rigidly enforced and only white men are invited to be honored at events thanking those who rallied to the city. In that respect, it would seem that little was learned from the illness and deaths of so many people.
An enlightening book to read, as the world faces more epidemics and pandemics.
November 18, 2012
An interesting but tedious account of the 1878 yellow fever epidemic in Memphis. I enjoyed the cast of characters, and the element of race relations that ebbed and flowed before during and after the epidemic. Keith's contrast of Memphis before and after regarding the economic opportunities for black Americans was intriguing.
But, I never felt like I was there during the epidemic. There was something missing in the delivery to create the tension necessary to transport the reader to the time and place and make him/her feel that it is happening all over again. Erik Larsen knows how to do it, as do many others. Perhaps it was the nature of the primary source documents available. Perhaps it was the endless quotations Keith used, which come naturally to her as a PhD historian. I found myself skimming the last few chapters, and in the end this was a struggle for me to read all the way through. I was glad I did, for the historical significance, but I wish it had been a more exciting ride, especially because of the subject matter. I wanted to feel for Memphis the way I feel for victims of any natural or man made catastrophe. But it just didn't rise to that level for me.
But, I never felt like I was there during the epidemic. There was something missing in the delivery to create the tension necessary to transport the reader to the time and place and make him/her feel that it is happening all over again. Erik Larsen knows how to do it, as do many others. Perhaps it was the nature of the primary source documents available. Perhaps it was the endless quotations Keith used, which come naturally to her as a PhD historian. I found myself skimming the last few chapters, and in the end this was a struggle for me to read all the way through. I was glad I did, for the historical significance, but I wish it had been a more exciting ride, especially because of the subject matter. I wanted to feel for Memphis the way I feel for victims of any natural or man made catastrophe. But it just didn't rise to that level for me.
August 9, 2013
I wanted to love this. In fact, I should have loved this. It's a fascinating topic with interesting stories and characters. But the plot was so disjointed, the characters and timeline so hard to follow, that I felt like I had yellow fever. But without the black vomit, thankfully. The author clearly did her research, but it just wasn't presented well.
April 1, 2016
Fascinating look at a major epidemic.
October 16, 2019
5/5 stars
Recommended for people who like: history, nonfiction, US history, epidemics, disease history, immunology, Yellow Fever
Keith does a good job outlining the events leading up to and during the 1878 Yellow Fever Epidemic. The first couple of chapters are solely on the beginning of the epidemic and reading them is a bit like watching a train wreck. The Fever starts in NOLA, but due to poor quarantine and lack of solid knowledge about the Fever just leads to one thing after another that leads to the outbreak in Memphis, and it's just one of those things that you read with growing horror because some of the stuff that wasn't implemented could've saved lives, but at the same time, people really didn't know what spread the Fever and so couldn't implement procedures that seem so obvious to us now.
The rest of the chapters after the set-up deal a lot with individual people Keith has chosen to focus on. One is an editor of a newspaper, Keating, who stayed in Memphis and printed his paper throughout the entire epidemic and did volunteer work as well. DePelchin was a nurse from Houston, TX who endured some faith-shock while in Memphis but continued to work dutifully for the Fever patients and only collected her pay to give away to surviving family members of patients or to buy supplies to better treat patients. Landrum was a reverend who stayed in Memphis after the Fever broke out and had to see his two youngest sons die. Dr. Armstrong, who also stayed in Memphis to help Fever patients, though he sent his children and pregnant wife out of town for their safety. Menken, a shopkeeper who also sent his family out of town and had planned to follow, but saw the extent of the epidemic and stayed to help. Smaller portions of the chapters are dedicated to other, less 'main characters' who played a role in the epidemic. Some of them were militiamen or policemen, others were nurses and Sisters, and others were just everyday people who either could not or would not leave Memphis once the Fever broke out.
One thing I enjoyed was the recognition of the work done by African-Americans during the epidemic. While it may seem a bit obvious that a book set in Memphis just over a decade after the end of the Civil War would have to acknowledge the role they played, this is a book on American History written by a white American author and the bar for white American authors (or perhaps white authors in general, but all of the US History books I've read are by Americans) to acknowledge anyone other than white people in history is underground. The details about what members of the Black community were doing and how they served during the epidemic is an important detail in its history and I found it refreshing that it wasn't ignored. I also enjoyed how Keith addresses how the typical erasure of Black people from history books, even other history books dealing with the 1878 epidemic, began to occur in the 1890s and that it was perpetuated by how "White southerners chose not to know" (211) and really exemplifies attitudes toward non-white (and often non-male and non-straight) participants in history.
If you're interested in this particular epidemic, or just Yellow Fever in general as I was, this is a pretty good read for it. Keith includes a lot of quotes, and there were some bits I had to reread, but I think the overall readability of the book is solid. I prefer to read nonfiction books over a period of several days just so I can process the detailed information better, but I do think this is the kind of book someone could get through in a couple hours if you have a plane, bus, or train ride to get through.
Recommended for people who like: history, nonfiction, US history, epidemics, disease history, immunology, Yellow Fever
Keith does a good job outlining the events leading up to and during the 1878 Yellow Fever Epidemic. The first couple of chapters are solely on the beginning of the epidemic and reading them is a bit like watching a train wreck. The Fever starts in NOLA, but due to poor quarantine and lack of solid knowledge about the Fever just leads to one thing after another that leads to the outbreak in Memphis, and it's just one of those things that you read with growing horror because some of the stuff that wasn't implemented could've saved lives, but at the same time, people really didn't know what spread the Fever and so couldn't implement procedures that seem so obvious to us now.
The rest of the chapters after the set-up deal a lot with individual people Keith has chosen to focus on. One is an editor of a newspaper, Keating, who stayed in Memphis and printed his paper throughout the entire epidemic and did volunteer work as well. DePelchin was a nurse from Houston, TX who endured some faith-shock while in Memphis but continued to work dutifully for the Fever patients and only collected her pay to give away to surviving family members of patients or to buy supplies to better treat patients. Landrum was a reverend who stayed in Memphis after the Fever broke out and had to see his two youngest sons die. Dr. Armstrong, who also stayed in Memphis to help Fever patients, though he sent his children and pregnant wife out of town for their safety. Menken, a shopkeeper who also sent his family out of town and had planned to follow, but saw the extent of the epidemic and stayed to help. Smaller portions of the chapters are dedicated to other, less 'main characters' who played a role in the epidemic. Some of them were militiamen or policemen, others were nurses and Sisters, and others were just everyday people who either could not or would not leave Memphis once the Fever broke out.
One thing I enjoyed was the recognition of the work done by African-Americans during the epidemic. While it may seem a bit obvious that a book set in Memphis just over a decade after the end of the Civil War would have to acknowledge the role they played, this is a book on American History written by a white American author and the bar for white American authors (or perhaps white authors in general, but all of the US History books I've read are by Americans) to acknowledge anyone other than white people in history is underground. The details about what members of the Black community were doing and how they served during the epidemic is an important detail in its history and I found it refreshing that it wasn't ignored. I also enjoyed how Keith addresses how the typical erasure of Black people from history books, even other history books dealing with the 1878 epidemic, began to occur in the 1890s and that it was perpetuated by how "White southerners chose not to know" (211) and really exemplifies attitudes toward non-white (and often non-male and non-straight) participants in history.
If you're interested in this particular epidemic, or just Yellow Fever in general as I was, this is a pretty good read for it. Keith includes a lot of quotes, and there were some bits I had to reread, but I think the overall readability of the book is solid. I prefer to read nonfiction books over a period of several days just so I can process the detailed information better, but I do think this is the kind of book someone could get through in a couple hours if you have a plane, bus, or train ride to get through.
June 9, 2021
Great story, almost like a novel and great familiarity
I really enjoyed reading this, mainly because I've lived in the Memphis area all my life and it was cool reading of streets, small towns, etc., where I go frequently and know well. The history book is written in a very engaging manner, very much like a novel but it's not historical-fiction by any means. That said, there needs to be a mini-series about Memphis during the Yellow Fever based on this book. That would be so cool, Memphis very seldomly getting any attention. I liked Bluff City Law but, no surprise, NBC cancelled it as they do with every good show (they cancelled the original Star Trek too and cancelled Grimm). Anyway, tangent aside, this is a great book.
I really enjoyed reading this, mainly because I've lived in the Memphis area all my life and it was cool reading of streets, small towns, etc., where I go frequently and know well. The history book is written in a very engaging manner, very much like a novel but it's not historical-fiction by any means. That said, there needs to be a mini-series about Memphis during the Yellow Fever based on this book. That would be so cool, Memphis very seldomly getting any attention. I liked Bluff City Law but, no surprise, NBC cancelled it as they do with every good show (they cancelled the original Star Trek too and cancelled Grimm). Anyway, tangent aside, this is a great book.
January 24, 2022
As a Memphian I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others. I think it portraits an interesting view of the period which I did not know a lot about. I do enjoy books that tell a history of a very specific event and I think this one does well. The individual stories are enough to give a feeling of connection, more than just a basic narrative of the time without being exhaustive. A pretty concise narrative that you should be able to knock out without a lot of time. Not a 100% must read, but if you are interested in the period, location or virology, it is worth your time.
May 1, 2023
I like how the book went through various topics that happened during the pandemic, it talked about the struggles the scientists had in trying to find a "cure", what poor people, as well as rich people went through. How at times races didn't matter to anyone because of what was going on. It wasn't just a book trying to explain what happened with data only. But sometimes I think the references to later years after the 1878 pandemic were not as useful or distracted me from the main idea.
November 24, 2017
a bit heavy on the history for me but still a fascinating read
August 19, 2019
This was so dry and boring
October 8, 2020
Yellow fever, Memphis 1878.
We're in the middle of COVID-19 pandemic, so I'm seeking out books about other massive epidemic calamities.
We're in the middle of COVID-19 pandemic, so I'm seeking out books about other massive epidemic calamities.
September 27, 2012
"When those who lived through the epidemic tried to describe it, they talked about the sudden, eerie quiet . . . Half the population had fled upon the outbreak of the fever, but an estimated twenty thousand remained. You would think that that many people would produce noise sufficient to demonstrate their presence, but the voices we have from Memphis in the summer of 1878- mostly doctors, nurses, and journalists- agree that the city felt abandoned."
"From August to October 1878, the people of Memphis suffered through an experience unique in American history. Yellow fever is a viral hemorrhagic fever passed from human to human by mosquitoes. Although mild cases produce flu-like symptoms, at its worst yellow fever is comparable to Ebola. The virus strain that cause the 1878 epidemic was extremely virulent. The fever spread up the Mississippi Valley from New Orleans to Illinois and killed an estimated eighteen thousand people. But it was Memphis' plight that riveted national attention. At least two thirds of the people in Memphis contracted the fever, and about one quarter died, more that five thousand in all."
From the beginning pages, Fever Season by Jeanette Keith is captivating, straightforward, and heartbreaking. Her narration of the yellow fever epidemic in Memphis, Tennessee in 1878 breathes life into the people caught in the midst of great suffering and death. It is stirring and tragic to simply scratch the surface of this horrifying disease, and how it struck dead many in Memphis. Keith does a masterful job weaving together different story lines to provide an insider's look at what it was like to be in Memphis when people were dying in droves.
Keith also speaks at some length about race and its divisions, the unease of the white population in being driven to interact with the African American population much more intimately than they are used to, and the effects of the epidemic on interracial interactions. This is especially pertinent since the yellow fever outbreak roughly coincided with the end of Reconstruction, and many of the major players in the city at the time were former members of the Confederacy.
A well-written book worth a read. I recommend it highly.
"From August to October 1878, the people of Memphis suffered through an experience unique in American history. Yellow fever is a viral hemorrhagic fever passed from human to human by mosquitoes. Although mild cases produce flu-like symptoms, at its worst yellow fever is comparable to Ebola. The virus strain that cause the 1878 epidemic was extremely virulent. The fever spread up the Mississippi Valley from New Orleans to Illinois and killed an estimated eighteen thousand people. But it was Memphis' plight that riveted national attention. At least two thirds of the people in Memphis contracted the fever, and about one quarter died, more that five thousand in all."
From the beginning pages, Fever Season by Jeanette Keith is captivating, straightforward, and heartbreaking. Her narration of the yellow fever epidemic in Memphis, Tennessee in 1878 breathes life into the people caught in the midst of great suffering and death. It is stirring and tragic to simply scratch the surface of this horrifying disease, and how it struck dead many in Memphis. Keith does a masterful job weaving together different story lines to provide an insider's look at what it was like to be in Memphis when people were dying in droves.
Keith also speaks at some length about race and its divisions, the unease of the white population in being driven to interact with the African American population much more intimately than they are used to, and the effects of the epidemic on interracial interactions. This is especially pertinent since the yellow fever outbreak roughly coincided with the end of Reconstruction, and many of the major players in the city at the time were former members of the Confederacy.
A well-written book worth a read. I recommend it highly.
January 22, 2013
This book is a compelling account of the Yellow Fever Epidemic in Memphis, Tennessee in 1878. The fever which had struck several southern cities in the past was difficult to deal with. There were not any successful treatments. People survived it or they did not. All sorts of theories were thought of as to the cause, the dominant one in this book was sanitation although as we now know it was the mosquito and the popular use of cistern not fresh water that was the culprit. This books expands on race relations that at the time were not as strained as one might think in a southern city. The author points out that African Americans served as policeman, helpers and nurses when some white doctors and prominent people fled the city. This story is tragic in that babies died in their mother's arms, whole families died, homes were deserted, looters died of the fever while looting the abandoned homes.
Many doctors and nurses who chose to stay died because of their selfless devotion. Medical and material help did come and there are some fascinating accounts of people giving in spite of society's prejudice, such as a brothel madame who opened her house to any one needing care and in so doing earned her wings and paid with her life. She was laid to rest with the doctors who perished and any sins she had were seemingly erased by her selfless call to duty.
A Jewish store owner and his temple group helped every person regardless of religion, status or race. They provided doctors, nurses, beds, food-- all to save a city they loved. Baptist ministers, Catholic nuns, agnostic nurses all worked very hard and some gave the fullest measure of devotion to save Memphis.
In some ways, this was a rare moment in time in the post-civil war south when people of all races, religions and status did all they could to fight a deadly epidemic. The results of this epidemic were far reaching and still effect Memphis today. Fever season is a powerful testament to the fact that epidemics show every person the height of human goodness and the deep cellar of human greed and self interest. An excellent book!
Many doctors and nurses who chose to stay died because of their selfless devotion. Medical and material help did come and there are some fascinating accounts of people giving in spite of society's prejudice, such as a brothel madame who opened her house to any one needing care and in so doing earned her wings and paid with her life. She was laid to rest with the doctors who perished and any sins she had were seemingly erased by her selfless call to duty.
A Jewish store owner and his temple group helped every person regardless of religion, status or race. They provided doctors, nurses, beds, food-- all to save a city they loved. Baptist ministers, Catholic nuns, agnostic nurses all worked very hard and some gave the fullest measure of devotion to save Memphis.
In some ways, this was a rare moment in time in the post-civil war south when people of all races, religions and status did all they could to fight a deadly epidemic. The results of this epidemic were far reaching and still effect Memphis today. Fever season is a powerful testament to the fact that epidemics show every person the height of human goodness and the deep cellar of human greed and self interest. An excellent book!
December 31, 2013
Keith recounts the 1878 Yellow Fever epidemic, which devastated Memphis. Indeed, it was almost the last straw for the beleaguered city, which was already mired in debt and disorganization before the outbreak. She goes into a bit of the history of the time, the impact of the Civil war, the reverberations of which were still being felt, the lack of knowledge about the disease, and the people who kept the city going. Keith does a commendable job not only with the history and facts, but with the people of the time. There are several people who figured prominently, and they are not whitewashed but presented for whom they were- complications, warts, strengths and all. The book also goes into the aftermath of the outbreak, and how it changed the city.
One interesting- and tragic note- brought up was the effect of Jim Crow after the outbreak. Black residents who were lauded for their efforts during the Yellow Fever epidemic were shunted aside and forgotten as "separate but equal" became the order of the day. I also found it ironic that the people who fled the epidemic- often because they were told to in an effort to reduce the impact, were treated like traitors when they did return. In the early days of the outbreak, people had been encouraged to leave to "reduce the human fuel" needed by the disease. While the reasoning was wrong the idea was probably the right one. Also, the slew of non-immune people who came to aid the suffering I have to wonder (hindsight being 20/20) if they merely swelled the ranks of the dead, doing more harm than good ultimately. In all, more than 5,000 people are estimated to have died. I recommend this for history buffs.
One interesting- and tragic note- brought up was the effect of Jim Crow after the outbreak. Black residents who were lauded for their efforts during the Yellow Fever epidemic were shunted aside and forgotten as "separate but equal" became the order of the day. I also found it ironic that the people who fled the epidemic- often because they were told to in an effort to reduce the impact, were treated like traitors when they did return. In the early days of the outbreak, people had been encouraged to leave to "reduce the human fuel" needed by the disease. While the reasoning was wrong the idea was probably the right one. Also, the slew of non-immune people who came to aid the suffering I have to wonder (hindsight being 20/20) if they merely swelled the ranks of the dead, doing more harm than good ultimately. In all, more than 5,000 people are estimated to have died. I recommend this for history buffs.
November 28, 2013
I have a familial attachment to this story. My Great Grandfather was one who felt that it was better to protect his family than stay in what appeared to be the dying city of Memphis. Along with his in-laws he took his wife, children and a servant to Iuka, MS to weather out the storm. Unfortunately, when he returned to the city in November of 1878 he was fired from his position at the Post Office for abandoning his post. He was a veteran of the previous War, and was not afraid for himself. This led to a "conversation" between two of the city's newspapers ("The Public Ledger" and "The Avalanche") who took opposite sides in this situation. Ms. Keith clearly sides with those who stayed in the city and in a subtle way casts aspersions upon those who did not. Perhaps this comes from an over reliance upon the editor of "The Memphis Daily Appeal" (now the "Memphis Commercial Appeal") as a source.
Reading this has caused me to more deeply pursue what it was like in the city during that time, and I have located and read a number of first person accounts (primarily from The Appeal, but other newspapers and documents also.) The newspaper sources are online (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/) and make fascinating reading.
While I believe this is a well written book, the author's comment's concerning Molly Caldwell Crosby's The American Plague in the introduction were unnecessary. This almost turned me away from the book. Excuse me that Ms Crosby doesn't have this author's eminent academic background.
Reading this has caused me to more deeply pursue what it was like in the city during that time, and I have located and read a number of first person accounts (primarily from The Appeal, but other newspapers and documents also.) The newspaper sources are online (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/) and make fascinating reading.
While I believe this is a well written book, the author's comment's concerning Molly Caldwell Crosby's The American Plague in the introduction were unnecessary. This almost turned me away from the book. Excuse me that Ms Crosby doesn't have this author's eminent academic background.
December 23, 2020
Yellow fever is one of those dread diseases that, even if there is still no cure, we call all be thankful that we now know how to prevent.
Jeannette Keith begins Fever Season explaining the extent to which Memphis was a dirty, dysfunctional city. As she succinctly notes on page 27: "As a center for the cotton trade, Memphis was spectacularly successful. As a city, it was a failure." In any case, the Ae. aegypti mosquito breeds in fresh, clean water, like that the housewives across the city used to collect in cisterns each day. It is no surprise, then, that Memphis - and cities across the South - regularly experienced outbreaks of yellow fever. The 1878 outbreak was especially virulent, though, killing the vast majority of those who contracted it and decimating the entire population.
Fever Season offers a glimpse not only of a terrifying disease whose hallmark was the especially foul-smelling black vomit, but of the American South in the year immediately after Reconstruction. Although black and white worked side-by-side to nurse the sick and police the city, such commonality of purpose could not and did not last. In the closing pages, Keith builds the case for how the yellow fever epidemic laid the groundwork for Elvis's initial Memphis success some 75 years later.
Jeannette Keith begins Fever Season explaining the extent to which Memphis was a dirty, dysfunctional city. As she succinctly notes on page 27: "As a center for the cotton trade, Memphis was spectacularly successful. As a city, it was a failure." In any case, the Ae. aegypti mosquito breeds in fresh, clean water, like that the housewives across the city used to collect in cisterns each day. It is no surprise, then, that Memphis - and cities across the South - regularly experienced outbreaks of yellow fever. The 1878 outbreak was especially virulent, though, killing the vast majority of those who contracted it and decimating the entire population.
Fever Season offers a glimpse not only of a terrifying disease whose hallmark was the especially foul-smelling black vomit, but of the American South in the year immediately after Reconstruction. Although black and white worked side-by-side to nurse the sick and police the city, such commonality of purpose could not and did not last. In the closing pages, Keith builds the case for how the yellow fever epidemic laid the groundwork for Elvis's initial Memphis success some 75 years later.
January 20, 2013
An excellent telling of an important part of regional history that affected more than just the region. Jeanette Keith does a very good job of showing how public health, nursing, epidemiological, sociological, and racial issues were all impacted by this one summer from hell in Memphis. It also gives a good luck at the impact of reconstruction and what came after reconstruction was declared "finished". A lot of information in a rather small book, but very well told.
December 31, 2012
When I was little I learned about yellow fever and it scared me half to death. This book, though dry in places, kept my attention through the whole thing. The end of the book gives the account of everyone who survived the epidemic which made me happy because I felt attached to one nurse in particular. Overall I'm happy with it.
August 8, 2013
Very human look at the way different people respond to the horrific yellow fever outbreak that killed an incredible number of people in 1878. I was looking for a more scientific perspective but this was perhaps a more important book to read. The major lesson of this book is to not go to the epidemic city assuming you have immunity. Be certain.
March 17, 2014
fascinating look into an epidemic. Also interesting from a historical perspective but the strength for me was the certainty that if we were hit like this now we'd probably be in the same kind of place. Not recognizing it when it arrives. generally acting slowly and with missteps. and while some people will act badly for the most part, people will rise to the occasion.
March 12, 2014
Worth toting the hardback version along on a trip.
Well-written, engaging, and a pretty fast read considering all the material covered.
Also reminded me of how ignorant I am of much of my country's history.
More reviews at the other entry for this book:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
Well-written, engaging, and a pretty fast read considering all the material covered.
Also reminded me of how ignorant I am of much of my country's history.
More reviews at the other entry for this book:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
May 21, 2013
Brings to life what it must have been like to live through a plague, not in the Middle Ages, but just before the 20th century in a city I lived in for 4 years. Rather tough reading, but I'm glad I did.
January 13, 2013
Very informative. Although I found it bordering on textbook at times, the author managed to add enough human emotion to make me want to keep reading.....who knew that there was ever such an epidemic on American shores.
January 17, 2013
Well written and quite interesting, I just could not get past the halfway mark as it was so depressing. I learned quite a bit about the South, Memphis and epidemics. If you like history, you might really enjoy it.
November 12, 2012
Fascinating and well-written. Highly recommended for anyone else who likes history that talks a lot about disease and racial and cultural divisions.
December 22, 2012
Good history sad subject.
February 13, 2013
Fantastic exploration of race, religion, and gender in reconstruction era Memphis. If you were only going to read one book about Southern history and culture, you should read this one.
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