Deadly Glow: The Radium Dial Worker Tragedy

by Ross Mullner

Deadly Glow is an important story of a public health tragedy. It chronicles the lives of numerous young women who worked in radium application plants in the early 1900s painting numerals on instrument and watch dials. From their experience, the harmful effects of radium deposited in the body became known. The victims suffered from skin ulcerations, tumors, and other severe medical symptoms. Physicians were baffled and misdiagnosed their conditions as heart disease and even syphilis. Solving the intriguing mystery of the workers' disabling, yet unknown, disease would be a complex and difficult task requiring brilliant detective work of several investigators. In time, this tragedy would be recognized as the worlds' first mass experience with injury and death caused by exposure to atomic radiation. This is a compelling story for occupational medicine, health physics, radiation safety, and public health workers. But for all people, Deadly Glow will tell the dreadful tale and heroic conclusion of a public health disaster.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, History

175 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1999

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really interesting but terribly sad story about the women who painted glow in the dark numerals on watches back in the 1920's. They used Radium and back then, people didn't know (or chose to ignore) the health consequences of exposure to radiation. Many, if not most, of these women, died horrible deaths.

I had first heard about these women a few years ago in another book I read and I decided to learn more. It's the story about typical corporations - oh, we're not responsible - no, you can't sue us because you can't prove it - oh, the statute of limitations is up - and other normal corporate BS. Makes you angry! But if this tragedy hadn't happened then more people would have died. This got people's attention to the deleterious effects of radiation on people and forced safety standards at factories.

Well researched book. The author worked at the Center for Human Radiobiology. I only wish there were MORE stories and MORE detail. I was curious as to the effects of the radium on the worker's husbands and children. Many of them were highly radioactive and with every breath they expelled radon. What happened to those around them? Their children born after they were exposed? The Center followed many of these women for years. Although we are treated to a list of their ages and their cause of death and year in the appendix, the chapter on the follow-up is very brief. Patient confidentiality? I'm not sure.

Recommended if you want to learn about a little known fact about our history and the history of radioactive substances in the U.S.

[saanvi]

no my history teacher has got to be my no1 opp,,,,,she told me 'why dont you watch the movie and see how historically accurate it is and write your essay about that???" and the film has joey king in it. is that even allowed. is that fair.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This historical treatment of the Radium Girls is rather effective for its size, but is less about the Radium Girls than I would have liked. Mullner, with training on health science and radioactivity, paints a truly fascinating history of our understanding of the dangers of radium - beginning with Marie and Pierre Curie and culminating in the Cold War arms race. Mixing science, health, and occupational safety, Mullner tells a compelling story about the dangers of science and man's propensity for great discoveries and great evils alike.

The length is perfect and the pace is great. The number of images included is rather helpful and the chapter delineations make for clear reading. That being said, the text relates more to history of radium and its dangers than the Radium Girls themselves, and Mullner does a poor job of describing or interpreting who the women were outside of their suffering. Admittedly, that isn't his goal, so I can't critique it too much. However, those looking for a more personal history of the Radium Girls will be left lacking. Personally, I thought it was a very good book.

I would recommend this book to my Dad, because he would enjoy the scientific narrative and themes more than a personal account of the women like Clark or Moore's. For most of my other friends, I would recommend one of the other two texts.

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't wild about The Radium Girls as the science was severely lacking, almost to an irresponsible degree. I was hoping I'd like this one better. The science was marginally better but it is not a major publication with flashy editing and thus reads a little dry. I did enjoy the fact that there was more background into the history of radium, and also more follow up about nuclear weapons and OH&S standards. I'd always been under the impression that the only knowledge of radioactivity affecting humans was based on bomb survivors but a lot of research was done on radium dial painters and people who had ingested radium for "health reasons" (it was a thing!). While this book answered a few of the questions I was left with after The Radium Girls, now I have a bunch more. I guess the book I want to read about this issue doesn't exist.

Thanks to Saskatoon Public Library for the inter-library loan!

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

More technical than Radium Girls, this book also covers more of a longitudinal view of the history of radium and then later uranium and plutonium.
This book also has pictures/diagrams which was good but unfortunately reads more like a textbook than literature (as opposed to Radium Girls).

[Susan Procter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written and very interesting.

[Maddie Dresen · Rating 3 out of 5]

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