1832 – American Disasters

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Blog Post 9 (for Thursday, 4/3)

In his book “The Cholera Years”, which I reviewed, Charles Rosenberg demonstrates an interesting meta-narrative about disease and public health in America during the 19^th century. Reading “The Cholera Years” helped me realize that the 1832 Cholera epidemic in New York is part of a much bigger story; as a result, I decided it was necessary to narrow down my topic.

Almost all of my sources have mentioned a place called the Five Points in some capacity. Today, the Five Points is situated on Worth Street in lower Manhattan, between the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. During the 19^th century, however, this convergence formed the heart of New York City. It was a melting pot inhabited by individuals of various races, religions and nationalities, all of whom struggled to survive in complete destitution.

The Five Points played an important role in the 1832 Cholera epidemic, and its experience implicates many of the meta-narrative themes that Rosenberg described. This quagmire of filth and poverty represented a serious threat to the public health of the entire city: it was the perfect incubator for disease. Records from the 1832 epidemic attribute the greatest number of Cholera cases to the Five Points (Rosenberg, 33). I plan to explore the specific ways in which poverty contributed the remarkable virulence there— shared water sources, unsanitary methods of food preparation, etc. I also plan to describe the social effects of disease in such a densely populated and culturally diverse area.

Furthermore, I plan to demonstrate how perceptions of the Five Points demonstrated the extent to which epidemiology and morality were intellectually associated during the early 19^th century. Well-to-do New Yorkers understood epidemiology through the lens of morality. Lacking sufficient medical explanation for the spread of Cholera, they reasoned that Cholera was a form of divine retribution, and that inhabitants of the Five Points had exposed themselves by succumbing to vice. The Five Points had a reputation for immorality, after all; Rosenberg called it a “the city’s red light district” (33). Violent crime, unemployment and prostitution were commonplace. Gangs such as the Dead Rabbits and Bowery Boys famously clashed here during the 1860s.

In short, I’ve found a great case study, which I can use to make generalizations about the 1832 Cholera epidemic, its social effects, and its implications about the intersection of morality, medical science and public health in 19^th century American thought.

Research Proposal

Blog Post 5 (for Thursday, 2/27)

Tentative title: “Disease in the Modern World: The Cholera Epidemic of 1832”

The cholera epidemic of 1832 killed thousands of people and caused panic cross multiple continents. Seemingly healthy individuals could become diseased and die within hours. The circumstances of modernity— industrialization, urbanization, globalization and immigration — especially exacerbated the outbreak of cholera in New York City. Industrialization eroded the air and water in urban environments. Urbanization resulted in areas of highly concentrated population. Globalization connected the world in unprecedented ways, allowing for the transfer of goods and people. Immigrants brought disease along with them. The cholera epidemic of 1832 exemplified the relationship between modernity and disaster during the Gilded Age. It also demonstrated class disparity. Because the disease was spread through water supplies, members of the lower class were far more susceptible. Wealthy residents had access to cleaner water and better medical attention. Those who had the means fled the city seeking refuge.

The cholera epidemic of 1832 suggests the following historical questions: what was the relationship between American industrialization, immigration, globalization and the conditions that led to the cholera epidemic of 1832? What was the significance of class disparity during the cholera epidemic? To what extent was nature responsible for the cholera epidemic, and to what extent was mankind? What makes a Gilded Age/Progressive Era disaster different from other kinds of disaster, and in what ways does the cholera panic demonstrate this distinction? How do reactions to this particular epidemic illuminate contemporary perspectives of disaster?

There are many different angles from which to view the cholera epidemic of 1832, and as a result, there are many different types of relevant sources. Secondary sources are useful for gaining context for some of the larger themes surrounding the disaster, such as industrialization, urbanization, globalization, immigration and class disparity. I wasn’t able to find any articles that synthesized these broad but indisputably linked themes, unfortunately. Certain books, however, seemed promising. For example, Silent Travelers by Alan Kraut examines the connection between immigration and the transfer of disease during the Gilded Age/Progressive Era, and how this connection contributed to xenophobia. Primary sources would be useful to tease out the tones with which people spoke about immigration and class disparity. Medical journals would be useful to explain how the disease works, how it is transmitted, and the processes for treating it. A study of relationship between modernity and the cholera epidemic of 1832 would necessarily include a wide range of sources.

Tag: 1832

Research Proposal Update: Finding The “Five Points”

Research Proposal: The Cholera Epidemic of 1832