Anthropology Publications

Ch2olera: Hamilton's Forgotten Epidemics

D. Ann Herring et al. — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:13:50 PDT

Cholera is an ancient disease that has been feared for centuries. It often appears suddenly, seems to spread rapidly and inexplicably and, in the absence of effective treatment, kills quite violently. It has had many nicknames, including “King Cholera” and “the blue death" (due to the bluish pallor of its victims). Although it is still very much present in the world today, cholera remains the quintessential disease of 19th-century cities, the disease that drove improvements in water sources, sewer construction, and public health in Europe and North America. This book is about Hamilton's cholera epidemics in 1832 and 1854, outbreaks that place the city within the sphere of recurring global pandemics and make it a fascinating example of how communities cope with a new disease of unknown cause.

Miasma To Microscopes: The Russian Influenza Pandemic in Hamilton

Ann Herring et al. — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:57:53 PST

While many readers will be familiar with the well known “Spanish Influenza”, a
term that refers to the iconic 1918 influenza pandemic, its predecessor, the
Russian Influenza – a pandemic that occurred in several waves during the late
nineteenth century (1889-94) – seems to have been lost from public memory. Yet,
in a mere four months it spread rapidly around a world that was becoming
increasingly interconnected by ships and railways (Valleron et al. 2010).
The details of the pandemic’s progress and effects were extensively reported in
newspapers and medical periodicals. The people of Hamilton were well aware of
its movements long before it reached the city. As an illness that seemed to
manifest itself simultaneously in mild and severe forms, doctors of the period
were at a loss to explain what was causing such widespread and variable suffering
(Smith 1995:55). This was a time when medical authorities debated whether
disease was caused by miasma – noxious odours and poisonous gases – or by
invisible bacteria that could only be seen with a microscope; a time in which the
public was essentially left to its own devices to treat the illness popularly known
as “la grippe”.

Anatomy of a Pandemic: The 1918 Influenza in Hamilton

D Ann Herring et al. — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 07:22:47 PDT

The 1918 influenza pandemic has fascinated scholars ever since it swept around the world in three waves in the spring and fall of 1918, and the winter of 1919. Although the origins of the epidemic are still debated, it spread in conjunction with troop movements associated with World War I and along trade routes. No matter where it struck, large numbers of people fell ill. The pandemic may have killed anywhere from 50 to 100 million people (Johnson and Mueller 2002), but there are no reliable estimates of its devastation, not only in terms of human life, but also in terms of social disruption, the fracturing of families, and the loss of friends.

Recurrence and resilience : the third wave of the 1918-19 influenza pandemic in Hamilton

D Ann Herring et al. — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 13:06:00 PDT

In June of 2009, the World Health Organization declared an influenza pandemic after over 74 countries reported laboratory-confirmed cases. Genetic analysis showed that this particular influenza was caused by an H1N1 strain unrelated to the human seasonal viruses that had circulated around the world since 1977 (WHO 2010b). In the wake of this announcement, those of us living in Hamilton, Ontario (and in Canada as a whole) were swept up in vigorous public health campaigns that included comprehensive vaccination programs and daily, often alarming, reports about the spread of infection. The 2009 virus, and patterns of illness and death it produced, were eerily similar to those observed during the 1918-19 influenza pandemic and comparisons between the two were often made.

Before ‘The San’: Tuberculosis in Hamilton at the Turn of the Twentieth Century

D Ann Herring et al. — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 09:11:18 PDT

At the turn of the twentieth century, tuberculosis was declining in Canada, but the effects of industrialization and urbanization created ideal conditions for continued spread of the disease. Living in a thriving urban-industrial center, the people of Hamilton were deeply affected by tuberculosis. This book tells their story through topics that range from geographic and demographic patterns of tuberculosis deaths within the city, folk and medical treatments, the sanatorium movement that led to the building of the Hamilton Mountain Sanatorium in 1906, and cultural constructions of health and disease in Hamilton. Written by a class of fourth year Anthropology students at McMaster University, the story of tuberculosis in Hamilton a century ago illuminates a disease that is re-emerging today as an equally devastating threat to human health worldwide.

Surviving the Early Years: Childhood Diseases in Hamilton at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century

D. Ann Herring et al. — Thu, 08 May 2008 11:22:45 PDT

This book focuses on the children of Hamilton during the early 1900s and the afflictions from which they suffered and died. Topics include the living conditions in Hamilton at the time, the experiences of the city's children, the geographic and demographic distribution of childhood diseases, municipal strategies implemented to combat illness, various treatments used during the period, and the ways in which children's deaths were memorialized. This story of childhood diseases in Hamilton, told by a class of fourth year Anthropology students at McMaster University, sheds light on the lives and deaths of children, and the obstacles they faced in order to survive their early years.