Yellow fever is a viral hemorrhagic fever that does not spread from person to person through coughing, sneezing, or touching; it is transmitted by the bite of infected mosquitoes that grow in highly populated warm or humid areas. However, in 1878, people did not understand how the disease was transmitted or how to prevent it.
In total, 120,000 people contracted yellow fever, 20,000 died, and $30 million in economic loss occurred in the Lower Mississippi Valley. The epidemic ended in October when temperatures cooled and mosquitoes went into hibernation or went south to warmer weather.
The federal government convened a commission to investigate the outbreak and established the National Board of Health in 1879.
The names of every officer who died in the line of duty from Yellow Fever will likely never be known, but ODMP researchers continue to uncover new cases as part of our mission never to forget the fallen.
