Chicago 1885 cholera epidemic myth
Encyclopedia
The Chicago 1885 cholera epidemic myth is a persistent urban legend
, stating that 90,000 people in Chicago
died of typhoid fever
and cholera
in 1885. Although the story is widely reported, these deaths did not occur.
Lake Michigan
was the source of Chicago's drinking water. During a tremendous storm in 1885, the rainfall washed refuse from the Chicago River
far out into the lake and locals feared the sewage would reach the city's water intake cribs, two miles offshore.
According to the legend, typhoid, cholera and other waterborne diseases from the contaminated drinking water killed up to 90,000 people. The Chicago Sanitary District (now The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
) was said to have been created by the Illinois legislature in 1889 in response to a terrible epidemic which killed thousands of residents of this fledgling city.
However, analysis of the deaths in Chicago shows no deaths from cholera and only a slight rise in typhoid deaths. In fact, no cholera outbreaks had occurred in Chicago since the 1860s. Typhoid deaths never exceeded 1,000 in any year in the 1880s. The supposed 90,000 deaths would have represented 12% of the city's entire population and would have left numerous public records as well as newspaper accounts. Libby Hill, researching her book The Chicago River: A Natural and Unnatural History, found no newspaper or mortality records and, at her prompting, the Chicago Tribune
issued a retraction (on September 29, 2005) of the three recent instances where they had mentioned the epidemic.
One of the most famous people to die from typhoid fever in Chicago was Stephen A. Douglas
, a Democrat
contender in the 1860 presidential election
, who died on June 3, 1861.
Urban legend
An urban legend, urban myth, urban tale, or contemporary legend, is a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true...
, stating that 90,000 people in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
died of typhoid fever
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...
and cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
in 1885. Although the story is widely reported, these deaths did not occur.
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
was the source of Chicago's drinking water. During a tremendous storm in 1885, the rainfall washed refuse from the Chicago River
Chicago River
The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of that runs through the city of the same name, including its center . Though not especially long, the river is notable for being the reason why Chicago became an important location, as the link between the Great Lakes and...
far out into the lake and locals feared the sewage would reach the city's water intake cribs, two miles offshore.
According to the legend, typhoid, cholera and other waterborne diseases from the contaminated drinking water killed up to 90,000 people. The Chicago Sanitary District (now The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago , originally known as the Sanitary District of Chicago is a special-purpose district, chartered to operate in northern Illinois since 1889...
) was said to have been created by the Illinois legislature in 1889 in response to a terrible epidemic which killed thousands of residents of this fledgling city.
However, analysis of the deaths in Chicago shows no deaths from cholera and only a slight rise in typhoid deaths. In fact, no cholera outbreaks had occurred in Chicago since the 1860s. Typhoid deaths never exceeded 1,000 in any year in the 1880s. The supposed 90,000 deaths would have represented 12% of the city's entire population and would have left numerous public records as well as newspaper accounts. Libby Hill, researching her book The Chicago River: A Natural and Unnatural History, found no newspaper or mortality records and, at her prompting, the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
issued a retraction (on September 29, 2005) of the three recent instances where they had mentioned the epidemic.
Actual deaths
An outbreak of cholera in 1849 killed 678 persons, 2.9 percent of the city's population, and an 1854 outbreak killed 1,424 people. Another cholera epidemic hit the city in 1866 and 1867. In the late 19th century, typhoid fever mortality rate in Chicago averaged 65 per 100,000 people a year. The worst year was 1891, when the typhoid death rate was 174 per 100,000 persons.One of the most famous people to die from typhoid fever in Chicago was Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen Arnold Douglas was an American politician from the western state of Illinois, and was the Northern Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860. He lost to the Republican Party's candidate, Abraham Lincoln, whom he had defeated two years earlier in a Senate contest following a famed...
, a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
contender in the 1860 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1860
The United States presidential election of 1860 was a quadrennial election, held on November 6, 1860, for the office of President of the United States and the immediate impetus for the outbreak of the American Civil War. The nation had been divided throughout the 1850s on questions surrounding the...
, who died on June 3, 1861.
Sources repeating myth
- History of Lake Michigan Diversion PDF - In the 1885 epidemic, 90,000 people were killed.
- Reversal of the Chicago River ...and killing almost 12 percent of the population with cholera and other diseases.
- HISTORY OF SELECTED PUBLIC HEALTH EVENTS IN CHICAGO, 1834-1999 ...epidemic kills 90,000 Chicagoans...
- Cartoon showing effect of Cholera in Chicago in 1885 - Over 80,000 people died. (Update)
- The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic — and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World Cholera would continue to terrorize Western cities .... One such outbreak hit Chicago in 1885 .... Ten percent of the city's population died...
Rebuttal
- Did 90,000 people die of typhoid fever and cholera in Chicago in 1885?
- Chicago Tribune Retraction Tribune archives and public health records do not note such an occurrence, and the number of purported deaths—80,000 to 90,000—would have been far too many not to have been noted.
- Review of Hill's book