In 1832-33 an epidemic the deadly disease Cholera swept across North America. Cincinnati’s oldest and most widely written physician, Dr. Daniel Drake, who the Daniel Drake Memorial Hospital, now Drake Center, was named for, published this short (49 page) history in December of 1832, just three months after the city’s first case. A reader would need some background in medical history to understand the education Drake had and some knowledge of Cholera in order to appreciate the book. However, it is difficult to have less of either than I do and I truly appreciated the insight into the dawn of the era of medical science and, to be honest, insight on Dr. Drake’s ego.

Drake’s writing is still very readable, there are a few Latin phrases I had to google, not all medical terms, but overall the language very familiar. The book is available online at the National Institute of Health’s National Library of Medicine. Drake’s discussion of the Cholera treatments other physicians have written about demonstrates that he was very well read on the subject. The book is a good resource for people researching Cincinnati and medical history and it also may have utility for someone looking into trade patterns, race relations on the Borderlands, and government involvement in health care. ( )