This book presents the history of the Yellow plague epidemic in the US. ( )

A thorough introspection of how the Fever Epidemic began and spread throughout Philidephia in 1793. Describes how the doctors of the times disagreed on the diagnosis of the illness and spread so quickly and killed so many. Recounts how many of our medical advances of today were not even on the horizon during those times (Microscopic germs causes sickness? Preposterous!) 

This story recounts the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia during 1793. It gives great details of the geography of Philadelphia during that time period, the daily life of the citizens, as well as politics. It describes the city and the horrid smells so vividly that would make one wonder how the citizens could stand it. It goes on to describe the first few cases of yellow fever all the way to present day. The story also details the doctors' odd remedies to cure the fever and tells how long it took for someone to finally figure out the cause of the fever. It gives accounts of the Free African Society and their generous contributions to the citizens of Philadelphia in their time of need. This story has a lot of interesting information about the yellow fever of 1793 as well as a brief account of what actions were taken to help prevent further epidemics.

The reason I checked out this book was because I read the fictional book "Fever 1793" by Laruie Halse Anderson and enjoyed it so much that I wanted to learn more about the yellow fever. Jim Murphy does a wonderful job of providing non-fictional information about the yellow fever of 1793 as well as the citizens of Philadelphia, the doctors, and additional information about the people who tried to find out the cause of yellow fever. He even includes illustrations from that time period to help illustrate the life back then. Jim Murphy gives many references at the end of the book to do further research. I enjoyed this book so much that I plan to by a personal copy.

This would be a good book to use during a history lesson about Philadelphia or George Washington. It could be read to the class as extra information. Students could learn about George Washington's part during the yellow fever epidemic. The teacher could also use some of the information from this book to emphasize the impact that mosquitoes have to the human race during a science lesson. This book would also be good reference material to use for a report. ( )

This book follows the account of the yellow fever epidemic through presenting each chapter as journal style account of the spread of the illness. Included are drawings, maps, newspaper reproductions and an extensive list of sources used for the book. This would be a great non-fiction book to pair with the historical novel, Fever by Laurie Halse Anderson.

In the late 1700's, a plague known as The Yellow Fever took over areas of the United States, leaving tens of thousands dead. This book primarily focuses on Philadelphia, PA. It covers the fear and panic this disease caused, as well as the strength and courage of citizens and doctors to save their city. This is a powerful, true story of devastation and rebirth.