quarterly newsletter page 1

Cholera... A disease that you
don't hear much about these days
was a terrible threat to people
living in the 19th century. The
threat that Victorian Parkersburg
residents felt is equivalent to the
Asiatic Bird Flu of today.
Cholera was coined "the king
of the epidemic killers of the
19th century." People who contracted
this disease would usually
die within 12 to 24 hours. This
article will tell of the origins of
the disease and how local residents
dealt with it.

1) Sufficient clothing
should be worn. They recommended
woolen flannel and suggested
that the stomach and
bowel area should always be
covered. Victorians believed that
exposed skin was susceptible to
Cholera. 2) Dampness and cold
should be avoided. The committee
noted that most of the homes
at that time were poorly constructed,
so it might not be possible
to accommodate this recommendation.
It was also recommended
that all doors and windows
be closed at sunset and not opened again until 2 to
3 hours after sunrise.

This dreaded disease had its origin
in Calcutta, India in 1817. The initial outbreak
is reported to have killed hundreds of thousands of
people. By 1832, Cholera made its way to America.
One of the hardest hit areas was Columbus,
Ohio in 1833; one hundred residents of that city
died in the month of July. It is thought that increased
traffic from the newly created Ohio Canal
was a factor in the outbreak. Since death records
from that early time frame do not exist, we do not
know how many local residents contracted the
deadly disease.
In 1848 the second Cholera epidemic began in
the cramped slums of the big cities. This was due
to the influx of people from the Irish potato famine.
It was reported in the local newspapers about the
devastation in New York, where five thousand residents
died. Parkersburg's city government created
a committee to research what needed to be done to
prevent this city from having to face the same terrors
that was happening in other cities. This committee,
formed in 1849, consisted of Beverly Smith
and Peter G. Van Winkle. Their first task was to
inform the public about everyday activities that
every resident should practice to help ward off the
possibilities of contacting the disease. Their suggestions
were printed in the January 13, 1849 issue
of the Parkersburg Gazette.

3) Ventilation and cleanliness. Lime was
recommended for places with offensive odors.
Anything that appeared impure should be immediately
removed. Impurity could mean unclean
premises or food that did not look fresh. They recommended
ventilating the home whenever possible
to remove impure air.
4) Regulate your diet. They suggested that
citizens avoid eating raw fruits and vegetables. It
was also suggested that residents eat a diet consisting
of fresh beef, mutton, venison, boiled plain rice
and stale wheat bread. Residents should not under
eat or over eat, should eat at usual times, and
should not excessively drink alcohol.
Today we know that the cause of Cholera was
bacterial. In 1849 however, they did not have the
means for understanding the disease, and they enacted
the precautions listed above as a preventive
measure.
On January 15,1849, the committee went before
city council to report on their second task- sewer
sanitation in Parkersburg. In pre-Civil War Parkersburg,
two streams called Rifle Run and Pond
Run flowed through the downtown area.