Yellow Fever Epidemic in Selma
From "Selma; Her Institutions, and Her Men" by John Hardy, pub. 1879:
The business prospects of the place induced a material addition to the newspapers of the city. In January 1853, John Hard commenced the publication of the
Daily Alabama State Sentinel , witch done its part in advancing the growth and industries of the place. The construction of the Alabama and Tennessee railroad was urged forward with energy, and it progressed into the up country new and profitable trade was brought to the city. Prosperity and an increase of population to the city continued until August 1853. The yellow fever had made its appearance early in the summer at New Orleans, Mobil and Pensacola, of a most violent, malignant and fatal type, but no apprehension at first, existed at Selma from its ravages. But in this our people were most woefully disappointed. On the evening of the 13th day of August, a steamboat from new Orleans put on shore at the landing, a sick German, who was taken charge of by some of the hands about the landing and sent to the house of Mr. Earhart, and in a day or two died, a plain case of yellow fever having been developed. In a few days after Mr. Earhart sickened and died with the same symptoms. Several cases of a similar kind were developed, mostly on Broad and Water streets, among them several deaths occurred. Our people became uneasy--a division of opinion existed among the physicians as to whether or not the disease was yellow fever. The disease continued to spread, and a number of deaths occurred, among them Dr. A. Barnum, until on the morning of the 13th day of October, 1853, the death of a young lawyer by the name of Mitchell, who had but recently located in the city, at his office, upstairs in the building now used by Maj. Jos. Hardie, as a warehouse, and on the same morning, of the death of W. A. Blevin, in a room over what is now Cawthon & Coleman’s drug store, where such plainly developed cases of yellow fever that there could be no mistake. The physicians all pronounced yellow fever in the city. A most terrible panic at once ensued, and in one day the place was almost deserted. In a day or two a few young men and ministers, house servants, and occasionally a female in charge of a house were the only persons found in the city.
The following were the deaths in the city from yellow fever, from the 13th of October, to the 3rd day of November 1853:
| October | 13-- | E. J. Mitchell, Wm. A. Blevins. |
| " | 14-- | J. W. Eiland. |
| " | 15-- | A, Fourcade, Eliza Fourcade. |
| " | 16-- | D. M. Smith, Robert Adkins, E. Parkman Mrs. Lines, infant child of the late Mr. Earhart. |
| " | 17-- | Albert, mulatto man of Maj. W. H. Gee, |
| " | 18-- | W. H. Gee, Amos White, negro woman of Col. Blake. |
| " | 19-- | No deaths from yellow fever. |
| " | 20-- | Mrs. Erwin, a German, name unknown, Mr. Mason, Boston, negro man of the late E. Parkman. |
| " | 21-- | No deaths from yellow fever. |
| " | 22-- | Joseph A. Jones. |
| " | 23-- | Mrs. Melton, negro man, Bob, belonging to Mr. Williamson. |
| " | 24-- | John Smith. |
| " | 25-- | No deaths from yellow fever. |
| " | 26-- | M. T. Goodwin, Mrs. Chapman, Miss Noble. |
| " | 27-- | David Carter, Judy, mulatto woman of the late Maj. W. H. Gee. |
| " | 28-- | Franklin Hambrick, Jim, negro man belonging to Dr. Hamilton, Erasmus, negro man belonging to Dr Campbell. |
| " | 29-- | Child of Mr. Pool. |
| " | 30-- | Jesse Gibson, Asa negro belonging to Mr. Norris. |
| " | 31-- | Thomas A. Baber. |
| November | 1-- | Mrs. Hagy. Dr. Coster, a refugee from Mobile. |
| " | 2-- | No deaths from yellow fever. |
| " | 3-- | Daughter of J. D. Monk. |
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