Fever 1793 Webquest

Introduction

Mayor's Orders, Philadelphia, 1793

ATTENTION DEAR CITIZENS OF PHILADELPHIA:



ON ADVICE FROM THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS

 

1. ALL PERSONS SHOULD AVOID THOSE THAT ARE INFECTED.



2. THE HOMES OF THE SICK SHOULD BE MARKED.

3. SICK PEOPLE SHOULD BE PLACED IN THE CENTER OF LARGE AIRY ROOMS WITHOUT CURTAINS AND SHOULD BE KEPT CLEAN



4. WE MUST SUPPLY A HOSPITAL FOR THE POOR.



5. ALL BELL TOLLING SHOULD CEASE IMMEDIATELY.



6. THE DEAD SHOULD BE BURIED PRIVATELY.



7. THE STREETS AND WHARVES MUST BE KEPT CLEAN.



8. ALL PERSONS SHOULD AVOID FATIGUE OF THE BODY AND MIND.



9. ALL PERSONS SHOULD AVOID BEING IN THE SUN, DRAFTS, AND EVENING AIR.



10. ALL PERSONS SHOULD DRESS APPROPRIATELY FOR THE WEATHER.



11. ALL PERSONS SHOULD CONSUME ALCOHOL IN MODERATION.



THIS IS.... FEVER, 1793

 

GO ON TO THE "FEVER, 1793" TAB 



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Task

FEVER, 1793

Great numbers of the citizens have shut up their houses and fled into the country...

-Letter of Elizabeth Hazard, Philadelphia, 1793

 

The year is 1793. You live in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.



Rumors are spreading about a deadly sickness that is 

untraceable and contagious. 



Your neighbors begin to flea. 



No one goes to school anymore. 



The slightest sign of sickness is tearing apart families and friends. 



Your city is frantic.



 Fear is spreading faster than the disease itself. 



What is this disease? 

Where did it come from? 

How many have died? 

How many will die?

How do we stop it?







Watch the following video for a brief historical summary of Yellow Fever, the disease that is destroying your city. Use the worksheet to take notes during this video.

 

 

CHOOSE: WHAT ROLE WILL YOU PLAY?

A DOCTOR

 





Yesterday the worst day yet. Even those who are not sick have eyes tinged with yellow. More doctors are ill and dying.

-Dr. Benjamin Rush

Letter, 1793



As a doctor during the 1793 epidemic, you have a job of extreme urgency. People want to know where this disease is coming from. People want to know how to treat it. There is much dispute over these factors. If you are interested in learning about the science and medical facts behind Yellow Fever, this is the role for you!







 





 

 AN ADVOCATE

 

There is great distress in the city...Friendship is nearly banished from our city. 

-Dr. Benjamin Rush

Letter, 1793



People were fleeing and there was a huge distrust amongst families and friends - fear of spreading the disease prevented people frombeing kind and caring to their fellow citizens. However, as in most times of distress and frantic fear in our society, there were a select group of people who worked towards aiding the sick and treating everyone humanely, regardless of the fear of disease. If you are interested in the social justice aspect of the Yellow Fever epidemic, this is the role for you!

 

 







 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once you have picked the role that is right for you, please go to the appropriate tab on the sidebar for your next step. You will be responsible for creating a short Google Presentation with your findings to present to fellow classmates.

A REPORTER

The yellow fever will discourage the growth of great cities in our nation.

-Thomas Jefferson

Letter to Dr. Benjamin Rush, 1800



There were many correspondences between politicians, friends, family, and newspapers during the Philadelphia epidemic in 1793. Besides trying to figure out the details behind the disease and keeping neighboring cities and states updated on the city's condition, people that reported on the disease did so as a means to preserve the stories of the thousands of lives that were being lost to this terrible epidemic. If you are interested in how the people of the epidemic were memorialized and remembered both then and now, this is the role for you!

 

 

Process

Attn: Doctors

Doctors raving and disputing, death's pale army still recruitin'. -Philip Freneau

Pestilence: Written During the Prevalence of a Yellow Fever, 1793

You are a truly a brave soul and lover of science and public health. 



As you explore the origins, spread of, and termination of the Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic in 1793, 

please fill in your medical notes.



When you are finished exploring deep into the medical world, you will then prepare a short presentation to share with your fellow citizens.



1.





 

First,  read the professional article of Yellow Fever and its affects on the human body. 





 

















 

 





 



2.





 

Next, watch this short film about Dougie, a poor soul suffering and undergoing the symptoms, treatments, and further prevention of Yellow Fever. 



Continue taking notes in your medical chart!

 

 





 

Go the evaluation tab.



3. 





 

Lastly, explore the doctoral debates over the treatment of Yellow Fever in Philadelphia in 1793.



 

 

Attn: Advocates

We set out to see where we could be useful - the black people were looked to. We then offered our services in the public papers, by advertising that we would remove the dead and procure nurses.



-Richard Allen and Absalom Jones

A Narrative of the Proceedings of the Black People During the Late Awful Calamity in Philadelphia in the Year 1793



You are a truly a humanitarian and an advocate for equality.



As you explore the aids and advocates of the Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic in 1793, particularly the Free African Society, please fill in your notes.



When you are finished exploring deep into the Free African Society, you will then prepare a short presentation to share with your fellow citizens.



1.



First, explore the origins and original missions of the Free African Society.





 

Richard Allen

  

2.



Next, read about the Free African Society's involvement and aid with the Yellow Fever Epidemic in Philadelphia in 1793.













 

Go to the evaluation tab.

3.



Lastly, read about the specific leaders of this movement, Richard Allenand Absalom Jones.

 

Attn: Reporters

Wives were deserted by husbands, and children by parents. The chambers of diseases were destroyed, and the sick left to die of negligence. None could be found to remove the lifeless bodies. Their remains, suffered to decay by piecemeal, filled the air with deadly exhalations, and added tenfold to the devastation.



-Charles Brockden Brown

Memoirs of the Year 1793



     



Graveyard for Yellow Fever Victims Found

 



Death toll Record, 1793





You are truly a historian and a story teller.



As you explore the personal and historical accounts of the Philadelphia Yellow Fever Epidemic in 1793, please fill in your notes on the chart.



When you are finished exploring deep into these stories, you will then prepare a short presentation to share with your fellow citizens.

 

1.









First, read some of the accounts of victims and families of victims of Yellow Fever in Philadelphia. 



 

 2.









Next, take a look at how newspapers looked during the 1700 and 1800s. Examine how these newspapers have been archived. 



 



 

Go to the evaluation tab.

 3.











Lastly, research memorials of Yellow Fever Victims on the Internet. Is there one in Philadelphia? Are there memorials for Yellow Fever victims in other parts of the world? 

 

Evaluation

Attn. Doctors

Think deeply:



What did a doctor risk by aiding Yellow Fever victims? Why was there such medical controversy during this time? What kind of doctor would you be in 1793?



Then, for your final step, go to the Fever Feedback tab on the sidebar.

 

Attn. Advocates

Think deeply:



Why was it so revolutionary to have an African American aid group like the Free African Society step up and help during the Yellow Fever Epidemic?

 

What did they risk by helping?



Then, for your final step, go to the Fever Feedback tab on the sidebar.

 

 

Attn. Reporters

Think deeply:



Why is it important to preserve stories of historical tragedies and epidemics? 

How important is a memorial?





Then, for your final step, go to the Fever Feedback tab on the sidebar.

 

Conclusion

FEVER FEEDBACK

Now that you have some background knowledge on the 

Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 in Philadelphia, you are ready to read

Laurie Halse Anderson's novel FEVER, 1793. 

You are about to meet Matilda Cook. 

"Mattie," as she calls herself, is a fourteen-year-old girl living during the hectic time you have just studied.



Please view the book trailer

 

 

Now, complete this Fever Feedback form to make some predictions about the novel:

Based on what you learned about Yellow Fever as a medical condition, what inferences can you make about the difficulties of containing the spread of the disease?

Look at the cover art for Fever, 1793. What inferences can you make about the choice of art?

How does Laurie Halse Anderson organize the book?

Are you excited and ready to read this book? Please share your thoughts/predictions/comments/concerns