Article ID: CBB671093615

The End of Smallpox for Indigenous Peoples in the United States, 1898–1903: An Unnoticed Finale (2022)

unapi

Smallpox's devastating impact on Indigenous Peoples of the Americas figures prominently in the historical literature. But when did this horrific experience end? Historians have not noticed, and there are good reasons why they have not, at least for Indigenous Peoples of the United States. Between 1898 and 1903, federal agents and tribal officials enforced quarantines, isolated infected individuals, and vaccinated communities in response to a nation-wide epidemic. Smallpox consequently disappeared. But the evidence we can use to identify this ending leads us in directions other than acknowledging a significant historical milestone. Federal agents detailed efforts to erase Indigenous cultures and described ongoing health problems not related to smallpox, making the passage of the old scourge less significant. Stories that Indigenous Peoples produced after eradication, moreover, contained no celebration of smallpox's demise. These stories instead refer to the disease's arrival as the beginning of colonial trauma that had yet to come to its own end.

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Authors & Contributors
Bhattacharya, Sanjoy
White, Alexandre I. R.
Karen Fisher
Leclercq, Valérie
Cécile Vanderpelen-Diagre
Gonzalez, Stephanie
Concepts
Public health
Medicine and government
Smallpox
Medicine and politics
Vaccines; vaccination
Disease and diseases
Time Periods
20th century, early
19th century
20th century
20th century, late
18th century
17th century
Places
India
Cuba
United States
Velha Goa (India)
Guinea
New Brunswick (Canada)
Institutions
United States. Office of Indian Affairs
World Health Organization (WHO)
Catholic University of Ireland (Dublin)
Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Henry Phipps Institute, Philadelphia
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