1802 — ~Aug-Nov 2, Dysentery, esp. Greenfield & Shelburne MA (92), Bridport VT (16)–137

–137  Blanchard tally of State and local breakouts below.

 

Massachusetts            (121)

—  4  Cambridge, Middlesex County. Vital Records of Cambridge Massachusetts, V. 2 (deaths).

Sarah Ann Frost, Oct 10,        age 2.               Vital Records of Cambridge, V2, p. 563.

Thomas Prentiss, Sep 24,        age 12.             Vital Records of Cambridge, V2, p. 703.

Sally Sawin,        Aug 18,       age 30.             Vital Records of Cambridge, V2, p. 729.

Sarah Shed.         Oct.                                     Vital Records of Cambridge, V2, p. 734.

—  1  East Bridgewater, Sep 4, Olive Shaw, age 43.  Vital Records of East Bridgewater, p. 388.

–52  Greenfield, Franklin Co. Vital Records of Greenfield, Massachusetts, to…1850. 1915.[1]

Name                 Date of Death     Age       Source

Allen, Alvah               Aug 29            6          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 241.

Allen, Chester             Sep 25             4          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 242.

Allen, Quintus            Sep 1               4          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 243.

Allen, Sary                  Aug 26            9          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 243.

Ames, Thomas J.        Aug 1            14 mo. Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 244.

Arms, son of Ebenezer. Aug 29          2          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 246.

Burnham, James          Sep 6               3          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 249.

Clay, Daniel                Aug 4              2          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 252.

Clay, Guy Carleton     Aug 7              3          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 252.

Clay, Stephen              Aug 14            5          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 252.

Forbes, son of Daniel  Aug 22            1          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 256.

Grinnell, Sally             Oct 1             17          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 260.

Grinnell, William        Aug 7            23 days. Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 260.

Griswold, daughter of Theophilus. Nov 2. Age 14. Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, 260.

Hastings, Octave         Aug 28           17          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 262.

Hitchcock, child of Charles. Sep 13     2          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 264.

Leavitt, Jonathan         Aug 6              8 mo.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 267.

Lyman, Samuel           Aug 29,       ~29 yrs.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 269.

Mitchel, child of Miller. Sep 8         18 mo.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 271.

Mitchell, Porter.          Aug 3              2          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 271.

Mitchell, child of Anna. Sep 10           6          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 272.

Munn, John                 Aug 2              1          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 273.

Newcomb, Phebe.       Aug 9            31          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 274.

Newcomb, Phebe Maria. Aug 7         7          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 274.

Newton, Abigail          July 18            8          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 275.

Newton, Amy             Sep 3               8          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 275.

Newton, Huldah         Sep 14           60          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 275.

Newton, John              Sep 28           76          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 276.

Newton, Margaret       Sep 6             11 mo.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 276.

Newton, Sarah            Aug 30            8          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 276.

Nims, Joel                   Aug 26            3          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 277.

Nutting, child of Joseph Sep 2             2          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 278.

Pierce, Abigail                        Aug 19           10          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 279.

Pierce, Anne               Aug 15            4          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 280.

Pierce, Samuel                        Aug 7              1          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 280.

Pith, child of Sally      Aug 13       “young”     Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 280.

Ripley, George            Aug 20           20 mo.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 281.

Smead, Ira                   Oct 20             8          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 286.

Smead, Mahittable      Oct 12            21         Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 286.

Smith, Sybil, wife of Joel. Oct 21. Not noted. Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 288.

Starr, Beverly              Aug 22            1          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 289.

Taylor, Silvanus          Aug 12           14          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 292.

Violet “negro child”   Aug 19            2          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 299.

Wait, Emilia                Aug 12           18 mo.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 292.

Wells, Elizabeth          Aug 21            3          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 294.

Wells, Hart                  Sep 2             10          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 294.

Wells, Luey                 Sep 8               5          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 295.

Wells, Lydia               Aug 26           12          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 295.

Wells, Margaret          Aug 29           72          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 295.

Wells, Obed                Sep 8             17          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 295.                 Wells, Wesson Wise   Sep 6               3 mo.   Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 296.

Wells, William R.       Oct 1               4          Vital Records of Greenfield. 1915, p. 296.

— ~50  Greenfield. Gallup. Sketches of Epidemic Diseases in the State of Vermont. 1815, p. 49.[2]

— ~20  Plymouth, Plymouth Co. Massachusetts Historical Society. Collections, p. 202.[3]

— ~40  Shelburne, Franklin County. Holland. History of Western MA V2, Pt. 3, 426.

—     4  Wakefield, Middlesex Co. Vital Records of Wakefield, Massachusetts to…1850. 1912.

Frederick Bryant         May 25        age 1.      Vital Records of Wakefield, p. 267.

Child of Samuel Larrabee, Oct 30, age 2.      Vital Records of Wakefield, p. 301.

Elizabeth Ralf             June 14          28          Vital Records of Wakefield, p. 315.

—     ?  Worcester County. Hurd. History of Worcester County, Massachusetts…Vol. 1, p. 658.[4]

 

Vermont                     (16)

–16  Bridport. Thompson. Gazetteer of the State of Vermont. “Bridport.” 1824, p. 76.[5]

 

Narrative Information

 

Gallup: “1802. Dysenteries very generally prevailed the summer and autumn of this year…. Dysentery was very mortal at Greenfield, in Massachusetts. I believe about fifty died in one part of the town. It prevailed, this season, very extensively in the state of Connecticut….” (Gallup, Sketches of Epidemic Diseases in the State of Vermont. 1815, p. 49.)

 

Source

 

Gallup, Joseph A., M.D. Sketches of Epidemic Diseases in the State of Vermont; From its First Settlement to the year 1815, with a Consideration of their Causes, Phenomena, and Treatment. Boston: T. B. Wait & Sons, 1815. Accessed 2-7-2018 at: https://collections.nlm.nih.gov/bookviewer?PID=nlm:nlmuid-2555005R-bk

 

Holland, Josiah Gilbert. History of Western Massachusetts. The Counties of Hamden, Hampshire, Franklin, and Berkshire (Vol. II, Part III). Springfield, MA: Samuel Bowles and Co., 1855. Google preview accessed 2-11-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=LAzOp9_Ky_oC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Hurd, Hamilton (Supervisor of compilation). History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, with Biographical Sketches of many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men (Vol. I). Philadelphia: J. W. Lewis & Co., 1889. Google preview accessed 2-11-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=ckg4AQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Massachusetts Historical Society. Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society (Vol. III, second series). Boston, MA: 1815, reprinted 1845. Google preview accessed 2-11-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=pUwzAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Thompson, Zadock. A Gazetteer of the State of Vermont; Containing A Brief General View of the State, A Historical and Topographical Description of all the Counties, Towns, Rivers &c. Together with a Map and several other Engravings. Montpelier, VT: Published by E. P. Walton (Printer) and the author, 1824. Google preview accessed 2-11-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=YHIDAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

United States Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce and Labor. Return of the Whole Number of Persons Within the Several Districts of the United States. Washington: Printed by Order of the House of Representatives. Accessed 2-10-2018 at: https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1800-return-whole-number-of-persons.pdf

 

Vital Records of Cambridge, Massachusetts to the Year 1850, Vol. 2. Marriages and Deaths. Thomas W. Baldwin (Compiler). Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1915. Google preview accessed 2-11-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=7oQlAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Vital Records of East Bridgewater, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1917. Google preview accessed 2-5-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=7NP3bnSaio8C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Vital Records of Greenfield, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1915. Google preview accessed 2-10-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=HcgMAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Vital Records of Oxford, Massachusetts, To the end of the year 1849. Worcester, MA: Franklin P. Rice, 1905. Google preview accessed 2-11-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=6ZHpA9d4aVMC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Vital Records of Wakefield, Massachusetts, To the Year 1850. Thomas W. Baldwin (compiler). Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1912. Google preview accessed 2-5-2018 at: https://books.google.com/books?id=qwsO0VE8diAC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[1] According to the 1800 U.S. Census, the population of Greenfield was 1,254. Thus 6.5% of population died in three months. (Massachusetts, page 11.)

[2] Highlighted in yellow to denote we do not use as death toll, relying, instead, on Vital Records of Greenfield.

[3] This is our “stand-in” number in order to recognize and include in a tally. Based on chart of pages 201-201 on the Annual bill of Mortality, first parish Plymouth. It shows 92 total deaths with 56 under the age of 5. In a note writes” “The disorder which occasioned such mortality among children, as is seen in 1802, was measles, followed by dysentery.” The highest total death toll (other than 1802) for the years shown (1800-1814) is 67, with other years showing from 17 to 53. The next highest year for children under five was in 1800, with 35. Other years noted 20-23. It is clear from the numbers and description that 1802 was an epidemic year, especially for children. In that we do not know the breakout between measles and dysentery we arbitrarily note about 20, assuming that the larger portion of deaths would be attributable to measles.

[4] “In 1778, 1792, 1795 and 1802 dysentery and scarlet fever prevailed, and several families were deeply afflicted, in the loss of children, by their ravages.”

[5] “The dysentery prevailed here in 1802, of which 16 died.”