An American Plague: Chapters 3-4

by Jim Murphy
Drawing on medical research, news articles, and firsthand accounts, Jim Murphy traces the yellow fever epidemic of 1793 in this gripping historical account.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1-2, Chapters 3-4, Chapters 5-6, Chapters 7-9, Chapters 10-11

Here is a link to our lists for another work by Jim Murphy: The Great Fire
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. contagion
    any disease easily transmitted by contact
    From house to house the dread contagion flew,
    And on its way a num’rous train hath slew!
  2. pestilence
    any epidemic disease with a high death rate
    People of every rank and station wanted to escape the spreading pestilence and breathe the fresh, healthy air of the countryside.
  3. stagnant
    not circulating or flowing
    One, headed by Benjamin Rush, believed they were facing yellow fever and that it had a local cause—the stagnant, foul-smelling air that had infested Philadelphia all summer.
  4. quarantine
    place into enforced isolation, as for medical reasons
    Currie admitted that the illness was “strengthened by a particular construction of the atmosphere,” but he insisted that the best way to deal with it was by quarantining the sick.
  5. fetid
    offensively malodorous
    When the list was published on Tuesday, the blazing sun had reappeared, and fetid, warm air once again choked the city.
  6. exodus
    a journey by a large group to escape from a hostile environment
    Even those who were initially hesitant about leaving read the list and joined the exodus.
  7. apothecary
    a health professional who prepares and dispenses drugs
    Midwives, nurses, dentists, barbers, apothecaries, wandering healers, quack physicians, and next-door neighbors offered opinions on the disease, too.
  8. quack
    medically unqualified
    Midwives, nurses, dentists, barbers, apothecaries, wandering healers, quack physicians, and next-door neighbors offered opinions on the disease, too.
  9. concoction
    an occurrence of an unusual mixture
    Ads appeared in the newspapers hawking Peruvian bark, salt of vinegar, refined camphor, and other concoctions, such as Daffey’s Elixir (which contained so much pure alcohol that a glass of it could put a person into a drunken stupor).
  10. preventative
    remedy that slows the course of an illness or disease
    “I know of but one certain preventative of the disorder, & that is to keep at a distance from infected persons and places.”
  11. inquietude
    a feeling of anxiety, uneasiness, or restlessness
    The governor then turned the entire problem over to Mayor Clarkson, directing him to halt ships from the West Indies for inspection and to do everything possible “to allay the public inquietude, and effectually remove its cause.”
  12. indigent
    poor enough to need help from others
    The bodies of the indigent dead were carted to the potter’s field and dumped, but no gravediggers were there to bury them.
  13. sedentary
    requiring sitting or little activity
    Latin teacher James Hardie described Ricketts’ Circus as “a place to dispel the gloom of the thoughtful, exercise the lively activity of the young and gay, or to relax the minds of the sedentary or industrious trader.”
  14. epidemic
    a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease
    By the end of the first week of September, the yellow fever epidemic had driven the state government from Philadelphia and crippled the city’s administration.
  15. consternation
    sudden shock or dismay that causes confusion
    Nearly everyone, Washington observed with consternation and annoyance, had “matters of private concernment which required them to be absent.”
Created on Tue Oct 31 12:27:34 EDT 2017 (updated Fri Aug 01 15:20:00 EDT 2025)

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