4. An inevitable product of mass migrations of desperate humans, the Great Famine, and the Irish exodus precipitated a typhus epidemic in North America in 1847
Caused by the mass Irish exodus as a result of the Great Famine, during which more than a million Irish emigrated, the typhus epidemic of 1847 afflicted the northern half of the East Coast of North America. Packing migrants aboard over-crowded and disease-ridden ships, known colloquially as “coffin ships”, these transports became ideal breeding grounds for the resultant epidemic. Many of these cities were unprepared for the influx of people, infected or otherwise, and struggled under the sudden burden. Quarantine areas were instituted once it became apparent many migrants were infectious, resulting in “fever sheds” being constructed.
The city of Montreal, a popular destination for Irish immigrants, saw between 3,500 and 6,000 of said migrants die as a result of typhus. Many, however, died arguably unnecessarily, packed into twenty-two tiny quarantine sheds, lacking appropriate medical care, and surrounded by armed guards to prevent their escape. In total, more than 20,000 inhabitants of Canada died between 1847 and 1848 from typhus. Equally, the fledgling United States was similarly affected. The arrival of Irish immigrants in New York City triggered an outbreak of typhus, with a mortality rate of at least eleven percent over a period of seven weeks.