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Epidemics

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In 1832, cholera killed more than 10 percent of Sligo's population.
literature

The Deadly Irish Epidemic That Helped Bring Dracula to Life

Forget Vlad the Impaler. A 19th-century cholera outbreak in Sligo may have been Bram Stoker's chief inspiration.
Ronan O'Connell June 3, 2020
The St. Louis Red Cross Motor Corps on duty during the 1918 Influenza epidemic.
food

How the Influenza Pandemic Popularized Lemons

When it reached America, Sunkist marketers recommended hot lemonade.
April White May 28, 2020
The debate over which is Britain’s oldest pub is fueled by the impossibility of a definitive ruling.
plague

How the Black Death Gave Rise to British Pub Culture

For centuries-old bars, a pandemic is nothing new.
Richard Collett May 22, 2020
A global pandemic brought this ancient mill roaring back to life.
museums

How Coronavirus Put an Ancient Flour Mill Back to Work

“You can hear the creaks, smell the grain—you really feel the age of it.”
Luke Fater May 1, 2020
Tommy the cat is on the left, and Golly on the right.
animals

During the 1918 Flu Epidemic, Pet Parents Put Masks on Their Cats

Yancia the bulldog even made the local paper: "This Seattle Dog Wears Flu Mask."
Anne Ewbank April 16, 2020
During the flu outbreak of 1918, phone operators took precautions—and many companies asked people to stay off the line.
epidemics

Why Telephone Companies Once Discouraged People From Chatting

Today phones have grown critical for making personal connections. The first phone companies probably wouldn't have been thrilled.
Jessica Leigh Hester April 9, 2020
A coat of arms from the turn of the 17th century, featuring a plague doctor and, presumably, the Swiss physician Theodore Zwinger III.
plague

European Plague Doctor Garb Was Black, Beaked, and Very Bleak

These haunting uniforms make today's masks look tame.
Isaac Schultz April 2, 2020
Elegant <em>so</em> was probably not eaten with crackers in ancient Japan.
food

The Coronavirus Is Bringing Back a 1,000-Year-Old 'Cheese' in Japan

Once, it was considered fit for the emperor.
Makiko Itoh April 1, 2020
A 14th-century painting of Saint Corona by the Master of Palazzo Venezia Madonna.
saints

Is Saint Corona a Guardian Against Epidemics?

Well, she might be now, at least.
Matthew Taub March 31, 2020
Chef Brian Yazzie says your pantry is likely full of indigenous American ingredients, such as canned corn and dried beans.
food

The Chef Bringing Native American Flavors to Communities in Quarantine

For Brian Yazzie, the COVID-19 pandemic evokes a history of smallpox, European colonization, and indigenous resilience.
Reina Gattuso March 27, 2020
Lion of Bavaria side.
Nafplio, Greece

Lion of Bavaria

This slumbering beast honors the Bavarian soldiers who died in Greece during a 19th-century typhoid outbreak.
Wanderlust seems desirable today, but it was once considered a disease.
hospitals

When Doctors Thought ‘Wanderlust’ Was a Psychological Condition

For decades, "pathological tourists" ended up in asylums or worse.
Sabrina Imbler April 15, 2019
The image may evoke watercolors, but it actually references a deadly bacteria.
objects of intrigue

The Geekiest Cuff Links of 1900 Featured Little Images of Plague Bacteria

No one knows who made them or why.
Jessica Leigh Hester May 2, 2018
A mysterious illness killed princesses and sailors alike.
food

How Killer Rice Crippled Tokyo and the Japanese Navy

One stubborn doctor pioneered a cure.
Anne Ewbank February 22, 2018
View of park from Hampton Blvd facing Princess Anne Rd.
Norfolk, Virginia

Yellow Fever Park

One tiny triangular park commemorates the victims of a yellow fever epidemic—many of whom are buried right below the grass.
Clowns!
epidemics

In 1981, Clowns Allegedly Appeared Across Boston, Similar to Current Clown Panic

A deep dive into "phantom clowns" leads us to '80s Boston, "The Paddler," and Donald Trump.
Cara Giaimo September 7, 2016
Your body goes in here (yes, yours)
Atlanta, Georgia

CDC Museum

Tour the sci-fi-esque reality of governmental disease management.
Sometimes, laughter is not so simple.
psychiatry

The 1962 Laughter Epidemic of Tanganyika Was No Joke

Uncontrollable laughter can, and did, last for several months.
Tao Tao Holmes January 15, 2016