Summary
BLOOMINGTON - Of all pioneer trials and tribulations, "malarial sickness" was the "saddest trouble of all," commented J. H. Burnham in the 1879 history of McLean County. "Nearly every family was afflicted, disease and death being faced by all who ventured to remain in this country in the early days when the prairie sod was being broken and subdued."
Today, malaria remains a debilitating, deadly disease in sub- Saharan Africa and parts of Asia. What is less well-known is that this mosquito-borne scourge wreaked havoc on pioneer life. Few settlers on the soggy prairies of Central Illinois could escape one or more bouts of malaria - a disease they called by many names, such as the "ague" (pronounced a-gew or ager), the shakes, bilious fever and autumnal fever.See the full content of this document
Extract
Illinois Once Emporium' of Malaria
The disease was marked by fluctuations in body temperature, from bone-cracking chills to frighteningly high fevers. It could linger for extended periods, making those infected unable to perfo...
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