1847 North American typhus epidemic

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

In 1847, during Ireland’s Great Famine, huge numbers of Irish people fled to North America on crowded ships. The ships carried a deadly fever called epidemic typhus, and the illness spread quickly once the arrivals reached Canada and the United States. In Canada alone, more than 20,000 people died in 1847–1848.

Grosse Isle and Montreal
Canada used quarantine stations to try to contain the fever. Grosse Isle in Quebec had been set up in 1832 to fight cholera and was reused for typhus victims. The island became overwhelmed as thousands of sick people arrived, many with little shelter or medical care. There were not enough doctors or nurses, and even volunteers were not eager to help because conditions were so hard.

In Montreal, Windmill Point became a large fever zone with many makeshift sheds for the sick. Grey Nuns and priests worked to care for the dying, and the Roman Catholic Bishop of Montreal urged French Canadians to help. Some arriving volunteers only wanted to adopt orphans, not help with medical care. The situation was dire, with crowded sheds, limited food and water, and a high death toll. A mass grave site near the city later became a memorial.

Toronto and Ontario
In Toronto, 863 Irish immigrants died in fever sheds built by the city. The epidemic also claimed the life of Bishop Michael Power, who cared for immigrants as he ministered to them.

Partridge Island and New Brunswick
Partridge Island near Saint John, New Brunswick, and nearby Saint John itself faced heavy losses. By the 1847 season, 2,115 people died in New Brunswick, with 1,196 of those deaths at Partridge Island and in Saint John.

Other Canadian places saw deaths as well. In Kingston, Ontario, fever sheds were used near the waterfront, and about 200 people died there during the outbreak. Bytown (present-day Ottawa) also received thousands of Irish arrivals, and about 200 people died in quarantine there.

New York and the broader toll
The typhus outbreak also affected the United States. In New York City, about 11% of the people who fell ill died, and many cases were linked to the long sea voyage from Ireland. Across Canada, the toll from 1847 to 1848 was heavy, with thousands of deaths and many more left weakened by the voyage and illness.

What happened at sea and on land
How many people died at sea is not exactly known, but ships carried sick passengers to destinations where they were then kept in fever sheds or on the ships until they could be processed. Conditions were often harsh: crowded holds, limited medicine, little food or water, and slow or inadequate medical care. The epidemic showed how vulnerable refugees can be when they suddenly face disease, overcrowding, and scarce resources.

Today, the 1847 typhus epidemic is remembered for the large number of Irish immigrants who died in Canada, the crowded journeys they endured, and the many communities that struggled to care for the sick and bury the dead.