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History Daily

The Black Death Comes to America

History Daily

Airship | Noiser | Wondery

History

4.42.1K Ratings

🗓️ 7 February 2025

⏱️ 20 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

February 7, 1900. The bubonic plague comes to America, but the man charged with defeating the disease finds his greatest challenge comes from the politicians.


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Transcript

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0:00.0

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0:04.1

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0:06.0

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0:10.6

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0:16.4

Music It's February 7, 1900, in the Chinatown District of San Francisco.

0:31.8

41-year-old lumberyard worker Wong-chut King hurries out the door of a Chinese herbalist

0:36.6

clutching a paper package to his

0:38.6

chest. It's so bright on the street that it hurts his eyes. But as Wong squints in the sunlight,

0:44.7

he can't see where he's really going or what he might be treading in. He jerks his foot back

0:49.8

in disgust as he realizes he just put his foot through the swollen carcass of a rat. He's used to seeing

0:56.0

rodents on the streets, but usually they're scurrying around, feeding on trash. Over the last few weeks,

1:01.8

though, there have been dead rats everywhere, and there's a growing unease that there is something

1:06.4

wrong in Chinatown. Long senses that there's something not quite right about himself, either.

1:11.6

His skin inches, his head pounds, he's feverish, and he's feeling weak.

1:16.6

He hopes the package he just bought from the herbalist will help.

1:19.6

It contains a remedy that's been used for centuries to combat fever and fatigue.

1:24.6

He'll try to take them while on break later, but for now he must hurry to the

1:28.6

lumberyard, or else he'll be late for work. The more Wong hurries, however, the more he struggles.

1:35.6

Despite the cool San Francisco air, he's soon sweating through his clothes. His light jog turns to a walk,

1:42.6

the walk turns to a stagger,

1:48.1

and before long, he needs to lean against a wall just to support himself.

1:54.2

As he tries to regain his strength, the busy streets around him begin to darken and then blur.

...

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