1721 smallpox > Boston > 1732 PA> 7th great-grandfparents (both)

George Charles Gause (Goss) Sr DEATH 21 MAR 1732 • East Nottingham, Chester Co., PA 7th great-grandfather

why?…

  "Charles Goss and his wife Jane died in 1732 from smallpox.  They were buried in the same grave.

     "Their son, Evan (b. 1.23.1725) changed his name from Goss to Gause, as in the French spelling of the name.  His home was East Harlan, Bobbington, Buffington, Duck, and Bezer.   Her father {referring to Hannah White Walker, wife to Evan}, William White of Kennett Township, Pa. and her mother Elizabeth Harlan were married at Christ Church, Philadelphia, Pa., (6.8.1728).

     "A child of Evan Gause and Hannah White Walker was William Gause (b. 3.10.1775).  William was married in 1781 to Mary Beverly.  They lived in the vicinity of Kennett Square, Pa.

The Boston Epidemic

For over a year, from the spring of 1721 until winter 1722, a smallpox epidemic afflicted the city of Boston. Out of a population of 11,000, over 6000 cases were reported with 850 dying from the disease. Of a series of seven epidemics in the region during the 1700s, this was the most deadly [2]. Though tragic, the 1721 epidemic led to a major milestone in the history of vaccination and smallpox eradication. The use of inoculation during this epidemic, and the heated debate that arose surrounding the practice, was one of the first major applications of inoculations in western society, paving the way for Edward Jenner to develop smallpox vaccination by the end of the century.

The Outbreak in Boston

On April 22, 1721, a British ship arrived in Boston Harbor. On board, one of the sailors had begun to exhibit symptoms of smallpox. He was quickly quarantined, but several more members of the crew soon fell ill with the disease. An outbreak of the disease spread quickly through the city . As the epidemic worsened, Cotton Mather reached out to the medical community of Boston, imploring them to use the inoculation method. One physician, Zabdiel Boylston, heeded his call, but most other doctors were hostile to the idea. At the forefront of the anti-inoculation contingency was one of Boston's only physicians who actually held a medical degree, Dr. William Douglass. The arguments against inoculation were varied, ranging from disagreement on religious grounds to scientific uncertainty. While many argued that inoculation violated divine law, by either inflicting harm on innocent people or by attempting to counter God's specific will, the main argument that Douglass made was that inoculation was untested and seemingly based on folklore. Douglas feared that unchecked use of inoculation would only quicken the spread of disease throughout the city.

By modern standards, this argument seems highly sensible. The use of a poorly researched medical technique, particularly one as potentially hazardous as intentionally exposing healthy people – including children – to smallpox, would be highly unethical today. To many professional Boston physicians, inoculation must have appeared as unscientific as other contemporary treatments such as bleeding and purging, which were still common practice during the early 18th century.