Ian Olivo Read
Articles by this author
Articles by this author
Finding Fatalism and Overconfidence in a Cruel Port: The Bubonic Plague's First Appearance in Brazil
On October 18, 1899, Brazilian health officials declared that bubonic plague had arrived. Bacteriologists identified the bacteria in samples taken from sick patients in Santos, a port city that had grown rapidly due to Brazil’s coffee boom. For much of history, people reacted to the news of plague with panic...