REPORT OF THE SANITARY COMMISSION OF NEW ORLEANS ON THE EPIDEMIC YELLOW FEVER, OF 1853; PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF NEW ORLEANS. [Louisiana.]

[2], i-xviii, i-xx, 1-542 pages. H 22.25cm x L 14.25cm. Original blue paper semi-rigid thin cardstock covers which have some rubbing, soiling, and stains as well as edge-scuffing and creases/curling; slender remnant of a paper label near front cover's top center; brown binding cloth over spine with slender overlaps to boards and shallow fraying at ends; early-mid 20th century paper title label taped to upper spine; past owner made a transparent thin plastic dj modestly protecting covers with interior overlaps taped at their corners. Top edge darkened; toning to fore-edge and bottom edge with latter having shelf soiling as well. Interior leaves have slight curling at corners. Antiquarian ink three-line inscription "Dr. E.M. Snow | with the respects of | R H Ives" on front cover verso. Some interior foxing/toning but mostly reasonably clean. Binding is firm. ***** Total of eight b/w foldouts present: {#1} "Sanitary Map of the City of New Orleans . . . by E.H. Barton, A.M.M.D. Lithogr. by J. Manouvrier, No. 33 Camp St. N.O." between pages 212-213 (an early effort in medical geography-cartography); {#2, #3, #4} tables for July, August, and September 1853 "Meteorological Register, for New Orleans, kept by E.H. Barton" between pages 296-297; {#5} "Chart B Illustrating the influence of Solar and Terrestrial Radiation and Moisture in the Production of Yellow Fever in New Orleans" by E.H. Barton preceding page 309; {#6} "Chart Exhibiting the Annual Mortality of New Orleans . . . " by E.H. Barton between pages 314-315; {#7, #8} "A Table of the Deaths in New Orleans during the year 1853 . . ." by D. Macgibbon and "Meteorology of New Orleans, for the Year 1853" between pages 460-461. ***** The aforementioned front cover verso inscriber is quite likely Dr. E. M. Snow (Edwin Miller Snow, 1820-1888) who served as Superintendent of Health of Providence, Rhode Island from 1856 to 1884. The 1854 Providence cholera epidemic led Dr. Snow to research the relationship between disease and sanitation and thus he was certainly an appropriate recipient of Dr. Barton's report. In turn, the inscriber is quite likely prominent Providence mercantilist Robert Hale Ives Sr. (1798-1875) who was involved in establishing two hospitals in the city as well as being a long-time trustee of Brown University of which Dr. Snow was an alumnus. ***** Moving to Louisiana in 1820, Dr. Edward Hall Barton was among the most prominent physicians practicing in New Orleans in the 1830s-1840s and enjoyed various appointments including serving as president of the city's Board of Health, dean of the Medical College of Louisiana (now Tulane University), and president of the Medical Association of Louisiana. Formed in 1854 with Dr. Barton as its chairman, the Sanitary Commission was tasked with examining the impact of the yellow fever epidemic and finding solutions for future mitigation. (The disease's tragic epidemiological and demographic impact can be summarized with a few broad numbers - New Orleans' population in 1853 was approximately 120,000 of which, from June to December, an estimated 29,000 contracted yellow fever with attributed deaths ranging from 7,000 to 12,000.) However the most renowned element of the commission report - Barton's data compilation and analysis - led to a partially correct assessment in that Barton, in blaming poor hygiene and atmospheric conditions, correlated standing water and poor sanitation to case clusters but missed the causation to the Aedes Aegypti mosquito breeding in those stagnant pools (a connection that was not discovered until Walter Reed's conclusive research in 1900). ***** Bibliographical reference: Jumonville BIBLIOGRAPHY OF NEW ORLEANS IMPRINTS #2406; Thompson BIBLIOGRAPHY OF LOUISIANA BOOKS . . . #2433.…