PERSONAL HYGIENE

It is commonly believed that Euro-Americans who lived prior to the 20th century were unhealthy due to a lack of cleanliness. While modern plumbing, soaps and deodorants have probably contributed to a better-smelling society, we would be incorrect to assume that past Americans did not care about health and sanitation.

There is evidence in letters and diaries to indicate that frontier families did their laundry and cleaned out their homes once a week, or more often if they had too few changes of clothing. Taking a full bath required toting water and heating it or braving an open pond or river. People were more likely to just wash their face, chest, and arms on a regular basis.

TEETH

Regardless of stories suggesting that people in the preindustrial era believed cavities had a supernatural cause, frontier inhabitants knew that uncleanliness was the cause of tooth decay. Tooth decay was a much bigger problem for the upper classes who ate more sugar in their diets, but even this was much less sugar than the average American eats today. Most people did attempt to take care of their teeth, but simply did not have access to the kind of dental care that we take for granted.

The most common tool for cleaning teeth was a toothpick, but people did make toothbrushes from the frayed ends of twigs and roots. The most popular kinds of toothbrushes were made of twigs from sweet gum trees and sassafrass roots for their sweet tastes. By the 1820s, people could buy brushes made from animal bristles.

Toothpaste is a modern invention, for which we should be extremely thankful. Frontier inhabitants used a variety of abrasive tooth powders that contained any number of bad-tasting gritty things like charcoal or pumice. Mouthwashes sold by dentists and doctors often contained acid.

DISEASE

Without antibiotics to combat infections or vaccines for most viruses, many more diseases that are not life-threatening today could sweep through an entire family or community. Some of the most dreaded diseases of the era were measles, smallpox, and cholera--a disease that spreads through contaminated water.

Smallpox was a dangerous disease for most of human history. Though its mortality rate was not as high as some viruses, it was highly contagious and particularly dreaded because it could leave victims disfigured by pock marks. People had known for years that a related, but much less harmful, disease called cowpox gave people an immunity against its more deadly cousin. In 1798, doctors "invented" the smallpox vaccine, the first vaccine for any virus. A needle was dipped in the pus from a cowpox sore and used to scratch a healthy person. The person developed a light case of cowpox, so that the body built up antibodies to both diseases. The name for this new invention, "vaccine," comes from the Latin vaccinus: of cows.

CHILD MORTALITY

Census records show that a typical family had three to seven children. Not every child born would live to adulthood. Children are particularly susceptible to a variety of diseases. Only fifty percent of children born on the frontier reached their fifth birthday.

TRADITIONAL MEDICINE & DOCTORS

There were very few doctors in the area, even after decades of immigration. They were also more likely to live in townships. For the average poor person, a doctor's care could be fairly expensive, so for lesser illnesses and injuries, people tended to diagnose and treat themselves. Most people had more than a passing acquaintance with the flora in their area, and traditional cures often incorporated this knowledge of plants and herbs. Much of this knowledge had been gained through contact with Indians and several generations of trial and error. In fact, the white immigrants to Kentucky so associated medical knowledge with Indian healers that images of Indians were often used to advertise medicines. It was only in the early 20th century, when medical doctors were attempting to establish themselves as an authority, that traditional medical knowledge was equated with ignorance. Ironically, many of the revolutionary medicines developed in the 20th century derive from the same plants and organic materials used in traditional cures. Aspirin, for example, is made from the bark and leaves of the willow tree. A tea brewed from willow tree bark had been used for generations in the treatment of arthritis.

One can see the continued reliance on traditional medicine today. In many non-European cultures, folk medicine has remained the dominant medical tradition. A preference for traditional medical approaches should not be viewed as a sign of lack of education. In fact, studies have shown that Americans seeking alternative medicine come from all socioeconomic and education levels.

All this is not to say that the knowledge of the medical establishment has not been of value. People in Kentucky in the 18th century did rely on doctors for more serious cases. A household might have an almanac, a guide written by a medical doctor listing instructions for the treatment of various complaints. It's certainly probable that some of the information in these almanacs was incorporated into the traditional knowledge. People adapted both sources of information to their needs.

Some of the cures involve a kind of magical-religious belief requiring the patient to perform specific actions or use certain objects to get rid of the sickness. For instance, in order to cure the measles, one should draw a circle on the floor and stand inside it for five minutes without moving. It would seem that these types of remedies were a last resort for problems that couldn't be cured by other means.

Lesson 11: Glasgow City Minutes (addresses sanitation)

Lesson 7: Daniel Drake's letter on chores (describes laundry day)

Field Activity: Cemetaries and Local History

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Created by Jennifer Small and maintained by DLSC faculty and staff. Last Modified July 19, 2005. All Contents Copyright © 2005.
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