When cholera killed hundreds in Soho in 1854, most doctors blamed bad air. John Snow didn't believe it. He went door to door, mapping every death, and found they clustered around one water pump on Broad Street. He persuaded local officials to remove the pump's handle, and the outbreak ended. His map became a founding moment of epidemiology, the science of tracking disease. He was also a pioneer of safe anaesthesia.
John Snow
Doctor Who Beat Cholera
EXTRA-ORDINARY TRAIT
FOCUS
JFDI PILLAR
F — FOCUS
COUNTRY & REGION
England (UK & Ireland)
LIFESPAN
1813 – 1858
GENDER
Man
EDITION
No.014
✦ DEFINING MOMENT
In a Soho street beside the Broad Street pump, its handle just removed, 1854.
✦ ARCHIVAL DOSSIER
The Story
✦ DID YOU KNOW?
He gave Queen Victoria chloroform during the birth of Prince Leopold in 1853.
✦ YOUR TURN
What problem would you solve if you mapped it street by street?
COLLECTIBLE EDITIONS
Wear this Mind
Official wearable and archival editions are currently in preparation. Register for dispatch announcements.
REGISTER FOR DISPATCH UPDATES →