1882 Richmond Indiana resident Dr. Joseph Iutzi publishes “Heredity and Its Relations to Disease,” which argues that insanity, tuberculosis, and syphilis, among other diseases, are predominantly inherited.
Hey, that's my home town! And I'd like to point out that he's two-for-three: syphilis can indeed be contracted congenitally, and was a common cause of infant disease. There's a strong genetic link for some kinds of insanity (notably schizophrenia and depression). And God knows that in 1882, you'd be noticing that entire families had tuberculosis.
New nickel.
t history-ignorant furriner
Who's the dude? Same one, new angle?
t /history-ignorant furriner
syphilis can indeed be contracted congenitally
Was it transmitted this way predominantly, though?
This was my history prof at McGill. [link]
So we heard quite a bit about Indiana.
Around the turn of the twentieth century, scientists studied several extended families for several generations in an attempt to prove that criminality, insanity, and pauperism were genetic traits found in "bad stock." Several of these histories are found in the General Collections. One, McCulloch's "Tribe of Ishmael" was a study of a family in the Indianapolis area. The Clipping file, Indianapolis - Tribe of Ishmael, contains an undated article by Nicole Hahn Rafter, which discusses the significance of these studies.
"Tribe of Ishamel" aka, The Ben Ishmaels was not one family but an interracial nomadic community that traveled throughout the midwest, not unlike Gypsies or Irish Tinkers.
I love how "pauperism" was considered a genetic disease.
I love how "pauperism" was considered a genetic disease.
Well, you know, with class mobility what it is(n't)...
New nickel.
I like it better than the GIANT SCARY PROFILE version on the nouveau buffalo nickel -- but really, why the constant futzing with nickels?
Collectible market. Change the design of the money, collectors buy mint ones.
