In case you ever wondered why a large number of your ancestors disappeared during a certain period in history, this might help. Epidemics have always had a great influence on people - and thus influencing as well, the genealogists trying to trace them. Many cases of people disappearing from records can be traced to their dying during an epidemic or moving away from the affected area. Some of the major epidemics in the United States are listed below: 1657_____Boston Measles 1687_____Boston Measles 1690_____New York Yellow Fever 1713_____Boston Measles 1729_____Boston Measles 1732-3___Worldwide Influenza 1738_____South Carolina Smallpox 1739-40__Boston Measles 1747_____CT,NY,PA,SC Measles 1759_____N. America Measles 1761_____North America and West Indies Influenza 1772_____North America Measles 1775_____N. America epidemic Unknown 1775-6___Worldwide Influenza 1783_____Dover, DE Bilious Disorder 1788_____Philadelphia and New York Measles 1793_____Vermont fever and Influenza 1793_____VA Influenza 1793_____Philadelphia Yellow Fever 1793_____Harrisburg, PA Unknown 1793_____Middletown, PA Unknown 1794_____Philadelphia, PA Yellow Fever 1796-7___Philadelphia, PA Yellow Fever 1798_____Philadelphia, PA Yellow Fever 1803_____New York Yellow Fever 1820-3___Nationwide "Fever" 1831-2___Nationwide Asiatic Cholera 1832_____NY City and other major cities Cholera 1837_____Philadelphia Typhus 1841_____Nationwide Yellow Fever 1847_____New Orleans Yellow Fever 1847-8___Worldwide Influenza 1848-9___North America Cholera 1850_____Nationwide Yellow Fever 1850-1___North America Influenza 1852_____Nationwide Yellow Fever 1855_____Nationwide Yellow Fever 1857-9___Worldwide Influenza 1860-1___Pennsylvania Smallpox 1865-73__Philadelphia, NY, Boston, New Orleans Smallpox Baltimore, Memphis, Washington DC Cholera and a series of recurring epidemics of: Typhus, Typhoid, Scarlet Fever, Yellow Fever 1873-5___North America and Europe Influenza 1878_____New Orleans Yellow Fever 1885_____Plymouth, PA Typhoid 1886_____Jacksonville, FL Yellow Fever 1918_____Influenza Worldwide Finally, these specific instances of cholera were mentioned: 1833_____Columbus, OH 1834_____New York City 1849_____New York 1851_____Coles Co., IL, The Great Plains, and Missouri http://julialevesque.friendpages.com/ Or <A HREF="http://julialevesque.friendpages.com/">CrazyJCL@aol.com Genealogist< /A> Or http://home.talkcity.com/MainSt/juliacarol/ MyTalkcity Homepage And Many Picture's on This Homepage! http://www.familytreemaker.com/users/l/e/v/Julia-C-Levesque/index.html <A HREF="http://www.familytreemaker.com/users/l/e/v/Julia-C-Levesque/index.html"> Family Tree Maker's Genealogy Site: User Home Pages Julia Carol GREGORY</A> Julis Carol GREGORY Lévesque For those who chose not to share information to aid me in my research "I did it My Way" +†+