JEFFERSON CITY, MO, APRIL 19, 2021 – Missouri State Museum invites the public to attend a virtual program, 1849 Cholera Outbreak in Missouri, as part of its ongoing “Landing After Hours” series at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 5 on the Missouri State Museum Facebook page: facebook.com/MissouriStateMuseum/.
Author Gary Elliott recently published a book about the 1849 outbreak and will discuss the history and its far-reaching effects when a steamship named after President James Monroe headed from St. Louis to Council Bluffs, Iowa. The passengers were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Philadelphia. At St. Louis they were joined with a group of California gold diggers from Jeffersonville, Indiana. Their trip was interrupted when cholera broke out on board. A 14-year-old boy named James McHenry discovered the steamship when it landed at Jefferson City, observing dead and dying victims along the riverbank.
The Missouri State Museum’s “Landing After Hours” events are held the first Wednesday of each month.
For more information about the event, call the Missouri State Museum at 573-751-2854.
For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.