When somebody told local author Gary Elliott about a cholera outbreak in 1849 on a ship in Jefferson City, he was instantly intrigued.
He had never heard about it, so he read a paragraph about it on the city's website. As he read more about it, he became increasingly interested as he came across many discrepancies.
For example, some news articles from 1849 said a steamship full of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Philadelphia came to Jefferson City, and some said the ship was full of gold diggers from Jeffersonville, Indiana, but most articles didn't mention both groups.
Elliott dug deep to find the truth and began recording his findings. What started as a short article quickly evolved into a 144-page book.
"That's the thing that I enjoy, is finding the stories or searching for them, and so this was right up my alley," Elliott said. "This is the stuff that I find exciting."
The book, titled "The 1849 Cholera Outbreak in Jefferson City," will be available for purchase Jan. 25.
The book details the history of the cholera outbreak in the city and its far-reaching effects.
In 1849, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Philadelphia and California gold diggers from Jeffersonville, Indiana, boarded a steamship, named after President James Monroe, headed from St. Louis to Council Bluffs, Iowa.
Their trip was interrupted when cholera, a bacterial disease usually spread through contaminated water, broke out on board.
Local 14-year-old James McHenry discovered the steamship after it landed at Jefferson City, and he observed the dead and dying victims along the riverbank.
Seventy-five to 100 people who died had their names identified, but there were 200-250 passengers on the ship, Elliott said.
"The rest of them, I don't know, and I don't know what happened to them," Elliott said.
About 30 survivors from the Philadelphia group were able to get on a new ship and travel to Council Bluffs, and many people from both groups packed up and went back home.
Elliott tells the story of the survivors as well as those who died. While researching, he discovered journals from passengers who had cholera detailing the effects it had on them leading up to their death.
The story of the cholera outbreak is a piece of Jefferson City's history the city knew happened but didn't know much about, Elliott said.
"With this being the anniversary year of Cole County and the state, it's just the perfect timing," he said.
Elliott is also the author of "The History of the Jefferson City and Cole County Councils of the Boy Scouts of America, 1910-1929" and "They Came and They Went: A Brief Account of Hannibal Missouri's Early Jewish Community and the B'nai Sholem Cemetery (Along with Those Interred There)."
"The 1849 Cholera Outbreak in Jefferson City" will be available for purchase on Amazon and arcadiapublishing.com for $21.99, and Elliot said he expects it to be sold at local book stores. Elliott is also planning a series of speaker engagement events that will begin after January.
This article was edited at noon Jan. 7, 2021, to correct the spelling of Gary Elliott's last name.