Something Seems Odd
Like most Americans in the early 1900s, Mary Mallon was an immigrant. She arrived at Ellis Island in New York in 1883 after leaving her parents in Ireland. After moving in with her aunt and uncle and working as a maid, Mary decided that she wanted to work as a cook. She was hired by affluent families all around New York as their household cook.
Ellis Island circa 1900. Photo by Granger / Shutterstock
It didn’t take long before everyone began noticing a worrying trend. Every time she began cooking for a new family, they all were struck with concerning symptoms: throbbing headaches, high fevers, and terrible digestive problems that left them weak and exhausted. Strangely enough, Mary never showed any symptoms. Was she to blame?