Ports of empire: immigration, communication, and cholera in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, 1830-1870

Thesis

This study explores the relationship between emigration and cholera in British North American port towns, between 1832 and 1866. It focuses specifically on three established and growing port towns located directly off of the Atlantic Ocean – St. John's, Newfoundland, Halifax, Nova Scotia and Saint John, New Brunswick. The pressures of mass immigration from the British Isles, the transmission of highly-feared diseases from emigrant and cargo ships to port towns in British North America, and the dependence, vulnerability and constraints felt by colonial governments and their citizens are three important themes that emerge and are continually challenged throughout this dissertation. This thesis presents the way in which colonial port towns managed the recurrent and unpredictable threats to their health, wellbeing and prosperity during this period, and highlights the increasing strain and growing dislocation felt by British North Americans under colonial rule.

The history of cholera in Canada has focused overwhelmingly on Upper and Lower Canada, with little exploration or comparative analysis of the outbreaks in the Atlantic region. The following research examines the interconnected, complex and at times distant relationship between Britain and its North American colonies, under the influence of emigration and transmission of disease from coloniser to colonised. High points of calamity and upheaval clarified the extent to which the colonies were responsible for themselves, forcing many towns to re-evaluate their ability to control emergencies on their soil, with or without the help of the mother country. This study contributes not only to the historical understanding how cholera was managed in British North American ports, but it also provides a unique perspective on understanding the greater struggles of nineteenth-century colonial life.

Authors: Fowler, M; Madeline Fowler

• Publication date: 2013
• DOI: 10.5287/ora-wvebxvar6
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: cholera; migration; history of disease; colonialism; port towns; Newfoundland; Nova Scotia; New Brunswick; Atlantic Canada
• Subjects: History of medicine; History; International,imperial and global history