Observations: 

 

I have been noticing a rise in suicides from the early 1890's to the mid to late 1890's.  The trends of today are still the same, and most people kill themselves with gunshots to the head or by hanging themselves.

 

NM 9 April 2008

 

Overall, I have been noticing a lot of deaths from Apoplexy, which is a new term to me, so I looked it up.  It's an is an old-fashioned medical term, which can be used to mean bleeding. It can be used non-medically to mean a state of extreme rage.  Basically, the person suddenly loses consciousness and dies in a matter of seconds.  It was used to describe things like heart attacks and cerebral and aortic aneurysms. 

 

NM 11 April 2008

 

Since starting on the older files I noticed that about one in every three deaths in this chronology is somehow train related, usually run over or hit by train.

These deaths usually note that it was Accidental, and some even indicate that the deceased was Trespassing.

 

As for the files themselves, the notebook paper and Legal Pad used to take down the testimonials seems to hold up better than the paper used for the press reports and formal coroner documents, this paper is very brittle and often breaks down the crease lines when unfolded.

The staples are problematic as well; they cannot be removed without taking a whole corner of the documents they hold together with them. They often obscure small bits of information at the top of pages and tear the document when lifted to see what is near the staple.

 

AP 25 April 2008

 

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1895

 

In October, a 12 year old boy was drug under a train and according to the file was 'ground to pieces', which I assume means he was dragged for awhile under the train.  The wording just seemed very interesting. 189510_67

 

NM 9 Apr 2008

 

 A file containing the inquest into the death of a 36 year-old male patient at McKeesport Hospital reveals some of the interesting practices of the medical profession during the late nineteenth century.  The man was admitted to the hospital as a, "charity case," who was suffering from, "ulceration of the foot."  His doctors decided that he should undergo an operation for this condition and examined his heart in preparation.  It was determined that the man had no heart disease or conditions and was cleared for the operation.  Problems initially arose when the anasthetic, chloroform, was administered.  The patient reportedly became, "excited," and the doctors could clearly see something was wrong.  They stopped administering the anasthetic and began attempts to restore the man's respiration.  They claimed to work at this for a period approaching two hours.  When asked in the inquest to define their attempts at, "artificial respiration," they described their methods.  The doctors said that they used forceps to pull the man's tongue out of his mouth in order to prevent any obstruction to his breathing.  They then began to pull his arms up over his head and bring them back down to his sides, while alternately applying pressure to his chest to draw air into his lungs.  They said they also administered hypodermic injections of glycerine, whiskey, and spirits of amonia.  Some of these they administered in the man's rectum.  The doctors placed hot cloths over the man's heart and held his head in a downward position, alternating between this position and the artificial respiration of arm movements and chest pressure described earlier.  They also said they used an electric battery in an attempt to restore his heartbeat.  His death was attributed to the effects of the anasthetic chloroform.  Some of the methods described by these doctors seem absolutely ridiculous, while others are still a vital part of modern medicine.  The technique of "artificial respiration" practiced by these men doesn't seem to be terribly far removed from modern CPR.  The electric battery used is quite obviously an early version of a modern defibrillator, and possibly similar in its effectiveness.  The hypodermic injections, especially those of whiskey to the rectum, appear most outrageous in comparison to modern medicine.  It is interesting to consider how doctors in this time period came to have such a seemingly even mix of effective and likely ineffective treatment techniques.  It would be interesting to know the circumstances under which each treatment became accepted and thought of as useful.  189501_342

 

TG 15 Apr 2008

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1896

 

In November of this year, a 72-year old Hill District woman was overcome by "artificial gas" at her daughter's residence.  More than likely, this was one of the first reported deaths that was attributed to carbon monoxide poisoning.  Considering that it was November, it is certainly not unreasonable to assume that the house was closed up as much as possible.  189611_166

 

MWB 11 Apr 2008

 

1896

 

Found a German newspaper clipping in one of the files (189601_333).  This clipping was an obituary of the man who committed suicide while visiting Pittsburgh from New York City. After narrowing down choice, I determined the name of the paper was Frank Leslie's illustrirte Zeitung.  Newspapers in foreign languages were common in this time period due to immigration and the spark of the industrial revolution. These newspapers' kept immigrants who did not speak English informed with events.

 

 

BG 11 APR 2008

 

 

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1897

 

I have gotten many files in July of this year that list people as dying by being overcome by heat.  The people range from all ages and I assume many are dying of dehydration.  This July must have been exceptionally hot in Pittsburgh!

 

NM 15 April 2008

 

In the beginning of July of this year a skeleton of an unknown white man was found near some train tracks.  They body had been there for 8-10 months.  In the file, there is an explination of what the body looked like, what effects it had with it, and where they found it.  I thought it was interesting, I have never found a file about someone who was dead from such a long time. 189707.244

 

NM 15 April 2008

 

 

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1899

 

 

 

Today I cam across my first case of death from syphilis.  The man was 60 years old and was found dead in his basement.  I've never seen a case of this while working on the older files so it was interesting to see that the doctors were able to identify it as a cause of death.

 

NM 25 April 2008