Vaccinated vs Unvaccinated – Surviving a Smallpox Epidemic

Anti-vaccine influencers like to push the idea of vaccinated vs unvaccinated studies. They probably wouldn’t be so eager if they took any time at all to look at what happened to vaccinated vs unvaccinated folks during smallpox epidemics!

You wouldn’t be so eager to skip or delay getting your child vaccinated and protected either if you reviewed some of the lessons we have forgotten from past epidemics.

Vaccinated vs Unvaccinated – Surviving a Smallpox Epidemic

For our first lesson, let’s take a look at two big smallpox epidemics at the end of the 19th Century in England.

Before going further, know that Gloucester, thanks to an active anti-vaccination movement, had recently become one of the least vaccinated cities in England!

And Willenhall was well vaccinated…

Which leads us to highly predictable statistics.

Folks in Willenhall, most of whom were vaccinated, did pretty well, and there were relatively few deaths!

“It thus appears that whilst the leading feature of the Gloucester epidemic was an abnormally high general fatality of unvaccinated cases, due to the large preponderance of small-pox amongst children under 10, the characteristic of the Willenhall epidemic was its large preponderance amongst adults who had been vaccinated in infancy only, but who, so far as mortality is evidence, suffered very slightly.”

The Story of the Gloucester Epidemic of Small-Pox

On the other hand, there was a much higher fatality rate in the Gloucester epidemic!

An epidemic which ended when everyone, even those who were the most against vaccines, ended up changing their minds and getting vaccinated.

While this is a great lesson, you don’t have to reach so far back to know that it is better to be vaccinated than unvaccinated.

We see the same thing during measles outbreaks, pertussis outbreaks, and outbreaks of other vaccine preventable diseases.

More on Surviving a Smallpox Epidemic

• How Was the Hundredth Anniversary of the Smallpox Vaccine Celebrated?
• The Peter McCullough Go Natural Childhood Immunization Schedule
• How Misinformed and Irresponsible Parents Led to Outbreaks of Smallpox
• The Leicester Method and Smallpox Eradication
• Do Vaccinated Kids Who Get Sick Have Milder Disease?
• If It’s Vaccines, Then Why Are There Autistic Kids Who Are Unvaccinated?
• More Vaccinated vs Unvaccinated Studies
• The Story of the Gloucester Epidemic of Small-Pox : Showing How It Arose, the Facts Which Make It Notable, and the Lessons It Teaches, With Full Statistics, Diagrams, &C. / Told by Francis T. Bond
• Claim by Brian Hooker that unvaccinated children are healthier compared to vaccinated children relies on flawed studies
• Vaccinated vs Unvaccinated Survey

Last Updated on August 29, 2024