The Mosquito Crusades: A History of the American Anti-Mosquito Movement from the Reed Commission to the First Earth Day

287 Pages·2009·2.23 MB·English

by  Gordon Patterson

The Mosquito Crusades
Studies in Modern Science, Technology, and the Environment
Edited by Mark A. Largent
The increasing importance of science and technology over the past 150 years—
and with it the increasing social, political, and economic authority vested in
scientists and engineers—established both scientifi c research and technological
innovations as vital components of modern culture. Studies in Modern Science,
Technology, and the Environment is a collection of books that focuses on
humanistic and social science inquiries into the social and political implications
of science and technology and their impacts on communities, environments, and
cultural movements worldwide.
Mark R. Finlay, Growing American Rubber: Strategic Plants and the Politics of
National Security
Gordon Patterson, The Mosquito Crusades: A History of the American
Anti-Mosquito Movement from the Reed Commission to the First Earth Day
The Mosquito Crusades
A History of the American Anti-
Mosquito Movement from the Reed
Commission to the First Earth Day
gordon patterson
rutgers university press
New Brunswick, New Jersey, and London
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Patterson, Gordon M.
The mosquito crusades : a history of the American anti-mosquito movement from
the Reed Commission to the fi rst Earth Day / Gordon Patterson.
p. ; cm. — (Studies in modern science, technology, and the environment)
“Sequel to The Mosquito Wars: A History of Mosquito Control in Florida,
which appeared in 2004”—Pref.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978–0-8135–4534–9 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Mosquitoes—Control—United States—History—20th century. 2. Mosquitoes
as carriers of disease—United States. I. Patterson, Gordon M. Mosquito wars.
II. Title. III. Series.
[DNLM: 1. Mosquito Control—history—United States. 2. History, 20th
Century—United States. QX 11 AA1 P317m 2009]
RA640.P25 2009
614.4'323—dc22 2008038705
A British Cataloging-in-Publication record for this book is available
from the British Library
Copyright © 2009 by Gordon Patterson
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
written permission from the publisher. Please contact Rutgers University Press, 100
Joyce Kilmer Avenue, Piscataway, NJ 08854–8099. The only exception to this
prohibition is “fair use” as defi ned by U.S. copyright law.
Visit our Web site: http://rutgerspress.rutgers.edu
Manufactured in the United States of America
For Ben
Act well your part, there all the honour lies.
alexander pope
To forget one’s purpose is the commonest form of stupidity.
friedrich nietzsche
Contents
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction The Guardians of Paradise 1
Chapter 1 Waging War on the Insect Menace 12
Chapter 2 The Garden State Takes the Lead 35
Chapter 3 A Continental Crusade 58
Chapter 4 Public Health, Race, and Mosquitoes 80
Chapter 5 Widening the Campaign 103
Chapter 6 Advances and Retreats during the Great Depression 122
Chapter 7 Weapons of Mass Destruction 143
Chapter 8 The Postwar Era 167
Chapter 9 Discontent and Resistance 195
Epilogue The End of the Crusade 216
Notes 223
Index 255
vii

Illustrations
1.1 J. N. “Ding” Darling cartoon “War on the Blood Suckers” 24
1.2 John Smith and Leland Howard 27
3.1 Portrait of John Smith 78
4.1 William Herms 92
6.1 Thomas Headlee with a New Jersey Light Trap 124
6.2 J. N. “Ding” Darling cartoon “The U.S. Public Health Service Takes
a Shot” 139
7.1 DDT application to a U.S. serviceman 159
8.1 Portrait of William Herms 168
8.2 Tommy Mulhern 181
8.3 Don Rees, Archie Hess, and Glen Collett 186
9.1 Harold Gray 208
ix