logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2021
1h 20m

Typhoid Mary Mallon Revisited

The History Chicks | QCODE
About this episode
There are quite a few parallels between Mary Mallon's story (a series of typhoid outbreaks) and our present-day pandemic, and so there are things we can learn from it. But was Mary a villain? Or simply a victim of circumstances? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices 
Up next
Aug 26
Virginia Hall
Virginia Hall wanted to be a diplomat, but the State Department kept shutting doors in her face …and then she lost her leg in a hunting accident, which seemed like she’d reached a dead end. Never one to accept defeat, she learned how to walk again on a wooden leg nicknamed “Cuthb ... Show More
1h 4m
Aug 13
Rosa Bonheur
Rosa Bonheur was a wild, animal‑obsessed kid who drew before she could read, and knew she was meant for the world of art from an extremely young age. She didn’t set out to shock anyone; she simply refused to be anything but herself, and the world eventually had to adjust to her. ... Show More
2h 15m
Jul 24
Mercy Otis Warren
Mercy Otis Warren’s life is one long argument for the idea that political courage isn’t just found on battlefields or in legislatures; it’s found in writing, in conversations, in friendships, and in the willingness to speak plainly (and loudly) when power grows dangerous. She bel ... Show More
1h 46m
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2025
Typhoid Mary: Original Super-Spreader?
Mary Mallon aka "Typhoid Mary" is a macabre figure who spread disease and death everywhere she went. But there's a lot more depth and humanity to Mary's history than this. She's someone who is hard to resist when you get to know her (despite all the Typhoid...). Anthony Delaney t ... Show More
43m 37s
Jun 2020
There's Something About Mary
When a cook who carried typhoid fever refused to stop working, despite showing no symptoms, the authorities forcibly quarantined her for nearly three decades. Perfect villain or just a woman scapegoated because of her background? What the story of Typhoid Mary tells us about jour ... Show More
40m 39s
Jul 2024
Ep. 5 - The TRAGIC Life of Typhoid Mary
On today's episode, Genevieve talks about the life and times of a Ms. Mary Mallon, otherwise known as Typhoid Mary – much to her chagrin. Subscribe to the Newsletter!⁠⁠Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening!References for today's episode:https://en.wikipedia.or ... Show More
28m 11s
Mar 2022
“Typhoid Mary” Mallon Pt. 2
Apprehending Mary Mallon was not a one-time affair. After she was forced to quarantine, she was allowed to reenter society under one condition: she would never cook for anyone again. But “Typhoid Mary” refused to play by anyone’s rules. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit pod ... Show More
50m 9s
Jan 2025
The Legacy of Typhoid Mary Pt. 2
In 1907, George Soper located the cause of a typhoid outbreak in New York City: a cook named Mary Mallon. Mary didn’t know it, but each and every meal she cooked carried a small chance for her clients to come down with the disease. Finding out the truth could cost Mary her job…an ... Show More
34m 5s
Jul 2025
Typhoid Mary | Cook, Carrier, Captive | 3
In 1906, a New York health department investigation into an outbreak of typhoid fever led to the discovery that a cook, Mary Mallon, was an unsuspecting ""healthy carrier"" of the deadly bacteria. This discovery forever altered Mallon’s life, thrusting her into a national spotlig ... Show More
41m 2s
Apr 2024
Episode 12: THE PASSAGE OF TYPHOID MARY
In this hauntingly evocative episode, the ferryman, brought to life with the profound resonance of Dan Fogler's voice, guides a soul whose legacy is as complex as it is misunderstood. Mary Mallon, known to history as Typhoid Mary, voiced by Therese McLaughlin, steps aboard, her s ... Show More
35m 4s
Jan 2025
The Legacy of Typhoid Mary Pt. 1
In the late 1800s, Mary Mallon was a cook for wealthy families in New York City. She thought her job was going well; her clients seemed pleased and she had a reputation as an exceptional chef. But then, the family members started getting sick, and Mary had no idea that she was th ... Show More
32m 12s
Aug 2022
S1: The Tragicomedy of Typhoid Mary
We're taking a break this week so here's an episode from our first season you may not have heard yet. We'll be back with a new episode next week!This is the story of a cook who refused to wash her hands and the health department that chased her around New York City in search of a ... Show More
30m 22s
Jun 2020
History's Lessons for Our Post-Virus Future
As soon as the Coronavirus became a pandemic, people began making parallels to the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1918, and reaching even further back to the black death of the middle ages. It makes sense--past pandemics may be our only reference point for whole populations being strick ... Show More
15 m