Coming of the Spirit of Pestilence: Introduced Infectious Diseases and Population Decline among Northwest Coast Indians, by Robert Boyd

Coming of the Spirit of Pestilence: Introduced Infectious Diseases and Population Decline among Northwest Coast Indians, by Robert Boyd. That certainly is quite the title. There's coverage from California North to the Yukon border and from the late 18th century through the mid-19th. There are several diseases covered including smallpox, tuberculosis and even malaria. There were multiple outbreaks that swept through the various native groups. Most interesting was the various reactions including religion and scapegoating. The text is very dry. I get the feeling that Boyd is quite proud of all the research he's done so he's going to reference all of it. There are quite a few extensive quotations from primary sources which was nice. Explanatory footnotes accompany the text as well as general information on epidemiology and the various illnesses.

Recommended there's a lot of information here even if it is occasionally hard going.

Is available through Abebooks.