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HUMAN WASTE-MATTERS: WASTE-WATER, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY FLORIDA By BRIDGET BIHM-MANUEL A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2013 1 © 2013 Bridget Bihm-Manuel 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I owe a huge debt of gratitude to the many people who made it possible for me to finish this project. First, the members of my committee, the late Dr. Robert Zieger, Dr. Vassiliki (Betty) Smokovitis, Dr. Joseph Spillane, Dr. Paul Ortiz, and Dr. Joseph Delfino, and especially my mentor, invaluable advice and guidance through the process of writing the dissertation. Second, archivists and librarians at several institutions provided assistance with research, helping me locate materials that I would never have been able to find on my own. I would like to thank the archivists of the Swarthmore College Peace Collection, the National Archives and Records Administration in College Park, Maryland, the Department of Special Collections at Johns Hopkins, and the State Archives of Florida in Tallahassee. My research started at the University of Florida’s George A. Smathers libraries, and I would like to thank the staff at Marston Science Library, the Health Science Center library, Library West, the history room at the Borland Library in Jacksonville, and most especially my friends at the Department of Special and Area Studies Collections. Mil Willis, Flo Turcotte, David Hickey, John Nemmers, Bruce Chappell, Pam Cunningham-Willis, Joel Buchanan, Dr. James Cusick, and the rest of the staff helped provide encouragement and a job when I needed one. I also received encouragement, advice, and research assistance from scholars in the field including Dr. Karen Thomas, Dr. Julia C. Frederick, Dr. Sherry Johnson, Nina Stoyan-Rosenzweig, and Dr. Christian Warren. I would like to thank them and also some of my fellow graduate students in the history department at the University of Florida—Michal Meyer, Peggy MacDonald, and Eunhye Kwon provided moral support and shared their own difficulties as they finished their dissertations. 3 Most of all, I want to thank my family. My mother-in-law, Rose Manuel, my father- in-law, Paul Manuel, and my brother-in-law Christopher Manuel helped whenever and however they could. My brothers, Benjamin Bihm and Brian Bihm, were always available to talk about something other than the dissertation, which was often a much needed relief. My father, Elbon Bihm, Jr., made many trips to Florida over the course of my time in graduate school, bringing with him encouragement, treats from home, and a helping hand, especially with everyday project that school did not allow time for. My beautiful daughter, Rebecca, reminded me that Girl Scout cookies, kittens, and dollhouses are often more important than academics. Finally, my husband, Keith Manuel, was the one person most responsible for seeing that I finished this dissertation. His love and support were constant, even on the days I thought this project would never end. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. 3 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................. 6 ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 9 2 HOOKWORM, TYPHOID, AND THE BEGINNING OF THE FLORIDA STATE BOARD OF HEALTH .............................................................................................. 25 3 THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND WORLD WAR II ................................................ 70 4 POST-WAR PROSPERITY, GROWTH, AND CHANGES IN SANITATION ......... 123 5 SEWAGE, WATER, AND THE ENVIRONMENT .................................................. 156 6 CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................... 194 LIST OF REFERENCES ............................................................................................. 202 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................... 220 5 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AFSC American Friends Service Committee AJPH American Journal of Public Health CCC Civilian Conservation Corps CO Conscientious Objector CPS Civilian Public Service CWA Civil Works Administration FERA Federal Emergency Relief Administration FHN Florida Health Notes FSBH Florida State Board of Health FHQ Florida Historical Quarterly FSA Farm Security Administration JFMA Journal of the Florida Health Association NARA National Archives and Records Administration NIRA National Industrial Recovery Act NSBRO National Service Board for Religious Objectors PHS United States Public Health Service SAF State Archives of Florida SCPC Swarthmore College Peace Collection WPA Works Progress Administration USDA United States Department of Agriculture 6 Abstract of Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy HUMAN WASTE-MATTERS: WASTE-WATER, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY FLORIDA By Bridget Bihm-Manuel December 2013 Chair: Jack Davis Major: History Sanitation was one of the defining public health issues for the state of Florida during the twentieth century. This work will uncover the history behind sewage in Florida, especially the public-policy responses to the problems of wastewater in the post-World War II era. It lays out the process by which the state of Florida created an effective public health agency and how problems with sewage disposal and waste- borne disease shaped its development. A discussion of diseases that includes hookworm and typhoid illustrate how the Florida State Board of Health dealt with specific threats to health, and its limitations in the face of funding shortages stemming from a lack of support from state government. This dissertation also looks at the increasing federal presence, particularly during the Great Depression and World War II. Federal agencies, such as the Public Health Service, helped the Florida State Board of Health expand its operations and national legislation worked to protect water resources, while other federal laws allowed unrestrained growth to threaten health in the first place. In addition, this study will consider how the septic tank, which many public health officials considered to be the answer to sanitation problems during the first half of the century, damaged the environment and threatened public health during the second half. 7 The story of sewage disposal in Florida shows the close connection between public health and the environment. Effluent shaped the development of the public health establishment in the state, a process that was made more difficult by Florida’s unique climate and geology. Wastewater disposal also had a significant impact on the state’s economy; Florida’s continued success at attracting visitors and new residents rested on its ability to project an image that would be tarnished by pollution of its waters through leaky septic tanks. At the same time, developers, real estate agents, and homeowners attempted to limit the effectiveness of sanitation measures to avoid paying more for sewage disposal. Finally, sewage affected race. Minorities groups had limited access to sanitary sewage disposal methods and were most likely to suffer from waste- borne illness. 8 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Public health in the United States has long been affected by the presence of human waste. The problem was particularly severe for Florida during the twentieth century. During the first half of the decade, Florida’s population was predominately rural and homes lacked access to a sanitary means of sewage disposal, leaving residents open to waste-borne diseases including hookworm and typhoid. After World War II, the state’s population skyrocketed, making Florida one of the fastest growing states in the nation. Adding to the challenge of unprecedented growth was Florida’s unique climate and geology, which increased the danger of contracting waste-borne diseases and repeatedly showed the inadequacies of both waste disposal systems and the response by state officials. Florida’s history illustrates that as officials found new ways to manage sewage, as the state’s population continued to grow, and as its economy became increasingly tied to tourism, new challenges related to human waste arose to accompany older ones that had been inadequately confronted in the past. Public health activity in Florida was extremely limited before the twentieth century. Florida was a sparsely populated colony on the edge of empire, and its colonists had to survive with little support from the Spanish and the British. Efforts to protect health and improve sanitation were inadequate. Florida’s colonial experience ended with in 1821, and its population remained small throughout the nineteenth century. There were few cities, and most of citizens lived in rural areas in homes that often lacked the most basic sanitary provisions. Hookworm, a distinctly Southern disease, spread among black and white residents. It affected their ability to work, learn, and function on a day-to-day basis. 9 This situation, however,