Edward Jenner Getting help from a cow, a milkmaid and a boy VaccineMakers.org Milkmaids would get During the 1700s in England, sores on their hands women helped on farms. from milking the Milkmaids were women who sick cows. The good milked the cows. news was that the Some cows got a disease milkmaids did not called cowpox. get very sick when they got cowpox. Edward Jenner was a doctor Dr. Jenner heard in England. He often saw people talking about people who were very the milkmaids. They sick with another disease said that milkmaids called smallpox. Some of who got cowpox did his patients died from this not get smallpox. disease. This made him sad. Sarah Nelmes was a young milkmaid. She milked a cow named Blossom. When Blossom had cowpox, Sarah got Dr. Jenner realized that cowpox might protect sores on her hands. people from smallpox. Cowpox did not make Dr. Jenner asked to people very sick, but smallpox did. He would take a sample of pus see if what people were saying was right. He from her sores. decided to do an experiment. Material adapted from the Vax Pack Hero project produced by the Vaccine Education Center at PAGE 1 OF 2 Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. For more resources, including an online game, visit VaxPackHero.org. Edward Jenner Getting help from a cow, a milkmaid and a boy VaccineMakers.org Dr. Jenner then tested his idea on a young boy. James Later, Dr. Jenner Phipps was only 8 years old. Dr. Jenner put some of tested James with the pus from Sarah’s sores just under James’ skin. smallpox. James did not get sick. Dr. Jenner was very happy. But he had to try his experiment in more people to be sure it worked. And it did. When people got People started to come to Dr. Jenner. They cowpox, they did not get sick later wanted their children protected too. Then from smallpox. Dr. Jenner called other doctors learned how to do vaccination. his new process vaccination. Blossom, Sarah Nelmes, James Phipps and Dr. Jenner are heroes. Their work helped all of us. About 200 years later, smallpox no longer exists in the world. Today, no one gets smallpox or even needs a smallpox vaccine. Material adapted from the Vax Pack Hero project produced by the Vaccine Education Center at PAGE 2 OF 2 Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. For more resources, including an online game, visit VaxPackHero.org..