Daily AncestorTyphus
Typhus is a louse-borne fever with a rash that spread in crowded, dirty conditions; in old records it is easily confused with typhoid.
Typhus, often called typhus fever, is spread by body lice and causes high fever, headache and a spotted rash. It thrived in jails, ships, armies and famine camps.
It is a completely different disease from typhoid fever, though the names look alike and older clerks mixed them up. Many old names, such as ship fever, jail fever and putrid fever, refer to typhus.
As seen in a recordCause of death column, 1850 to 1880 federal mortality schedule
Bridget Hanlon, 23, F, W, Single, Ireland, June, Typhus fever, 14 days
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Daily Ancestor. "Typhus." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/causes-of-death/typhus. Last checked 2026-10-01.