"This fascinating book is as much of an account of mosquito-borne illnesses, research, and treatment as it is the story of Gorgas's life. Will draw biography, military history, and medical history readers." —Library Journal, starred review

“What a magnificent book! Carol Byerly’s Mosquito Warrior supplants all others as the definitive biography of Dr. William Gorgas. The research and storytelling are extraordinary. I learned not just about Gorgas and yellow fever but also about the intimacy and expansiveness of history itself. I loved every word.”
—Elizabeth Fenn, author of Pox Americana: The Great Smallpox Epidemic of 1775-82
 

“Carol Byerly has another home run! Like her earlier works on aspects of the Army Medical Department in the era of emerging scientific medicine, Mosquito Warrior: Yellow Fever, Public Health, and the Forgotten Career of General William C. Gorgas deals with a topic that is known a little bit by some people but not thoroughly by many. The previous biographies were without critical apparatus; the most recent was more than 70 years ago. This thorough, critical, readable book will last at least that long.”
—Dale C Smith, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Military Medicine and History, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
 

“Mosquito Warrior is timely and necessary to place William Gorgas in the historical narrative of medical history as well as public health in a broader and more closely researched biography. Much of Gorgas’s professional and medical accomplishments were not in the record of historical discourse, and with Mosquito Warrior, that will be corrected.”
—Deanne Stephens, author of Plague Among the Magnolias: The 1878 Yellow Fever Epidemic in Mississippi and The Mississippi Gulf Coast Seafood Industry: A People’s History
 

★ 03/01/2024

Best known for his yellow fever research, William Crawford Gorgas (1854–1920) spent his career in mosquito zones like Panama and Havana to build his expertise on scientific germ theory, modern sanitation, and public health. He believed these locales were keys to controlling mosquito-borne illnesses. Byerly's (Good Tuberculosis Men) meticulously researched biography tells Gorgas's life story while also exposing some of the petty politics that shaped the advancement of both his career and public healthcare. Byerly, a historian of military medicine, spends a substantial amount of time on Gorgas's childhood, but she also notes other important and moving situations in his adult life, such as his wife's breast cancer. This book cites numerous primary resources (letters, diaries, and more) from various special collections, the Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, the Tennessee State Library and Archives, and periodicals. This title also includes black-and-white photos and illustrations and an acronyms list. VERDICT This fascinating book is as much of an account of mosquito-borne illnesses, research, and treatment as it is the story of Gorgas's life. Will draw biography, military history, and medical history readers.—Laurie Selwyn