Benjamin Jesty

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Benjamin Jesty (1736-1836) was a farmer at Yetminster in Dorset, England. He is one of the six English and German people recorded to have vaccinated with cowpox in order to artificially induce immunity to smallpox in the years 1770 till 1791.[1]

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[edit] Life and work

Tombs of Elizabeth and Benjamin Jesty in the churchyard at Worth Matravers.
Tombs of Elizabeth and Benjamin Jesty in the churchyard at Worth Matravers.
Benjamin Jesty (1805), by Michael W. Sharp
Benjamin Jesty (1805), by Michael W. Sharp

The social standing of individuals at the time may have had an influence on who was recognised for whatever achievement. Unlike Edward Jenner (1749-1823), a medical doctor, who used the cowpox vaccine as an immunization in 1796, Jesty was not in a position to publicise the procedure, which he carried out on his wife (Elizabeth Jesty) and first two children in the face of a smallpox epidemic in 1774, more than 20 years earlier. The notion that cowpox protected against smallpox was not an uncommon observation with country folk in the late 18th century. But Benjamin Jesty gave it more thought than most at the time, and it was no casual decision to vaccinate his family, with the exception of baby Betty, who was considered too young.[2] Later, Jesty and his family moved to Downshay near Worth Matravers, a Dorset village near the coast, and he and his wife are buried in a prominent position in the churchyard there with an inscription crediting him for his amazing work in helping Jenner create a vaccine for the smallpox epidemic. The name of his wife, Elizabeth Jesty, can be seen on the tombstone in the photo. A picture of Benjamin Jesty can be found as Plate 42 between Chapter 4 and Chapter 5 in Herve Bazin's book about the eradication of smallpox.

[edit] References

  1. ^ *Peter C. Plett: Peter Plett und die übrigen Entdecker der Kuhpockenimpfung vor Edward Jenner. In: Sudhoffs Archiv, Zeitschrift für Wissenschaftsgeschichte, Band 90, Heft 2, Franz Steiner Verlag, Stuttgart, 2006, S. 219-232 (ISSN 0039-4564)
  2. ^ Patrick Pead, Vaccination Rediscovered: New Light in the Dawn of Man's Quest for Immunity, Timefile Books, Chichester 2006 ISBN 0955156106

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