An early 20th century advocate for vaccines and his wife.
Edna Weingarten (1872-1925)
Dr. Frederick S. Weingarten (1874-1929)
In 1919, the world was still fighting a global flu pandemic that would claim an estimated 50 million lives. Medical literature was full of contradictory claims, and many Americans were resisting vaccination. Dr. Frederick Weingarten was a strong advocate for the efficacy of vaccines in preventing severe illness, an argument that persisted a century later as Americans and the rest of the world wrestled with COVID-19.
“The whole theory of inoculation is against giving vaccines after acute disease has started,” Frederick wrote in The American Journal of Obstetrics and Diseases of Women and Children published in 1919. “If the body does not respond to the living germs, it certainly will not respond to the dead organisms. Where we have tried the vaccine in large quantity, particularly in oil, we have had 98 percent of success and only a very small percentage of failures.”
Another doctor reported that after nurses and orderlies at hospitals throughout New York City were vaccinated, only one reported case of influenza followed. But skepticism persisted. A third doctor testified: “My reason for not giving the vaccination was, that among other things, it gave a false sense of security… Nobody could say that it did any harm, but that was not enough.” Ultimately, vaccine proponents prevailed, and a number of vaccines were developed and used.
Frederick Seymour Weingarten was born August 26, 1874, in Illinois to Ignatius and Josephine Weingarten, Hungarian immigrants. He was a graduate of the University of Chicago and received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Columbia University and a medical degree from the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Frederick and Edna L. Nordlinger wed in Manhattan on November 23, 1925. She had two children from a previous marriage, Sophie and Charles. Edna died in September 1928.
Frederick died a year later, at age 55. He suffered from heart disease for two years and arranged to call his physician, Dr. George L. Rohdenburg, by 8 a.m. every day. When his doctor didn’t get his early morning call, he went to investigate and found Frederick dead on the floor.
The police at first listed Frederick’s death a suicide because Dr. Rohdenburg had reported finding an almost-empty glass on a table near the body. He also said his patient had once described his pain as “unbearable” and had expressed a wish to end it all. However, after an analysis of the glass, which contained traces of peppermint, Frederick ‘s death was ruled a heart attack.
Edna’s estate plans provided for an unrestricted fund in The New York Community Trust.