World Mosquito Day
Today is World Mosquito Day, marking the day in 1897 when Ronald Ross confirmed that the female anopheles mosquito transmitted malaria to humans.
IOR/R/15/2/1062 Anti-malaria measures (1939-1947)
The notebook recording this discovery is held as part of the Ross archive at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Ross was a member of the Indian Medical Service, and so the India Office Records here at the British Library also contain a wealth of material relating to his career and research.
The papers of the India Office Military Department (IOR/L/MIL) contain biographical material relating to Ross’s time in the Medical Service.
The recently catalogued Government of India Medical Proceedings feature copy correspondence between Ross, the Government of India, and other researchers regarding his research into malaria and kala-azar, and later investigations into preventive measures.
Today the LSHTM are marking mosquito day with an afternoon of live performance and music, accompanying Ross, his wife and their dog Binkie to St Petersburg in 1912 as part of a delegation to the Russian Duma.
And on Friday 18 September the British Library, in collaboration with the Mustard Club and experts from the LSHTM Malaria Centre will present Science Unboxed: Mosquitoes, Malaria and the Raj, featuring dramatic readings from the records plus discussion of their modern-day relevance and the current steps being taken to eradicate malaria worldwide.
Tickets are free but limited to a small number, and we will be serving tea and cake. For further details and booking, please see our What’s On pages.
Alex Hailey
India Office Medical Archives project
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