MARITIME TRADE
The center of activity in early Philadelphia was the dock. Ships sailed around the Delaware River port all day long, dropping off passengers from Europe and trade goods from the Caribbean before picking up more cargo to head to Europe once more. Even though the city survived on trade, maritime commerce was dangerous to both the ships and the cities receiving them. The Lazaretto was the first lime of defense against the foreign diseases and products brought to Philadelphia.
TRANS-ATLANTIC TRADE
Also known as the Triangle Trade Route, merchant ships followed this general pattern across the Atlantic Ocean. Physical goods such as food and weapons were traded, but a large part of this trade was in human cargo.
Europeans enslaved millions of African people from hundreds of ethnic groups. Those who survived the voyage to the Americas were forced to work on sugar plantations and in service of wealthy white landowners. Contact between so many peoples led to exchange of disease too. Exposure to new diseases resulted in millions of deaths during the centuries of Triangle Trade.
AMERICAS
Trade Goods
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Slaves
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Salt​
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Yellow fever
WEST
AFRICA
Trade Goods
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Rum
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Guns & gunpowder
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Cholera & Smallpox
Trade Goods
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Sugar
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Raw foods & materials
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Syphilis
EUROPE
WHY PHILADELPHIA?
Location! Location! Location!
William Penn founded Philadelphia intending for it to be a port city on the Delaware River. The river was a deep water port open to ships of all sizes. Delaware Bay, between New Jersey and Delaware, protects vessels from rough ocean waters.
A Good Defense
Building higher up on the river made the Port of Philadelphia easier to control. Access to the city could be cut off or slowed, an important defensive consideration for early colonists competing with other nations for land. This would later be key for Revolutionaries too.
Merchants of a Feather
Philadelphia's population and trade grew together. As more people flocked to the city, merchants expanded their commerce in the region. And the more goods that were available in Philadelphia, the more attractive it was to immigrants looking for a place to settle.
TRADE GOODS AT THE LAZARETTO
Merchant ships traveling to Philadelphia had to stop at the Lazaretto for inspection. The Lazaretto Physician would check the crew for signs of infection and other Lazaretto staff looked through the cargo. Spoiled foods, rotting wool, and insect infestations are only a few of the signs of problems with non-living goods.
Humans with infection would be isolated and treated onsite. Animals may be killed if the disease was incurable. And if infection was found in non-living cargo, it would be burned to prevent disease spreading to local goods.
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The Lazaretto was authorized to destroy infected goods. Angry merchants were less of a problem for Philadelphia officials than an epidemic.