When Adenoids Led to a School Riot in New York City

At the turn of the 20th century, New York City was so crowded that there could be several elementary schools in one city block. The students were the children of poor immigrants, often malnourished and suffering from lack of medical care. An astonishing number of them had no ambition to progress to high school, since they were destined to get menial jobs as soon as they were big enough to work. Adeline E. Simpson, principal of Public School 110 Florence Nightingale in Manhattan, was determined to change the fate of her students. One of her quests was to improve their health so they could flourish in their studies. The Chief Inspector for the Schools, Dr. John J. Cronin, was all for better health care for students, but wanted to hone in on one medical procedure that could give the most bang for the buck, and prove to city authorities and parents that better medical care led to better student outcomes. 

Although poorly understood at the time, adenoids are a part of the body's lymph system in the back of the throat that become inflamed during infection. This leads to clogged sinuses, poor breathing, and lack of sleep. On June 21, 1906, Cronin and a crew of doctors and nurses came to PS 110 and removed the adenoids of 83 students who had returned permission slips in a mass surgery session. Some of the children went home still bleeding from the procedure. 

A few days later, the entire neighborhood was convinced that the school was slitting their student's throats. This news didn't seem all that improbable for the Jewish immigrant community, because such abuses were why many of them had come to the US. Enraged activists and some inaccurate journalism spurred thousands of parents to rush to the schools to demand their children. The schools went into defense mode as an angry mob raged outside. Read about the school riot of 1906 at Damn Interesting.