The "Vaccine Travel Record"
The most important primary source for this module is the “Vaccine Travel Record” (Hakushin-yō ōraidome). Kasahara Ryōsaku, a town doctor and pioneering vaccinator from Fukui town, recorded nine volumes (the first of them is missing) between 1849 and 1858, with one final entry from 1860. He used this record to take notes as well as copy correspondences and documents about retransmissions, rules, procedures, and other matters regarding the movement of the vaccine to and from Echizen and within the province.
Another vaccine-related record (Senkyōroku) in Kasahara Ryōsaku's archive describes Kasahara's trip to Kyoto and back to Fukui to carry the vaccine to Echizen in 1849. Only volume 5 of this record has survived.
In this module, the pages related to Ōno domain are based on new research on the “Vaccine Travel Record” and other primary sources. Pages about Fukui and Sabae domain draw on research by Yanagisawa Fumiko, Ban Isoshirō, Umihara Ryō, and other scholars, who have likewise made use of the “Vaccine Travel Record.” The record has been published as Hakushinki: Hakushin yō oraidome (Fukui: Fukui-ken Ishikai, 1997).
Use the Territorial Approach to Vaccinations or the Vaccinating the Nishikata Enclave pathways to explore new research on Ōno domain that draws on the “Vaccine Travel Record.” Or use the link below to continue on the pathway “Written Records” to read more about the vaccinators' oath and other important records facilitating the vaccination process.
