In new book, Niskayuna brothers chronicle Schenectady’s efforts against deadly diseases

Dealing with ill health in the early 20th century was quite problematic, but the people of Schenectady, rich and poor alike, had a few advantages for them.

“The only thing I learned from working on this book is that leadership matters,” said Dr. James Strosberg, who, along with his brother Martin Strosberg, has published a new book, “Schenectady’s Battle Against Contagious Disease: From Smallpox to COVID- 19. “

“Schenectady and its leaders, politicians, professors and doctors, have always kept us out of so many other cities across the country when it comes to public health. We have done a great job taking care of our employees.

While the Strosbergs, both residents of Niskayuna, provide readers with a number of examples of prominent Schenectadians doing the right thing, perhaps the most influential person in the town’s medical history is Dr. Charles Duryee. . A Democrat first elected to a two-year term as mayor in 1898, Duryee again became the city’s chief executive in 1909 and served another two-year term before returning to medicine as his main profession. .

“He was a very smart guy, and it was Duryee who organized a big conference of state mayors in 1910 to discuss public health issues,” said Martin Strosberg. “He introduced a lot of innovations and became a real champion of public health. He stressed the need for a modern municipal health service.

Impressive references

The Strosbergs are well equipped to collaborate on a book on Schenectady’s medical history. James Strosberg, who wrote a book on the history of the Schenectady County Medical Society in 2011, practiced rheumatology at Sunnyview Hospital for 34 years and is the former chief of medicine at Ellis Hospital. He was also an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine (Rheumatology) at Albany Medical College and is a member of the Medical Reserve Corp of Schenectady County Public Health Services. Originally from Troy, he graduated from Union College and the University of Buffalo School of Medicine.

Also a native of Troy and a graduate of Union College, Martin Strosberg is Professor Emeritus at Union College and Clarkson University, and is the former Director of Union College and of the MBA program at Union Graduate College. in health care management. With a master’s degree in public affairs and health administration from the University of California at Berkeley and a doctorate from Syracuse, Strosberg has published extensively in the area of ​​health care policy and management. .

According to James Strosberg, the idea of ​​working with his brother to produce another medical history of Schenectady belonged to Martin.

“I call him my smarter younger brother,” joked James Strosberg. “I had done a lot of research for my other book and wrote a few articles for the Schenectady County Historical Society, so I created a plan and he wrote much of the book based on that. He did most of the writing, I did the proofreading. He’s an academic and knows politics, and I know the medical field.

The book focuses on the 1918 pandemic and other earlier battles against cholera, as well as subsequent problems with polio. It even covers the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. While the book was written in September 2020, during the proofreading and editing process the brothers were able to include COVID information from as little as December 2020.

The book was dedicated to the memory of Walter Robb, a former engineer / administrator of General Electric who became the first resident of Schenectady County to die from COVID-19.

“He was the first casualty in the area and he was a really great guy, a pillar of the community,” Martin Strosberg said of Robb. “He was a very intelligent man, who worked for the Schenectady Free Clinic and sat on the board of trustees of Clarkson and Union College graduate colleges. I got to know him quite well.

According to James Strosberg, Robb was the perfect example of a prominent person from Schenectady with a civic approach to medical issues.

“We had scientists like Walt Robb who cared about people, and we can go all the way back to Eliphalet Nott at Union College in 1832 to help clean up the Erie Canal,” said James Strosberg. “And during the polio crisis, Schenectady had such a good reputation that the city was one of 80 sites across the country chosen by the March of Dimes to work with vaccines. During all this time, we have had great leaders. Woodrow Wilson made no public statement about a pandemic that killed 650,000 Americans, but at Schenectady we had leaders like Duryee who really made a difference. And even today, Schenectady County had the highest vaccination rate in the state. We have had and have leaders of whom we can be proud.

“Schenectady’s Battle Against Contagious Diseases” is available at the Schenectady County Historical Society, the Open Door Bookstore, and online through Troy Bookmakers. All profits from the book go to the historical society.

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