Dearborn: POW in Quebec 1776

Dearborn's journal of 1776 does not capture the harshness of the seven months of captivity the enlisted American POWs endured in Quebec's public jail and the Jesuits' College.

According to historical records, enlisted prisoners faced inadequate rations, disease, and brutal winter conditions.

By May 1st, 1776, five days before the retreat, 900 of the 1,900 American troops before Quebec were ill, primarily with smallpox.

Dr. Peter Fayssoux documented a grim pattern among the prisoners. Those who survived smallpox frequently died from severe diarrhea—a consequence of prolonged malnutrition. The steady diet of salt provisions, devoid of proper sustenance, left their bodies unable to heal.