The location of Memphis was one of the reasons it thrived as it did but it was also one of the reasons they experienced one of their first epidemics ever. Because of its location on the river, Memphis was predisposed to flooding which led to conditions that weren’t necessarily hygienic and it led to the breeding of many mosquitoes. In 1873, more than 2000 people died because of “yellow jack and over 5,000 cases of this illness were reported. At the beginning of the summer season, Memphis’ population was at 40,000 people and this was after the two previous months where 25,000 people. Fast forward five years, the entire city was almost eliminated from the epidemic as it came back stronger than ever. There were then 5,100 deaths reported and a total of 17,000 cases of yellow fever reported to authorities. Anyone that was able to left the city which left it in economic crisis and it hand to file for bankruptcy. In 1879, the city was reduced to a state taxing district and it yielded its charter. In the meantime, a well-to-do black entrepreneur named Robert Church, Sr. began purchasing all the land around the city, chiefly on Beale Street. In looking for a place for only African Americans, Church Church Park and Auditorium and he assisted in having Beale Street a vital part of everyday life for the city’s black people. Robert Church Jr. founded the NAACP in Memphis along with the Solvent Savings Bank. This ended up being the largest black owned bank in the world by 1921. You can still find the park that was named in his honor on Beale St.

The leaders in Memphis had began to make plans to bring the city back to the glory days as the 19th century came to an end. The would include tapping the artesian wells for clean drinking water and building a new sewer system. The city would come into the 20th century with additional infrastructure improvements and a new hope for a better future.