American Scandal: The Plague of San Francisco | "The Wolf Doctor" (Episode 2)

Podcast: American Scandal (Wondery)
Host: Lindsey Graham
Air Date: September 23, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode explores the intensifying battle between science, politics, and prejudice during the 1900 outbreak of bubonic plague in San Francisco’s Chinatown. At the center is Dr. Joseph Kenyon, the embattled federal officer tasked with containing the epidemic. The narrative traces Dr. Kenyon’s struggles against entrenched racism, economic interests, and political obstruction as he tries to deploy limited medical tools and assert public health measures in the face of mounting opposition, backlash, and personal risk.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Tensions and Distrust in Chinatown

• Context: Dr. Joseph Kenyon, burdened by the label “the Wolf Doctor,” tries to garner support from the Chinese Consul General, Hou Yao, for a community-wide inoculation campaign, but he’s greeted with suspicion and fear.
  • The Chinese community’s anger and distrust fester, fueled by memories of a forceful quarantine and rumors in local newspapers that the serum is a poison.
  • Hostility erupts during Kenyon’s consular meeting, where a mob assaults the consulate ([00:00]–[05:47]).

Public Denial and Political Inaction

• Backdrop: City officials, including Mayor James D. Phelan, shift from overreactive quarantines to downplaying the plague’s danger—deflecting blame while press and business leaders insist the threat is fabricated.
  • Dr. Kenyon becomes the public’s new villain as resentment boils over.
  • Surgeon General Walter Wyman, based in Washington D.C., debates racially targeted travel bans to prevent the plague’s spread beyond California ([05:47]–[11:00]).

Contentious Quarantines and Legal Battles

• Imposing the Ban:
  • Federal officials establish strict checkpoints to keep Chinese residents from leaving California unless inoculated.
  • This policy prompts legal challenges, and Judge William Morrow rules against racially motivated health measures, declaring them unconstitutional ([11:00]–[15:00]).
• Second Quarantine:
  • Despite the setback, Kenyon convinces the California Board of Health to impose a harsher quarantine—this time walling off Chinatown with an imposing fence and barbed wire, attracting more public outrage and economic pushback.

Corruption and Bribery

• Chamber of Commerce’s Offer:
  • Charles Nelson, Chamber president, offers Kenyon a bribe (disguised as “a gesture of goodwill”) to ease quarantine restrictions. Kenyon is affronted and rejects the offer, realizing bribes may already be influencing plague reporting.
    • Notable Exchange:
      • Nelson: "Think of this as a gesture of appreciation… a token of goodwill between two gentlemen who understand the stakes."
      • Kenyon: "Are you offering me a bribe, Mr. Nelson?" ([15:00]–[18:00])

National Media Interference

• Dr. George F. Schrady’s Visit:
  • Famed physician and journalist Dr. Schrady arrives to determine if the plague is real. Initially, he confirms Kenyon’s findings—but is soon bullied by Governor Henry Gage, who warns him of the economic damage his report could cause.
    • After private pressure from Gage, Schrady reverses course in the press, declaring, “this plague scare is absolutely unwarranted”
      ([18:00]–[23:50]).

Escalating Legal Pressure Against Kenyon

• Following negative press and public backlash, Kenyon is attacked in court, with opposing counsel mocking bacteriology and Kenyon’s credentials.
  • Judge Morrow denounces the quarantine as discriminatory: “acted with an evil eye and an unequal hand” ([23:50]–[28:00]).
• Kenyon attempts a broadened (race-neutral-on-its-face) state travel ban, but enforcement remains overtly discriminatory, leading to accusations of violating court orders and threats of jail.

National Political Fallout

• Economic interests and political maneuvering come to a head; Governor Gage and California Republicans lobby President McKinley to end Kenyon’s actions before the upcoming election.
• The President, concerned with party unity and economic disruption, orders the travel bans and health inspections lifted, effectively ending Kenyon’s authority ([28:00]–[33:03]).

Personal Isolation and Professional Consequences

• Kenyon’s Downfall:
  • Kenyon narrowly avoids jail after a fortuitous ferry ride conversation with Judge Morrow.
  • He is socially ostracized, vilified in the press, and left with only his family standing by him as the death toll quietly rises, often underreported or covered up by peers ([33:03]–[38:30]).
• Family Tensions:
  • Kenyon and his wife Lizzie face social exclusion; their children beg to leave San Francisco, but Kenyon refuses to give in ([38:30]–[41:00]).

Politics Undermining Public Health

• Governor Gage pushes conspiracy theories and legislation to criminalize plague reporting and the collection of tissue samples, threatening a life sentence for "plague scare mongers."
• Kenyon pleads in vain for support from Surgeon General Wyman, who eventually replaces him with Dr. Joe White.
• Dr. White, after confirming plague, declines public support and instead requests another independent commission from the East Coast—a new chapter in bureaucratic delay and scientific caution ([41:00]–[44:50]).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Community Distrust:
  • Ho Yao: “The way the Chinese community has been treated in these past weeks... disgraceful. Is it any wonder that talk of mandatory vaccination has caused such fear and resentment?” ([02:24])
• On Economic vs. Public Health Priorities:
  • Chamber of Commerce President Nelson: “We rely on Chinese labor to keep the city moving... This fence around Chinatown may be sound policy to you, but to me it’s a noose around our neck.” ([16:17])
• On Political Threats:
  • Governor Henry Gage to Dr. Schrady: “All I want is to be certain the plague is real... before we commit to a course of action which could do untold damage to California. I would hate for California’s economic collapse to rest on your conscience.” ([22:46])
• On Judicial Condemnation of Discrimination:
  • Judge Morrow: “The California Board of Health acted with an evil eye and an unequal hand.” ([28:05])
• Kenyon’s Resolve:
  • Kenyon to Lizzie: “I can’t let Gage and his cronies win after everything I’ve endured. I can’t retreat now. One way or another, they’re going to see I was right.” ([41:54])

Important Segment Timestamps

• Chinatown Consulate Mob Scene: [00:00]–[05:47]
• Imposition of Federal Travel Ban: [08:00]
• Ruling Against Racially Targeted Quarantine: [14:30]
• Chamber of Commerce Bribe Attempt: [16:00]
• Dr. Schrady’s Arrival & Report: [18:00]
• Governor Gage’s Bullying of Schrady: [22:40]
• Second Quarantine Lifted by Court: [28:00]
• Kenyon’s Defiant New Travel Ban: [29:10]
• Presidential Intervention/Travel Ban Lifted: [32:15]
• Kenyon’s Social Ostracism – Christmas Scene: [38:20]
• Gage’s Legislative Attack on Kenyon & Plague Evidence: [41:00]
• Dr. White Appointed and Side-steps Kenyon: [43:10]

Episode Tone and Closing Reflection

The tone is tense, urgent, and often bleak—mirroring Kenyon’s isolation, both professional and personal, as he clashes with a city (and a nation) that prioritizes economic interest, racial scapegoating, and political convenience over scientific evidence and public health.

The episode ends with Kenyon awaiting judgment from an independent commission, hoping his struggles will be vindicated but fearing further betrayal (“Either they’ll back him up and save his career, or they’ll let politics trump public health yet again.”).

For listeners seeking a gripping, multifaceted account of the intersection of science, politics, and prejudice at one of San Francisco’s darkest hours, this episode delivers both sweeping narrative and intimate detail—dramatizing how public health crises are as much about human frailty and ambition as they are about germs and medicine.