Details on the death of Charles Adams

May 31, 2013 5:05 PM

Any Adams family experts in the house? Did Charles Adams (son of John Adams) die of alcohol poisoning, delirium tremens, liver disease, pancreatitis, or other illness merely attributed to his drinking? Basic googling did not pull up any details on his death. My understanding is that in 1800 DTs was not a well described syndrome (in the US or possibly anywhere), but there was some familiarity with other alcohol-related illness.
posted by a robot made out of meat to Society & Culture (4 answers total)

Best answer: This book says cirrhosis of the liver.
posted by Houstonian at 6:10 PM on May 31, 2013

Best answer: Someone at the Adams Historical Site should be able to tell you.
posted by brujita at 6:53 PM on May 31, 2013

Response by poster: Hmm, using cirrhosis as the keyword suggests that this not a universally agreed upon fact. No primary sources, but I'm also seeing dropsy referred to, which I could buy as ascites.
posted by a robot made out of meat at 7:31 PM on May 31, 2013

Dropsy is the old name for edema, which is a symptom, not a cause.
posted by brujita at 3:08 PM on June 2, 2013