The 'Mercritis' Conspiracy: A Bizarre Urban Legend of Mississippi

I've been a fan of southern urban legends and folklore most of my life. If I had to rank the southern states with the best urban legends, Mississippi would definitely be a contender for the top spot. While a lot of people automatically assume that urban legends are completely fabricated, I have found that there's often some hidden truth to the story. So, what about Mississippi? Let's take a look at what I consider the best and most bizarre legend from Mississippi and see if there's any truth to the story.

Hospital WardPhoto byBing image created by April Killian

Mercritis Oubreak Conspiracy

This rather obscure story has all the makings of a great urban legend: a medical mystery, a government coverup, and lots of people who swear it's true. Here's the basic legend:

In the 1950s, Mississippi was the first state to experience a widespread outbreak of an illness called Mercritis. Some versions of the legend link Mercritis to leaded paint or mercury, while others say it was a contagious disease that slipped over from Europe. As the illness spread, it caused riots and pandemonium across the state of Mississippi that spread throughout the southern United States. The most perplexing symptom of Mercritis was a strange odor that leached from the bodies of infected men. When this odor was inhaled by a female, it caused a violent and homicidal rage that resulted in the murder of several Mississippi men. To avoid any responsibility for mishandling the outbreak, the government and the medical community banded together to completely cover up the incident. Historic accounts, newspaper articles, and even medical records were supposedly all destroyed and completely scrubbed from history to keep the incident under wraps.

Does Mercritis Even Exsist?

The first real problem with the Mercritis outbreak conspiracy is the illness itself. The term "mercritis" cannot be found in any medical literature. The closest term that I could find is mercurialism, also known as mercury poisoning. It seems pretty farfetched that there could have been an outbreak of mercury poisoning in Mississippi in the 1950s. Mercury poisoning is not a contagious disease. It is caused by exposure to mercury—usually long-term exposure.

Lead and Mercury Poisoning

An isolated case or two of lead or mercury poisoning could have been exaggerated to play a part in the origin of this urban legend. The moderators of the subreddit r/spookedhelpdesk tackled the topic of mercritis several years ago and consulted a medical historian who works at the AAHM and is familiar with this legend. According to the historian, known as Jackie, she stated that, "The impact of extended lead poisoning on the mind is a different matter." She went on to state,

• Extended consumption and/or exposure to certain minerals can cause behavioral change, most notably lead and mercury.
• Those affected are not women specifically, but young children.
• The poisoning can lead to learning difficulties and developing antisocial behavior.
• There are cases where this behavior turned extremely violent.
• These are among the reasons why health authorities become alarmed when products like baby food and toys have notable concentrations of lead.

Mentions in a Book?

Podcasts and websites that mention the merciritis outbreak in Mississippi, often refererence a book that was supposedly written about the disease in 1968 in Japan. The website, Urban Legends Online, that names the book and its author:

"Haruki Ryu, formerly of the Yokohama Crier and the only author of a book on the subject (loosely translated) "Mercritis, I run", 1968, Shyu Nai Press, Limited. - Urban Legends Online Website (original source unknown)

Here's the problem with that publication: there is no information found anywhere about a Shyu Nai Press publisher in Japan, or the author, or the book ever existing. It seems to be a fabricated part of the urban legend added to give it credibility.

What About Eyewitnesses?

Many of the comments found on YouTube videos and podecasts about mercritis trace the outbreak back to the small town of Philadelphia, Mississippi. Comments such as, "My grandparents in Philadelphia lived during this," are not uncommon. Per usual with most urban legends, however, it's always a second-hand source used to verify the truth of it. While I'm not out to call anyone's beloved grandparent a liar by any means, I think that most of us raised in the South have learned that grandparents are great at repeating folklore and urban legends, whether they're true or not. That's why we love them!

Just an Urban Legend...Or Is It?

After searching through old newspapers, medical literature, and obscure historic accounts for a few days, I couldn't find anything to back up the infamous Mississippi legend of the mercritis outbreak or any riots it was supposed to have started across the South. The legend may have a small amount of truth in some isolated cases of mercury or lead poisoning, but even that remains unverified. Although it may be one of the best and most bizarre legends out there, so far it seems to be simply an urban legend and that's all. Then again, what if the government and the medical community were actually successful in scrubbing the mercritis outbreak from history? What do you think? Leave a note in the comments!

Click "follow" to catch more of my articles! I'm a native and resident of the Shoals area of north Alabama, sharing events and unique stories about the places and people of the south. Have a story to tell? Email me: april.newsbreak@gmail.com. As always, thanks for reading!