The O'Really Factor

Abraham Lincoln's mother Nancy died from "milk sickness" in 1818. Abraham Lincoln was only nine years old when his mother died. "Milk sickness" was caused by the consumption of milk contaminated by a toxin found in the White Snakeroot plant. Cows would often graze on the White Snakeroot plant passing the toxin to humans. "Milk sickness" killed thousands of settlers in the 18th and 19th centuries. In many cases over half the population of a community died.