Inside Eyam, a 17th century English village that became one of the most remarkable cases of self-quarantine in history

Mompesson thought the rightful course of action was to self-quarantine the town. He believed that they could prevent further transmission to surrounding areas by restricting anyone from entering or leaving Eyam.

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Mompesson, who wasn't entirely trusted by the locals yet, reached out to the former rector, Thomas Stanley, to help him convince the villagers not to flee. Together, on June 24, 1666, the two convinced the people of Eyam to voluntarily quarantine themselves, facing a greater chance of death but ensuring their neighbors' protection.

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Francine Clifford, a local historian in Eyam, believes that Mompesson and Stanley appear to have been appealing to the community's religious values, convincing them that, according to Christian teachings, the town had a moral duty to do something good for humankind.

The village placed rocks in a one-mile circle around Eyam to create their isolation zone. Over the next few months, no one entered or left the town, eliminating any human-to-human transmission except for each other.

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Nearby villages would leave food and supplies by the cordon rocks in return for coins that were soaked in vinegar, a practice that the townspeople believed would prevent the plague from spreading.

In 1665, Eyam had between 750 to 800 residents. By the time the plague had taken its toll, 260 of them had died, representing over a third of the total population.

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William Mompesson kept careful parish registers and accounts of every plague victim during this period. The records show entire families dying rapidly, in one case within a week. During August of 1666, at its peak, five to six people were dying a day in Eyam.

In a letter dated November 20, 1966, Mompesson wrote about what life in the village had been like, commenting "my ears never heard such doleful lamentations—my nose never smelled such horrid smells, and my eyes never beheld such ghastly spectacles."

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However, infections tapered out just over a year after the plague first infected Eyam. Mompesson wrote that the last infection to occur was on October 17, 1666.

Clifford attributes a combination of colder weather and the plague's natural life cycle as reasons for it dying out. She notes that outbreaks of plague in England almost always lasted around a year.

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Fortunately, the self-imposed quarantine was successful in preventing further transmission. Clifford said that if it had reached Manchester or Sheffield it most likely would have become a severe epidemic with thousands of fatalities.

Tens of thousands of tourists visit Eyam each year to admire its villagers' historic sacrifice and to learn about an era ravaged by plague epidemics.

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Clifford says that communal ideas of self-sacrifice still resonate centuries later in Eyam, now with a population of about 1,000. She said that the town is a community-centered village that is full of caring people ready to help their neighbors.