he was responsible for building an Isolation Hospital in Paterson in 1897, which, at the time, was considered a model facility. By 1918, more than 1,000 North American cities were using chlorine to disinfect their water supplies, which served approximately 33 million people. Statistics on the typhoid fever death rate in the U.S. showed a dramatic decrease in deaths due to this dreaded disease after the wide introduction of chlorine for disinfection. Filtration of water supplies contributed to the decrease in the typhoid fever death rate but chlorination is generally acknowledged as having a major impact on increased life expectancy in the U.S. Unfortunately, Leal is seldom given credit for his pioneering work in the disinfection of drinking water. George A. Johnson was a plant operator and laboratory technician who worked on the chlorination plant at Boonton Reservoir. His later writings gave no credit to Leal and, by inference, Johnson took the credit for the decision to use chlorine on the Jersey City water supply. The record shows that Leal came up with the idea to disinfect the water supply of Jersey City and he should be given the credit for this major advance in public health. On May 5, 2013, a number of people gathered at the gravesite of Leal in Paterson, New Jersey and dedicated a monument to him as a "Hero of Public Health." Present at the dedication were members of the New Jersey Section of the American Water Works Association and two great grandsons of Leal. In August 2013, the American Water Works Association established a major annual award in honor of Leal. Entitled the Dr. John L. Leal Award, the purpose of the award is to recognize any individual, group, or organization that has made a notable and outstanding public health contribution to the water profession. The first award was given at the AWWA annual conference in June 2014 to Michael J. McGuire. References External links PBS Video on Development of Chlorine Water Chlorination History A Public Health Giant Step Promoting Clean Water for Health John L. Leal and public health AWWA Water Industry Hall of Fame 1858 births 1914 deaths Environmental health practitioners Princeton University alumni Physicians from New Jersey Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni People from Andes, New York People from Paterson, New Jersey American public health doctors