First definite proof that the organism causing yellow fever is transmitted to man by the mosquito Aëdes aegypti. During the period spent by these workers in the investigation of the disease in Cuba Lazear and Carroll subjected themselves to the bite of infectious mosquitoes to test the theory that mosquitos were carriers of yellow fever. Lazear died from the yellow fever infection in 1900, but Carroll recovered and completed the research. He later died of the yellow fever infection in 1907. Reproduced in part in Major, Classic descriptions of disease, 3rd ed., 1945, p. 131. Further account in J. Hyg. (Camb.), 1902, 2, 101-19.  Digital facsimile from Google Books at this link.

Order of authorship in the original publication: Reed, Carroll. In this paper of monograph length the authors irrefutably proved that yellow fever was not caused by a bacterial infection, allowing them to concentrate future research on a viral cause of the disease.

Digital facsimile from PubMedCentral at this link.

(Thanks to Juan Weiss for this reference and its interpretation.)

"The article describes a series of experiments conducted to explore how yellow fever is propagated from individual to individual and how the contagium is spread within households. The study was conducted in an experimental sanitary station in Cuba, where exposures and movements could be completely controlled. During the investigation, 12 nonimmune persons underwent different exposures, including mosquitoes that had fed on yellow fever patients, blood from infected patients, and fomites belonging to infected patients.

"The study provided the following observations: (1) Aedes aegypti mosquitoes transferred the disease from an infected individual to a nonimmune person; (2) at least 12 days were needed for the extrinsic incubation period in the mosquito before it could transmit the infection; (3) yellow fever can be transferred to a nonimmune person from the blood of an infected individual taken during the first 2 days of the illness; (4) a filterable agent was responsible for infection; (5) the incubation period for humans ranged between 2 and 6 days; and (6) yellow fever cannot be transmitted by fomites nor spread in a house without the presence of mosquitoes. The most significant conclusion was that the 'spread of yellow fever can be most effectually controlled by measures directed to the destruction of mosquitoes' " (http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/182442, accessed 05-2017).

By 1902 Reed knew that the infectious agent of yellow fever was smaller than bacteria, though he did not specifically call it a virus. "In 1898, the passage of an animal pathogen through a Chamberland filter was reported; it is now named foot‐and‐mouth disease virus. In Cuba, serum from a yellow‐fever case was diluted and passed through a Berkefeld filter (of diatomaceous earth and impervious to bacteria). When inoculated into a non‐immune individual it promptly induced an attack of yellow fever. The word ‘virus’ was not used for this case, but because it might be designated as ultra‐microscopic, the infectious agent of yellow fever was compared with that of foot‐and‐mouth disease of cattle" (Clements & Harbach, "History of the discovery of the mode transmission of yellow fever virus," J. Vector Ecol. , 42 (2017) 208-222).

The yellow fever virus discovered by Reed was the first virus discovered that caused human disease.

Digital facsimile of the revised edition published in 1907 from Google Books at this link.

A convenient compilation of the work of Reed and his associates, including the work of James Carroll published after the death of Walter Reed. Digital facsimile from the Internet Archive at this link.