How 'The association of endemic elephantiasis of the lower legs in East Africa with soil derived from volcanic rocks' has underpinned progress in podoconiosis research.

We demonstrate how an article from the Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene archive has triggered two important series of studies into the aetiology and distribution of podoconiosis, 30 years after first publication of the article. It indicates the value of becoming familiar with hypotheses raised by earlier investigators and of direct use of historical data in understanding trends in disease distribution.