‘Drastic measures everywhere.’ Deadly Spanish flu closed SLO County schools, shut down towns
The 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic was one of the worst in history.
Spanish flu killed 10 to 20% of those infected. Victims who had been otherwise healthy fell to severe pneumonia.
The disease was deadly because a group of three genes in the flu virus allowed it to drill deep into the lungs and open the door to pneumonia. Mucous membranes could hemorrhage, leading to bleeding from the nose, stomach or ears.
Victims complained of fevers, sore throats, sensitivity to light, headaches and feeling like they “had been beaten all over with a club.”
Mortality was high with the old and young but people aged 20 to 40 years were especially hard hit. Spanish flu killed more people than World War I, then just ending.
It remains to be seen how serious the coronavirus outbreak centered in Wuhan, China, will be, but experts say the flu is the greater threat. The disease mutates often, which is why it’s difficult to develop immunity season to season.
Medical technology in 1918 was primitive. Wonder drugs like sulfanilamide and penicillin were almost two decades in the future.
Home remedies like lemon juice and malted milk were touted as curatives, but it’s hard to say how effective they really were.
As Spanish flu outbreaks hit the east coast over the summer, the San Luis Obispo Daily Telegram covered the situation on the inside pages with chipper headlines like this one:
GOT THE FLU? WHAT TO DO
The advice was much the same as today. Protect your nose and mouth in the presence of sneezers, avoid crowds and don’t get scared.
As the situation became more serious, influenza coverage moved up to the front page. Here’s a headline from Oct. 12, 1918, complete with a typesetting error:
Eighteen Cases of Spanish Influenza in this City that Have So Far Been Reported
In Philadelphia, hundreds of bodies remained unburied. Undertakers could not keep up and volunteers were requested to dig graves.
On Oct. 15, 1918, the newspaper reported:
HEALTH BOARD SAYS THERE IS LITTLE “FLU” HERE
Reports from physicians indicated that there is very little influenza in the city, with most of the suspected cases being simple colds.
Four days later, headlines were starker:
HEALTH BOARD ISSUES CLOSING ORDER EVERYTHING EXCEPT SCHOOLS UNDER HEALTH BOARD BAN
“Johnnie may sleep late tomorrow morning. He don’t need to get up in time to get to Sunday school on time for the reason that there will be no Sunday school. Neither will dad have to find an excuse for staying at home from church because there will be no church services held in this city.
“Likewise there will be no picture show tomorrow or tomorrow night or until such time as the ban shall be lifted.
“The board of health met this morning and decided to order all churches, places of amusement, lodges and indoor meetings of all kinds discontinued until further notice. The single exception is city schools. As stated yesterday, members of the board believe the children are better off in school than out.
“The order includes pool rooms, bowling allies, card rooms, clubs, lodges, theaters, churches, dances and gatherings of any kind indoors. “The law will be rigidly enforced as will the law against spitting on sidewalks and floors and stairways of buildings.”
On Oct. 21, 1918, the first flu death was reported on the front page:
MRS. A.K. HARDIE DEAD AT PASO ROBLES
“Former resident Succumbs to Pneumonia
Following Attack of Influenza;
Funeral Tomorrow.”
Ironically, after banning large public gatherings, the call went out for Red Cross volunteers to gather and make masks.
In the era before radio, television and Twitter, the newspaper was the important link to information as institutions shut down one by one.
There were now 27 flu cases reported.
San Luis Obispo shut down schools until further orders from the board of health. Parents were asked to keep their children indoors and not to congregate in the streets.
On Oct. 24, 1918, the Daily Telegram reported:
FOUR NEW FLU CASES HERE
Four influenza cases were reported in San Luis Obispo, with more all over the county. The paper kept a boosterish tone, claiming that the crisis was much worse in other cities.
“Other parts of the county are not as fortunate as this city. Paso Robles is full of the flu. Arroyo Grande and vicinity have had 130 cases since August and Nipomo country is reported by physicians to be full of it.”
Mrs. Fred Babbs died in Arroyo Grande and three more victims were reported from Santa Maria.
The U.S. surgeon general, Dr. Rupert Blue, advised that people wear masks and that the victims be bundled up. He also suggested that the windows of sick rooms be opened wide to the fresh air.
On Oct. 26, 1918, the newspaper said,
DRASTIC MEASURES EVERYWHERE TO CURB FLU
60,000 cases of Flu in California
The banner headline and five of 11 front-page stories were about the flu. The first death in San Luis Obispo was one of them.
Deaths were also reported in San Miguel, Templeton and Atascadero. Statewide, the death toll stood at 2,500.
The Red Cross was asking for volunteers to treat the sick.
“(The) Board of Supervisors this morning passed an ordinance which makes it unlawful for any person to appear on any street, or in a public place, or any place were people assemble, or where two or more persons are together, except in their gauze mask,” the Daily Telegram reported.
“A fine from $5 to $100 or ten days in jail is the penalty for failure to comply with the law.
The jurisdiction of this ordinance covers the entire county outside the cities of San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles and Arroyo Grande.”
Paso Robles and Arroyo Grande were soon expected to do the same.
William Gibson was the first to die in San Luis Obispo, succumbing to pneumonia following influenza.
“Gibson was employed at the local Standard Oil service station and became ill about ten days ago,” the Daily Telegram said. “His wife is said to be in San Jose while a small son was with him in this city. He was a member of the I.O.O.F Lodge. That order took charge of the remains and will arrange for the funeral which will be announced later.”
This development was announced on Oct. 28, 1918:
City Council to Pass Mask Ordinance
Three more deaths were reported, Thomas McCullough Welch of San Luis Obispo and Virgil Antonnietti near San Miguel.
In Los Angeles, racism was part of the health emergency. Nurses voted to suspend their strike at the county hospital; they had been protesting that black women had been admitted for care. San Francisco was claiming fewer cases but Chico lost the publisher of a newspaper to the disease.
An Atascadero woman who gave a stirring speech before leaving to nurse the ill in San Francisco also died.
“Mrs. Isabella M. Williston of Atascadero died last night at Camp Fremont where for a week she was in charge of sixty cases of Spanish Influenza,” the Daily Telegram reported.
“Mrs. Williston was the wife of Second Lieut. Williston of the Atascadero Home Guard and chief linotype operator of the Lewis publishing interests.
When a call came for volunteers to care for the sick at the army camps Mrs. Williston was among the first to respond, being sent to Camp Fremont.
Funeral arrangements are as yet unannounced.”
On Oct. 29, 1918, the Daily Telegram reported:
City Mask Law Effective Tomorrow
The Red Cross quit free distribution of flu masks. Women had been hard at work for six straight days and made 4,500, but the volunteer effort ended when kids were seen using the masks as bags for carrying marbles.
The Red Cross was happy with the number of volunteers who registered to become sick room attendants.
The San Luis Obispo gauze mask ordinance was scheduled to go into effect the next day at 4:30 pm. Those without a mask would be fined up to $50 or get 10 days in jail.
Then, on Oct. 30, 1918, the newspaper said
Stringent flu Precaution is Urged
Three more deaths were reported in San Luis Obispo: George Stairs, Miss Mary Mehlschau and Miss Evelyn Dana.
Another article outlines the proper way to wear a mask — over the mouth and nose, not around the neck.
Masks should be boiled after being worn a few hours, the newspaper said, and one should never be worn more than four or five hours without boiling.
If for any reason the mask is taken off and left off long enough to dry out, it should be discarded, the Daily Telegram reportd.
More bad news came on Oct. 31, 1918:
TWO NEW CASES OF EPIDEMIC HAVE BEEN REPORTED TODAY
There is no mention of Halloween but there was real fear.
Cal Poly had been under quarantine since Oct. 29, 1918, and cadet guards were stationed at Palm Drive and Dormitory Road to prevent students from other closed schools from visiting the vocational high school. Director Ryder expressed regret for the inconvenience and lectured the students on responsibility.
Meanwhile, the Red Cross began making masks again for helpless men folk in the community. The story headline?
MAKING MASKS FOR
THOSE WHO HAVE
NO WOMEN FOLKS
