“Spanish Flu” epidemic hits Laramie—1918
The 1918 worldwide influenza epidemic began in January.
Astute readers of the Laramie Boomerang may have first noticed a reference to it on January 28 in an article discussing the death of an American nurse from diphtheria in France. The paper related that the one other nurse in the small French town was suffering from influenza. World War I was still raging in Europe.
More news came to Laramie with reports in early May of the impact of influenza on recent inductees in the U.S. Army. Laramie subscribers to the New York Times began seeing multiple stories about the spread of the disease in eastern U.S. states beginning in June. On July 10, for the first time, the Boomerang referred to it as the “Spanish grippe,” using the contemporaneous name for influenza.
Source unclear
Despite the geographic reference, the origin of the pathogen has been disputed with locations in France, Kansas and China being postulated. No matter the source, when it finally arrived in Laramie it had a significant impact.
Albany County residents whose relatives lived in the east were the first to be affected. For example, on September 25, Mrs. Jack Costin learned of the death of a cousin in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Then two days later, 24 Albany County men who were to depart for military training at Camp Lewis in Washington were told they would not be going because the base was hard hit by the flu.
By the first week in October, the county medical officer, Dr. E. M. Turner reported to the Boomerang there were numerous cases of influenza in the county. However, he could not say with certainty that it was Spanish Flu.
Closures
As a precautionary measure, acting on the orders of C. H. Beard, Secretary of the State Board of Health, Turner announced on October 8 that all schools in the county would be closed until further notice. The order also closed all churches, pool halls, card rooms, public libraries, saloons and public places of amusement. Additionally, no public gatherings were to be held outdoors.
Because of a lack of communication, the University of Wyoming did not close until two days later, on October 10. President Aven Nelson stated he had not received the official notice but acted when he read it in the Boomerang. There was speculation that the school might reopen in late October, but Nelson said the restrictions proposed by the state—requiring 90 percent of the faculty to live on campus—were too onerous to comply.
Campus activity stops
Most activities on the campus were curtailed except for those of the Student Army Training Crops, a wartime replacement for R.O.T.C. Military drill was held daily with 174 recruits.
However, students did find ways around the restrictions. For example, when indoor gatherings were banned, students participated in “sidewalk dances.”
First fatalities
While the flu raged out of control for several months on the East Coast, the initial death in Wyoming was not recorded until October 10 when three-year-old Fred Bryan died in Casper. The first death in Laramie was likely E.T. Conwell, a forest service employee, who died on October 15.
From that date forward the Boomerang carried almost daily articles on the spreading contagion. Reverend Delo of the Trinity Lutheran Church reported many cases of the flu around Harmony, with one death.
Reports from the State Board of Health noted 2,500 cases in Wyoming with hardest hit Evanston suffering an infection rate of 25 percent. At the time the population of Wyoming was about 190,000.
Government guidance
The same day those numbers were announced, the Boomerang published guidance from the federal government on eight steps to take to deal with the infection:
1. Report to doctor or nurse or go to bed and call in.
2. Open all windows in bedroom for fresh air.
3. Use plenty of bedclothing to stay warm.
4. Drink plain water freely.
5. Take a laxative.
6. Eat plain bland foods such as eggs, broth, soft toast and milk.
7. Use paper or soft cloth for cough, sneeze or spit then place in a paper bag and then burn it. [Kleenex wasn’t marketed until 1924, for removing face cream]
8. Stay in bed for at least 48 hours after you think you are feeling well.
Less guidance was offered on how to avoid getting sick in the first place. General guidance included saying fit, avoiding crowds, exercising in fresh air and staying warm. One Laramie merchant used the latter point to note that his “brown calf, kid lined shoes for men,” had a waterproof midsole and would keep feet warm and help prevent getting a cold that could develop into Spanish Flu.
Social distancing
There were self-imposed limitations on businesses, with many asking customers to keep separation between them to lessen the likelihood of spreading the disease. New Method Laundry told customers they needed to disinfect their clothing before bringing it in by using a solution of one tablespoon of formaldehyde in one gallon of water sprinkled liberally over items before bundling them.
There was no effective treatment at the time for those who contracted the disease; the strength of the patient was often a determining factor. That meant infants were especially susceptible as were mothers right after childbirth.
Deaths mount
On October 25, twenty-five new cases were reported in Albany County along with five deaths—clearly deaths were mounting. Seven members of the Murdock family were ill with four dying within two days. A report from Marshall in far northern Albany County also noted Mrs. Ralph Bennett’s death.
Compounding the sadness were reports of Albany County servicemen dying. John Wadleigh was informed on October 26 that his son passed away at the U.S. Navy’s Great Lakes Training Center. Deaths due to disease among service members both in America and France were extensive, often causing more fatalities than combat.
One report in the Boomerang of Marine Corps casualties listed were 2 killed in action; 41 died of disease. Another from France noted 223 combat deaths and 220 due to illness.
Visitors to Laramie were not spared. The Jackson family from Sugar Loaf, Colorado, was in town for a family reunion at the home of Mrs. Buckendorf. Seventeen members of the family gathered and within a few days four had died, including two infants.
Abatement signs
County Health officer Dr. Turner reported on October 31 that he felt the epidemic was abating with no new cases in town on the 29th and only 18 on the day of the report. The same day, flu masks made their first appearance in the city.
On November 4 it was announced that the University would reopen but with many restrictions. All students had to live on campus or in university approved off-campus housing. Professors could live at home but were ordered to only go to and from home and they and the students were not to interact with townsfolk.
Additionally, all professors had to report twice daily to the campus medical officer to ensure they were well. Any student feeling ill was to report to the “detention quarters” in the basement of the Agriculture Building, then on 9th St. and now part of the College of Health Sciences.
Despite Dr. Turner’s upbeat report, between November 6 and 8, new cases tallied 26 in the county with three deaths in Laramie and three at Buford. In response, Dr. Turner stated that all new cases were required to be under quarantine. Thirty-two new cases were reported the next week.
War ends, not the epidemic
Germany formally surrendered on November 11, 1918. That was one bit of good news for Laramie folk who could rejoice that their servicemen would be coming home. Public schools reopened on Monday, November 25 for one day before being excused the rest of the week for the Thanksgiving holiday.
But on the same day, November 25, sixteen-year-old Selma Banzhaf died at her home south of Rock River. All 12 of her brothers and sisters also had the flu.
On December 7, Dr. Turner published the statistics for November noting there were 496 cases in the county resulting in 37 deaths or a fatality rate of about eight percent. The county population at the time was 8,300. This was the height of the outbreak.
Totals for the entire Albany County epidemic, unfortunately, are not available. Statewide, 780 died of the flu and its complications in 1918/1919 and almost 700,000 died nationwide.
Flu lingers on ranches
The “Spanish Flu” did subside the next spring in Albany County except for a few new cases in outlying ranches, including three deaths, one each at the Robbins Ranch, the Dalles Ranch and the Olson Ranch.
The last reported death attributed to the disease was on March 15, 1919 when Miss Emily Watson died at the Olson Ranch. She had been a volunteer who traveled to the ranch from Laramie to aid those who were ill.
The end comes!
Today, we look back on the outbreak and call it a “pandemic” because of the abnormally high death rate and the fact that the disease was found on every continent, possibly excepting Antarctica. Even in Australia around 15,000 died, according to the National Museum of Australia.
Worldwide spread was aided by close confinement of military personnel and the deployment of soldiers, nurses and war material all across the globe. At the time, it was generally described by its name, Spanish Flu, and referred to as a worldwide epidemic. No vaccine was developed—in fact medical researchers were sidetracked by a belief that it was caused by bacteria.
Despite the hardships created by the Spanish Flu and the unavailability of any preventive or treatment for the disease, judging by activity related in the Laramie papers, life carried on. And, by the summer of 1919, the epidemic in Wyoming was largely over. Coupled with the end of WWI and its deprivations, this was incredibly good news for Albany County residents.
By Kim Viner
Newspaper headline announcing school closures