Influenza Pandemic In 1918

Boston Smallpox Epidemic of 1721: When smallpox broke out in Boston, Cotton Mather introduced an untested medical procedure called “inoculation”, which would introduce a small amount of the virus to a patient, in hoping they would become immune to it. Many were opposed to it, even though it worked. Many people died due to the epidemic. 31. Common Sense: Thomas Paine wrote a book called "Common Sense", it sold more than 150,000 copies when the population was only 3 million.

The diseases brought by the Europeans included smallpox, tuberculosis, influenza, measles, whooping cough and the common cold. The consequences of these diseases for the recipients were deadly and life threatening, especially since a common cold was extremely difficult for these people to overcome. A year after the First Fleet arrived, in 1789, a smallpox outbreak killed numbers of the Indigenous people that lived in the area that we know today as Sydney. (Carter, 2005.) The disease spread to surrounding communities and the number of victims increased rapidly.

With so many people were dying already from the disease grief was high. Medication at the time was no wear near what it is in present times. The health statue of Europe was falling and the large masses of people who were dying began to raise horror in people. To correspond with that many people had little to no knowledge of cleanliness and how it can affect heath.

The primary source I chose for my analysis is “A Most Terrible Plague: Giovanni Boccaccio”. This document focuses on the account of how individuals acted when a plague broke out and hundreds of people were dying every day. This source is written by Giovanni Boccaccio as it is a story told by him and friends as they passed the time. Boccaccio discusses how “the plague had broken out some years before in the Levant, and after passing from place to place, and making incredible havoc along the way, had now reached the west.” Readers of this source can assume there wasn’t much cures and medicinal technology weren’t used much during this time as even their physicians stayed away from the sick because once they got close they would also get sick.

" They dealt strictly with individuals that were deamed to have plague or even produced symtoms of the disease. They would also carry around pointers or rods to keep patients at a safe distance. The gown were made of heavy fabrics or even leather and were often

In Rio de Janeiro, the newspapers were only concerned with the spread of the flu (Doc 4). The historical context that this article took place in South America shows the negligence of medical centers. The flu had been known to the world as well as the alarming rate of the spread of it, yet there were no medicals safety precautions being taken place. By time the flu and reached South America, medical facilities had the chance to make safety precautions as to stop the spreading of the virus. The same angry reaction occured in British Samoa as the newspapers blamed the British government for neglecting to issue isolation when influenza had spread to Samoa (Doc

The flu, incurable at the time, was being passed along in the U.S leaving thousands of citizens sick and being easily passed on. It all began with a small conflict between two countries that soon led into something much more drastic. Serbia was a new and independent country that was anxious to become a large Slavic country. (Doc 4) Serbia soon asked Austria-Hungary if they would like to combine their countries to become a larger country.

Soon, the epidemic arrived in Chicago. On August 28, 1918, reports of the increased death rate in Massachusetts were reported in Chicago newspapers, warning citizens of the potential risk of the epidemic reaching them. Nationwide, military camps suffered mass outbreaks throughout September, and yet, the Chicago Tribune printed reassuring news stories that suggested the flu was under control. On September 8, 1918, the virus took its first victims of the city: sailors at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station.

The most deadly disease was smallpox, commonly being misdiagnosed with other diseases. They had an effect on the world then and still have an effect on our world

The authors used the help of physicians and Boards of Health from various towns to discern the impact of the epidemic. Many groups of individuals were affected by the disease, specifically the English, immigrants, and the Canadians (French Canadians and Lower Canadians). The English were known to maintain the customs they brought from their country which focused on “a good

When the Spanish Flu appeared in Chicago, peaking at 2000 deaths a day, health commissioner John Dill Robertson decided to make some drastic decisions. First, all large gatherings were banned, sporting events; political meetings and banquets were all cancelled. Schools were shut down and parks were closed. Theaters and cabarets were closed as well. Weddings were postponed and funerals were cancelled.

In a while, it was worldwide. The diseases changed the environment of both worlds. They killed tens of thousands

“We were in the center of a dying city.” That was the thought of millions of yellow fever victims during the devastating outbreak of 1793. This disaster is the focus of the nonfiction text “An American Plague.” The text is about a young woman, Catherine LeMaige, who lost her life to yellow fever, although her doctors did all they could. After recounting the symptoms, they concluded Catherine had contracted yellow fever, and was one of the earliest victims.

The regulations put out by government ensured that the outbreak would come to an immediate halt, and if a new epidemic were to sweep through the states, it would be derailed. Another outbreak of influenza became prevalent in England in 1933. A doctor was able to isolate the disease and noticed how it spread. Lots of this was due to research from the Spanish Influenza, and the death toll was much lower. (Youngdahl)

Benjamin Rush, one of the most educated physician at the time ,was called to the home of Dr. Hugh Hodge. Hodge's young daughter was sick, suffering from a high fever, and vomiting blood. She died that day. Over the next two weeks, Dr.Benjamin Rush saw many more patients with the same symptoms, several of whom also died. You can also see a lot of connections with book Evacuation by,K.D. McAdams, is about a disease outbreak that wipes out most of humanity.and the only way to survive this sickness is to leave the