Historic Hood River
Troop Train
5-25-2020
Notes
For this Memorial Day we have another Alva Day view of the Hood River men returning from the Great War in February, 1919. The sign on the last car says “Btry C”. Mixed in the crowd appears to be a marching band, and newspaper accounts said local apples were provided for the soldiers on the train.
Since the traditional local gatherings have been canceled this Memorial Day, I hope we can all take a moment to privately reflect on the sacrifices of those who serve.
Kenn
I believe this was one year after the 1918 virus, obvious there was no social distancing.
ArthurB
Kenn, I believe the pandemic peaked in Hood River about October. No signs of masks in this February crowd.
Arlen Sheldrake
NICE welcome home….it is interesting to me the different “welcomes” we have had to our returning war service men and women over the years. In all cases the underlying service to country was honorable…..to those that served, especially during combat times, my great appreciation. My flag is up.
LMH
Photo numbers 522 and 552 offered more expanded comments and views. Reading the 2/20/1919 HRG article on page 1 was heart warming.
Kenn
If the pandemic peaked in Hood River in October 1918, when did it start and what caused its demise?
LMH
Kenn, The 1918 H1N1 (it is thought to contain avian genes) virus was first discovered in an army camp in Kansas in the spring of 1918. Within several months it had spread world wide. The second wave came in the fall and was far more deadly (people died within 24 hours) and the third wave in 1919. Some claim it continued in the early 1920's. There were some 500,000,000 cases world wide and 50,000,000 deaths. It is claimed more U.S. soldiers died (45,000) from the “Spanish Flu” than were killed in action fighting in Europe.
The recognized authorities did not have the reporting systems we have today and so the numbers may be underreported. The word “Spainsh” was not the origination point, just a word to distract peoples attention and wanting to blame someone else for the flu.
In the 1918-1919 there were no medical treatments for the flu, thus, an estimated 650,000 Americans died. With no vaccine to protect against influenza infection and no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections that can be associated with influenza infections, control efforts worldwide were limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions such as isolation, quarantine, good personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, and limitations of public gatherings, which were applied unevenly. (Sound familiar)
Because of WWI newspapers were encouraged not to report information about the progress of the disease rate in order not distract from the war effort. I noticed were a few reports in the Glacier of local people dying from the flu.
My guess about why the disease ended. I think it ended after updating and enforcing a change in social and medical treatment behaviors mentioned above that slowed or stopped the infection rate.
Michael
Some stuff I found looking at this description of how it went back in the day.
“The mayor proposed Portland do what cities like San Francisco had done: mandate the wearing of masks.
To prove that he was serious, he threatened a $500 fine (the equivalent of over $9,000 today) and 60 days in jail for anyone who failed to wear a mask in any public space.
The mayor’s ordinance was debated and blocked by the Portland City Council. In colorful language, attorney W. T. Vaughn called the mandatory wearing of masks “unconstitutional,†saying that the proponents of the law “are attempting to muzzle us like a pack of hydrophobia dogs.†“
Oddly familiar. Not much has changed despite it being 100 years.
https://www.opb.org/news/article/oregon-portland-spanish-influenza-coronavirus-pandemic-history/
Jeffrey W Bryant
Here is the Hood River Glacier article about the Twelfth Company leaving Hood River for World War I in 1917:
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn97071110/1917-08-02/ed-1/seq-1/