The Fastest Slow Guy You Know: Second Wave of Spanish Influenza in California, January 1, 1919 to March 1, 1919 newspaper clippings

Friday, April 17, 2020

Second Wave of Spanish Influenza in California, January 1, 1919 to March 1, 1919 newspaper clippings

These newspaper clippings are from a search on newspapers.com for:

influenza "second wave"

...in California newspapers published between January 1, 1919 and March 1, 1919. I find this interesting, as our leaders and citizens talk about easing restrictions on society, during this covid19 / coronavirus pandemic. Some of these are really worth reading, but I'm leaving them in chronological order, not worth-reading order. Definitely read "FIGURES SHOW HOW MASKS HAVE CUT DOWN INFLUENZA." I transcribed it.

ALL CHURCHES TO REOPEN SUNDAY EXCEPT PRESBYTERIAN spanish influenza Fri, Jan 3, 1919 – Page 1 · The Van Nuys News (Van Nuys, California) · Newspapers.com

INFLUENZA REVIVES IN FORT BRAGG SECTION spanish influenza Fri, Jan 3, 1919 – Page 1 · Ukiah Dispatch Democrat (Ukiah, California) · Newspapers.com

SECOND WAVE OF FLU HOLDS GRIP spanish influenza Thu, Jan 9, 1919 – 1 · Bakersfield Morning Echo (Bakersfield, California) · Newspapers.com

Epidemic Is Spreading spanish influenza Thu, Jan 9, 1919 – 8 · The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, California) · Newspapers.com

FLU WAVE PASSES ITS PEAK HERE IS BELIEF spanish influenza Mon, Jan 13, 1919 – 8 · The Fresno Morning Republican (Fresno, California) · Newspapers.com

FLU CONDITIONS HERE CONTINUE TO GROW BETTER Sat, Jan 25, 1919 – 6 · Bakersfield Morning Echo (Bakersfield, California) · Newspapers.com

NEW CASES OF INFLUENZA AT LOW RECORD spanish influenza Sun, Jan 26, 1919 – 12 · The San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, California) · Newspapers.com

ACTION DUE IF DECREASE RATE HOLDS spanish influenza Tue, Jan 28, 1919 – 13 · The San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, California) · Newspapers.com

FIGURES SHOW HOW MASKS HAVE CUT DOWN INFLUENZA, part 1 spanish influenza Wed, Jan 29, 1919 – 1 · The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, California) · Newspapers.com

FIGURES SHOW HOW MASKS HAVE CUT DOWN INFLUENZA, part 2 spanish influenza second wave Wed, Jan 29, 1919 – 13 · The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, California) · Newspapers.com

FIGURES SHOW HOW MASKS HAVE CUT DOWN INFLUENZA

State Board of Health Data Tells Conclusively That Gauze Coverings Have Proved Effective Where Worn

While laymen, physicians, experts, near experts, statisticians and just plain liars are giving testimony in support of their arguments for and against the gauze mask as a preventive measure in influenza, the fact is established by figures furnished by the State Board of Health that wherever and whenever the masks have been worn there has been a decided drop in the number of cases.

Figures secured from the following fifteen cities in the State show the weekly reports of influenza cases made to the State Board from local Health Officers: Alameda, Berkeley, Fresno, Grass Valley, Los Angeles, Napa, Oakland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Stockton, Vallejo and Watsonville.

Big Drops in San Francisco.

San Francisco has worn the masks on two occasions, and the figures from that city show decided drops in the number of cases during both periods of donning the masks.

It is pointed out by Doctor W. H. Kellogg, Secretary of the State Board of Health, that during the same periods drops in the number of cases have also been shown in Oakland, Alameda and Berkeley, in which places the masks are not worn. There are mask ordinances in Oakland and Berkeley covering congregations only.

Helps Bay Cities.

It is quite natural that the effects of a compulsory mask ordinance in San Francisco should be manifest in all the Bay cities,

The fact of the matter is that a third of the populations of Oakland, Berkeley and Alameda spend the day and part of the night in San Francisco, and thousands more of the inhabitants of those cities crossover daily and do their shopping or visit friends on the other side.

The lessening of the number of reported cases in the transbay cities following San Francisco's masking is really a very strong argument in favor of the masks.

Reports from a number of Superior California towns where the masks have been used, show without exception that during the periods of wearing them there were many less cases.

Superior California Results.

This is true of Sacramento, Napa, Grass Valley, Stockton and Vallejo. In all those cities during the period of mask wearing there have been many less cases. In Sacramento and Stockton the mask ordinances are now in effect, and in both places the cases grow steadily less every day.

Santa Cruz, Fresno and Watsonville wore masks, and in each place the donning of the masks was soon followed by a reduction in the number of cases.

Los Angeles did not wear masks at all, and the reports from there show an enormous number of cases, the lowest number of cases for any week after the disease got well under way, being 1,803 for the week ending November 30th. The cases are growing less daily there at the present time, however, after a siege lasting since last October

Reports from various sections of the State coming to the State Board of Health indicate that the influenza situation is improving everywhere--that the disease has spent its force and that the second flare-up is over.

The figures themselves from some of the towns mentioned will serve to show the facts. As for Sacramento, the number of cases speedily subsided with the donning of the masks from 1,388 for the week ending November 2nd to fifty-nine for the week ending with the close of the month.

After the second flare-up the cases were reduced from over 400 the first week of the year to a very few for the past week.

Results in Other Places.

In Fresno the mask ordinance was passed October 30th, when there were over 1,000 cases weekly. By the end of November there were less than seventy cases per week.

From December 6th to the 26th masks were worn in Santa Cruz. The cases dropped from over 240 to fifty-two during that period. The masks were discarded and the cases went up.

Vallejo donned masks the beginning of November, and the cases dropped from 300 a week to fourteen a week at the close of the month. Unmasking began December 2nd, and the cases began to increase, going up to 138 early in January, when masks were donned again and they began to come down.

Cases Jump After Unmasking.

An iron-clad mask ordinance was passed in Grass Valley October 28th, when the cases were running over fifty a week. By the end of November they had dropped to nearly nothing.

The masks were taken off early in December and the cases went up again, reaching over 100 a week. until masks were restored the 13th instant, causing a drop.

In Napa masks were worn during part of October, and reports the first of November showed that the number of cases was steadily coming down, so that during November and December there were not more than one a day.

Stockton was running over 300 cases a week until after the masks were put on, when reports showed but 127 for the week ending January 25th.

From 2,500 to 70 Cases.

Oakland cases dropped from over 2.500 weekly during the latter part of October to only twenty-seven weekly during the period. San Francisco wore the masks, showing a natural reflected result. The same relative drops in Alameda and Berkeley are shown.

In San Diego there was no compulsory wearing of masks, though the citizens were officially requested to wear them the 1st of November. They were not generally worn. The cases ran from 182 for the first week in November to over 800 for the first week of December.

Early in December San Diego endorsed the mask ordinance, and almost immediately there was a drop in the number of cases, as the masks began to be more generally worn.

The last report from there shows but 66 cases for the week ending the 25th instant.

Third Wave Likely.

Dr. W. C. Hassler, Health Officer of San Francisco, has issued a statement in which he states that the epidemic is probably due for another wave, making three all told. He says:

"We know that epidemics of this sort generally run in a cycle of three waves, each slightly less virulent than the preceding. We have now about passed the second wave and if we all work together at this, the critical period, we can clean the disease out so thoroughly that there will be no third recurrence at least this year.