1918 Influenza pandemic (1918-1920), Sudbury, H1N1 virus, COVID-19

The headline on the Sudbury Star’s top page on October 16, 1918 was “The’FLU ‘epidemic will shut down all assemblies-citizen authorities working to deal with the disease.”

The 1918 flu pandemic (1918-1920), also known as the “Spanish Influenza” or “Laglippe”, spread to Canada in September and Sudbury had its first case by early October. Stay home, practice social distances, and spend some time learning about the Sudbury experience at a pandemic over 101 years ago.

The 1918 flu pandemic was caused by the H1N1 virus. The exact origin is unknown, but the virus began in the last few months of World War I and quickly spread worldwide.

Spain was not the first country to experience the virus, but as a war-neutral country, officials publicly reported the virus, which may have led to it becoming known as the “Spanish flu.”

Worldwide, the virus infects about one-third of the population, killing an estimated 50 million people.

By October 9, 1918, Sudbury had at least 12 cases of disease, 8 of which were classified as “more severe”. All cases were tracked to external sources, so the virus had not yet spread to the community.

The Sudbury Health Commission tells the public to isolate infected people, exercise in fresh air, get proper nutrition and sleep, wash their hands before meals, avoid crowds and kiss no one. I recommended.

Also, “Keep your hands away from your mouth and nose at all times. When you cough or sneeze, you must always wear a handkerchief over your nose and mouth.”

Anyone who takes care of the infected person should not touch the face or mouth when handling the patient or infected item. In addition to many other regulations, caregivers washed their hands with soap, water, a nail brush, held their hands in disinfectant for 5 minutes, and then interacted with a healthy person.

Just three days after the virus was first reported in Sudbury, St. Joseph’s hospital was full, except for some beds in the ward. Eventually Sudbury High School turned into a temporary emergency hospital and was used as needed.

The state has begun to consider allowing medicinal small amounts of alcohol to be purchased without doctor’s notice. The local milk shortage that began shortly before the virus arrived in town was exacerbated in part by the flu.

The Health Care Commission demanded that the Sudrian people stay home if infected and leave the hospital for those who are homeless in town.

Within an additional four days, the number of people infected increased to 500-800 and five of the virus-infected people died of pneumonia.

Local doctors found that about 85% of cases were very mild, while 15% were severe.

On October 16, 1918, all public places in the town were closed, including schools, churches, theatres, public libraries, lodges and markets, and the CNR station platform was limited to where the business needed was done.

Sudbury-The Copper Cliff Electric Railroad requires cars to be cleaned and fumigated daily, halving the passenger capacity. The restaurant continued to operate, but was limited to 25 people. The post office was also open, but it was forbidden to hang or gather in post offices, street corners, office buildings, etc., just as you would in a public place.

Fortunately, isolation has had the desired effect. There were many new cases, but within a few days the number of new daily cases decreased. By October 23, 1918, the town had more than 1,000 cases and 41 virus-related deaths from the beginning of the month.

An vaccination was sent from Toronto to a Sudbury doctor for 5,000 doses.

By early November, approximately 1,500 to 1,800 cases had occurred in Sudbury. In addition, there were about 1,100 to 1,200 incidents in the “International Nickel Mining Town”. By this time 6 people had died of the virus in Coppercliff and 16 people in Burwash Industrial Farm by the middle of November, but many other towns were saved. Gerson stopped all incoming and outgoing traffic and as of November 2, 1918, there were no cases of this condition.

On November 10, 1918, the place of worship was reopened in Sudbury and most public places the next day. The public library and school opened a week later.

There were still new cases, but they were much milder, and their number was reduced by November 20, 1918, to less than 10 new cases per day. By early December Sudbury had experienced about 2,000 cases, with an unknown number of deaths to those brought to town for treatment, as well as about 65 local deaths from the disease.

These numbers are approximate and it was not necessary to report a case of this disease in 1918. By the end of November, statistics were no longer locally included in media coverage.

From the beginning of October 1918 to the end of December, about 190 people were killed in Sudbury due to the “flu,” “la grippe,” or “Spanish flu.”

(At the moment, some of these deaths may have been due to seasonal flu, as there were cases of influenza or Lagrippe that were not influenza in Spain. Has approximately 26 death records, although it was the cause of death between October and December 1918, but it was possible that doctors shortened to “flu” because the media reports were much more common. At the same time, “pneumonia” Also recorded as a cause of death in many areas)

Death records show that Spanish flu lasted until the end of February as the cause of death in Sudbury, killing an additional eight people. January-March 1919 also included 31 deaths from the “flu” in the town and one death from the “flu” in Sudbury in June.

In 1920, there was one individual who was described as having died of the “Spanish flu” in Sudbury, and at least 67 Sudanese who died of the “flu” or “Laglippe”.

Also, another 1 person in Sudbury, whose official cause was listed as “Spanish Flu” in 1921, died, and at least three people died in the town in the same year due to “flu”.

For more information on the 1918 pandemic of influenza, visit the City of Greater Sudbury Archives website (www.greatersudbury.ca/archives). Click “Find Holdings” and follow the link to Archeion.

To hear directly about the 1918 flu radio show Memories and Music, type Jack Sauerbrei or Jim Vanderbeck in the search bar and click on the result.

(Or visit https://www.archeion.ca/jack-sauerbrei or https://www.archeion.ca/jim-vanderbeck. Jack Sauerbrae is his memory of the 1918 pandemic. Easy to share: to the death of his two brothers)

To find out about World War I soldiers who died of the 1918 flu, type Royal Canadian Legion Dr. Fred Starr Branch 76 in the search bar and click the first result. Next, click on “Memory Book” on the left side, and then click on the “Memory Book” reference guide. Click on the reference guide to search for keywords in Bonhomme and Edward. (Or search for https: //www.archeion.ca/uploads/r/city-of-greater-sudbury-archives/0/e/a/0ead56772442d906f52f8add99986c8796da800859c8ad337733c0953ed817d4/Book_of_Remembrance_Reference_Guide_p1-15.me. Please search.pdf

Shanna Fraser is an archivist in Sudbury.