The War With Nature
1918 Influenza Pandemic
The Second Wave
1918 Influenza Pandemic
The Second Wave
Dr. William Gorgas (above, from The Great Influenza) was the Army's Surgeon General at the time. Unlike Dr. Blue, Gorgas recognized the threat. His warnings were ignored. President Wilson made the decision that nothing could interfere with troop deployment. The first troops started arriving in France in April 1918. Soon after, French troops began noticing the illness followed by the British and the Germans.
Spain was neutral during the war so there was no censorship of the press. When the flu hit Spain, Spanish newspapers were the only ones reporting the new disease so people thought it originated there. Unfortunately the erroneous name "Spanish Flu" stuck.
Map from Laura Spinney's Pale Rider.
Ship passengers brought the flu back to the U.S. at ports on the east coast including Boston, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York. Rupert Blue, the civilian Surgeon General, didn't think it was a problem so no quarantines were enacted. This became the second wave.