Pandemic Re-Awakenings
TheForgottenandUnforgotten
Spanish’ Fluof1918–1919
GUYBEINER
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InmemoryofRichardCollier(1924–96)andAlfredW.CrosbyJr.(1931–2018), whoseresearchinthe1970spioneeredthestudyofthememoryof ‘Spanish’ Flu.
Acknowledgements
Thisbook,whichstemsfromthoughtsthathavebeenpreoccupyingtheeditorfor overtwodecades,begantotakeformaheadofthecentennialofthe1918–19 influenzapandemicwiththesupportofagrantfromtheIsraelScience Foundationfortheproject ‘ForgettingandRememberingtheGreatFlu:Laying theFoundationsforaGlobal-TransnationalHistoryofCulturalAmnesiaand Rediscovery’ (ISF1150/17).AgrantfromtheFritzThyssenStiftungmadeit possibletoconveneaninternationalconference/workshopon ‘CulturalHistories oftheGreatFluPandemicof1918–1919:RepresentationsandMemories’ (February 2019)andafollow-upworkshopon ‘Forgetting,RememberingandRediscovering theGreatFlu’ (December2019).BothoftheseeventswereheldattheHumanities ResearchCentre(ForschungszentrumHistorischeGeisteswissenschaften)ofGoethe UniversityFrankfurt,withthesupportoftheformerdirectorDrSteffenBruendel andtheassistanceofthecentre’sstaffJannekeRauscherandMonikaBeck.The participantsinthesestimulatingintellectualgatheringsfounditsomewhat fitting thatwewerediscussinghistoricalamnesiaonacampuswithamemorialforDr AloisAlzheimer.
WhilsttheprojectcommencedbeforetheoutbreakofCOVID-19,writing aboutaglobalpandemicduringaglobalpandemicprovedtobeparticularly challenging,andIamthankfultothecontributorsforproducingtheirchapters despitedifficultconditions(andcanonlyregretthelossofcontributionsby authorswhohadtowithdrawbecauseofunforeseenhardships).ResearchstudentsfromBen-GurionUniversityoftheNegevwhoassistedincludeValery Cordoval,AlexSalnikovandKarinaYankovich,aswellasthepostdoctoral researcherDrCynthiaGabbay.SpecialthanksareduetoMatanVardiforhis valuablehelpwiththeeditorialprocess.StephanieIrelandatOxfordUniversity Pressexpressedinitialinterestinearly2019andCathrynSteele,withcharacteristicperspicacity,realisedtheimportanceofthisbookjustbeforethecoronavirus maelstromandmadesuretoseetheprojectthroughtoitsfruition.Vaishnavi AnanthaSubramanyamskilfullymanagedthebook’sproduction,inspiteofa ragingpandemic.Whereasinterestinthetopicwaslimitedformanyyears,the COVID-19crisishaspressedhometheimportanceofunderstandinghow epidemicsareremembered,forgottenandultimatelyrediscovered.
GuyBeiner
BeerSheva(inlockdown)
January2021
Contents
ListofFigures xiii
ListofContributors xv
Editor’sNote xxiii
Preface:History,MemoryandtheFluxxv JayWinter
Introduction:TheGreatFlubetweenRememberingandForgetting1 GuyBeiner
I.PERSONALHISTORIES
1.Rememberingthe ‘Forgotten’ Pandemic:RichardCollier’ s CollectionofPersonalTestimonies51 HannahMawdsley
2.PandemicDeath,ResponseandMemoryinNon-EuropeanSocieties63 DavidKillingray
3.TheSilenceoftheSurvivors:WhyDidSurvivorsofthe ‘Spanish’ FluinSouthAfricaNotTalkabouttheEpidemic?80 HowardPhillips
4. ‘AboveAllElseThereWasFear’:Memoriesofthe ‘Spanish’ FluinSãoPaulo,Brazil92 ClaudioBertolliFilho
5.ChangingNarrativesof ‘That’ Pandemic:Re-Engagingwith OralHistoriesfortheCentenaryoftheGreatFluinIreland107 IdaMilne
II.COMMUNALHISTORIES
6.TheOvershadowingoftheMemoryof ‘Spanish’ FluinPoland123 ŁukaszMieszkowski
7. ‘WhenTwoCrisesMeetEachOther’:Remembering ‘Spanish’ FluintheLowCountries136 UtzThimm
8. ‘RememberMetotheFolks’:Memory,theGreatWarandthe 1918–19InfluenzaPandemicinCanada152
KandaceBogaertwithMarkOsborneHumphries
9. ‘TheFellPlagueofLastYear’:RememberingandForgettingthe 1918InfluenzaPandemicinNewZealand169
GeoffreyW.Rice
10.RepresentationandRemembrance:The1918–19Influenza EpidemicinIndia187
DavidArnold
11. ‘ThePneumonicInfluenzaIsJustPartofMyLife’:Fostering CommunityHistoriesofthe ‘Spanish’ InfluenzaPandemic inAustralia199
PeterHobbins
III.MEDICALHISTORIES
12.PandemicExchanges:Narratingthe ‘Spanish’ Fluatthe IntersectionofScienceandHistory217
MarkHonigsbaum
13.ThePast,PresentandFutureofMemory:MedicalHistories ofthe1918–19InfluenzaEpidemicintheUnitedStates234
JeffreyS.Reznick
14.The Ispanka inHistoricalContext:The1918Influenza EpidemicintheSovietUnion244
E.ThomasEwing
15. ‘HugebutUnknown’:ChinaintheMemoryofthe1918–19 InfluenzaPandemic258
RobertPeckham
IV.CULTURALHISTORIES
16.PandemicsandComparativeForgetfulness:TheGreat InfluenzaandtheBlackDeath277
SamuelKlineCohn,Jr.
17.BetweentheGreatWarandtheGreatFlu:Howthe ContemporaryAvant-GardeCopedwiththe1918–19 InfluenzaPandemic290
SteffenBruendel
18.TracesintheArchiveofaGreatOblivion:Ibero-American Representationsofthe ‘Spanish’ Flu314 CynthiaGabbay
19.ThePracticesofSocialForgetting:Rewriting,Obscuringand Silencingthe1918InfluenzaEpidemicintheUnitedStates333
NancyK.Bristow
Conclusion:RediscoveringtheGreatFlubetweenPre-Forgetting andPost-Forgetting346 GuyBeiner
Afterword:TheGreatFluandModernMemory373 AstridErll
ListofFigures
0.1.Threepandemicwaves,UK3
0.2.Combinedinfluenzaandpneumoniamortality,byageatdeath,USA6
0.3.ErnestNoble, ‘GoodEvening.I’mtheNewInfluenza!!’ 7
0.4.W.ThorntonShiells,sketchesofpatientswithheliotropecyanosis9
0.5.WilhelmSchulz, DiespanischeKrankheit 14
0.6.CarvedwoodenMāoricenotaphatTeKōuraMarae45
7.1.P[iet]vanderHem, ‘SpaanscheGriep’ 138
7.2.Serbiansoldierssickwith fluinamakeshifthospitalinRotterdam142
8.1.Canadiansoldierdeaths,StMargaret’sChurchyard,Bodelwyddan,Wales157
8.2.Gnr.SidneyMoody158
8.3.SidneyMoody’stombstone162
8.4.BodelwyddanChurchyard164
8.5CoverpageoftheBookofRemembranceoftheFirstWorldWar,Canada166
9.1.Deathsbyinfluenzaandpneumonia,NewZealand,1918–50179
9.2.Occurrenceof ‘influenza ’ and/or ‘epidemic’ in NewZealandHerald,1919–45179
9.3. ‘Nazol’ and ‘Heenzo’ ads,1920–45180
9.4.Unveilingof1918influenzapandemicmemorialplaqueatthePukeahu NationalWarMemorialPark185
11.1.FrequencyofpandemicinfluenzaphrasesinAustraliannewspapers200
11.2.HildaWyattnursinga ‘Spanish’ Flupatient,WestWyalong,NSW211
11.3.HeadstoneofAliceParkes,NowraGeneralCemetery,NSW213
13.1.LoyMcAfee235
17.1.EgonSchiele, EdithSchieleDying
17.2.PabloPicasso, ‘GuillaumeApollinaire’
17.3.EdvardMunch, Self-PortraitwiththeSpanishFlu
17.4.JohnSingerSargent, TheInteriorofaHospitalTent
18.1.ManuelRedondo, ‘Prophylaxisagainstthe flu ’
18.2. ‘InfluenciaEspañolaintheP.O.Dept.’
18.3. ‘ContestforPatientsandRecoveredPatientsoftheFlu’
18.4.MorJokai, ‘El flagelo’
C.1.WalterP.Allman, ‘TomStepsIntotheSpanishFlu’ 349
C.2. ‘Russian’ Flucaricatures351
C.3.Commemorativeplaque,BrevigMission,Alaska359
C.4. NoOrdinaryFlu 361
C.5.IconicphotographsofinfluenzapatientsinUSmilitaryhospitals364
C.6. ‘Spanish flu ’ Googlesearchesworldwide(2004–20)371
ListofContributors
DavidArnold isProfessorEmeritusintheDepartmentofHistory,UniversityofWarwick. HispublishedworkrangeswidelyoverthehistoryofmodernIndia,particularlywith referencetodisease,medicine,science,technologyandenvironment.Hisbooksinclude ColonizingtheBody:StateMedicineandEpidemicDiseaseinNineteenth-CenturyIndia (1993)and ToxicHistories:PoisonandPollutioninModernIndia (2016).Heistheauthor of ‘DeathandtheModernEmpire:The1918–19InfluenzaEpidemicinIndia’ (Transactions oftheRoyalHistoricalSociety,2019)andheiscurrentlywritinga ‘longhistory’ ofthe COVID-19pandemicinIndia.HismaternalgrandmotherdiedinLondonduringthe influenzapandemicin1918.
GuyBeiner isSullivanChairofIrishStudiesatBostonCollegeandProfessorofModern HistoryatBen-GurionUniversityoftheNegev.Hespecialisesinthestudyofremembering andforgettinginthelate-modernera.Hisaward-winningbooksinclude Rememberingthe YearoftheFrench:IrishFolkHistoryandSocialMemory (UniversityofWisconsinPress, 2006)and ForgetfulRemembrance:SocialForgettingandVernacularHistoriographyofa RebellioninUlster (OxfordUniversityPress,2018).Hewastheprimaryinvestigator(PI)for theresearchproject ‘ForgettingandRememberingtheGreatFlu:LayingtheFoundations foraGlobal-TransnationalHistoryofCulturalAmnesiaandRediscovery’ (IsraelScience Foundation)andconvenoroftheinternationalworkshops ‘CulturalHistoriesoftheGreat FluPandemicof1918–1919:RepresentationsandMemories’ (withSteffenBruendeland CynthiaGabbay)and ‘Forgetting,RememberingandRediscoveringtheGreatFlu’ (heldin FebruaryandDecember2019attheFrankfurtHumanitiesResearchCentreinGoethe UniversityFrankfurtandfundedbytheFritzThyssenStiftung).Guyhasalong-standing interestinunravellingthehistoryofsocialandculturalforgettingofthe ‘Spanish’ Flu.
ClaudioBertolliFilho isaretiredFullProfessorfromSãoPauloStateUniversity(UNESP), wherehestillteachesclassesatthegraduateprogrammeinCommunications.Heholdsa doctorateinsocialhistoryfromtheUniversityofSãoPauloandhasspecialisedinthesocial historyofmedicineandillnessintheCollegeofArtsandSciencesatIndianaUniversity.In additiontoeighty-threeacademicarticles,Bertollihaspublishedsixteenbooks,themost prominentofwhichare Históriasocialdatuberculoseedotuberculoso [ASocialHistoryof TuberculosisandofTuberculosisPatients](2001); Epidemiaesociedade:agripeespanhola emSãoPaulo [EpidemicsandSociety:TheSpanishFluinSãoPaulo](2003)and Genetocentrismo:mídia,ciênciaeculturanamodernidadetardia [Genocentrism:Media, Science,andCultureinBelatedModernity](2012).Bertollidevotedyearsofresearchto studyingillness(andillpeopleinparticular)becauseinthisconditionofcrisisandfearof death,individualsdemonstratenotonlytheirfrailties,butalsotheircapacitytoovercome difficultmoments.Thisperspectiveonlifehasinformedasubstantialportionofhis academicresearch,especiallyhisstudiesaboutthe ‘Spanish’ Flu,tuberculosis,cancerand morerecentlytheimpactofcoronavirusonsociety.
KandaceBogaert was,atthetimeofwritingherchapter,theCleghornFellowinWarand SocietyattheLaurierCentreforMilitary,StrategicandDisarmamentStudies(LCMSDS)in theDepartmentofHistoryatWilfridLaurierUniversity.Shehasbeenenthralledbythe 1918influenzapandemicsince2008,whenthe firstofaseriesofsuperbmentorsfostereda growinginterestinthetopic.Initially,attheUniversityofTorontoScarborough,Lawrence Sawchukcaptivatedhisstudentswithstoriesoftheglobalpandemic’slocalimpactin Gibraltar.Thisinterestgrewfurtherduringhergraduatestudiesunderthementorshipof AnnHerringatMcMasterUniversity,whoseeffortstodisentangleissueslikevulnerability duringthepandemicandcomplexsocialcircumstancesweretireless.Likeotherswhostudy the1918influenzapandemic,shebelievesthatitisalmostimpossiblenottobedrawninto thetopic,inpartbecauseofthecompellinghumanstorieswhichhaveemerged,andthe mysteriesthatremainafteracentury.Kandaceishonouredtohaveco-authoredherchapter withMarkOsborneHumphries,whomshecreditswithinspiringherownresearchon Canadiansoldiers.
NancyK.Bristow isProfessorofHistoryattheUniversityofPugetSoundinTacoma, Washington,USA,whereshealsoservesontheLeadershipTeamoftheRaceand PedagogyInstitute.Anaward-winningteacher,sheisalsotheauthorofthreebooks, including SteepedintheBloodofRacism:BlackPower,LawandOrder,andthe1970 ShootingsatJacksonState (OxfordUniversityPress,2020), AmericanPandemic:Lost Worldsofthe1918InfluenzaEpidemic (OxfordUniversityPress,2012)and MakingMen Moral:SocialEngineeringDuringtheGreatWar (NewYorkUniversityPress,1996). Nancy’spaternalgreat-grandparentsbothdiedofpneumoniaoverthecourseofaweek inFebruary1920,likelyvictimsofafourthwaveofthe ‘Spanish’ in fluenzapandemic, leavinghergrandfatheranorphanandanadultattheageoffourteen.Recentlyarrived Irish,working-classimmigrants,theirstorieswerelosttothepassageoftime.Nancy beganresearchingthesocialandculturalexperienceofthein fluenzapandemicandits aftermathinordertodiscoverandbetterunderstandwhatmighthavebefallenherfamily acenturyago.
SteffenBruendel headsthenon-profitPricewaterhouseCoopersFoundationforthe PromotionofCulturalEducationandholdsadoctorateinmodernhistory.From2014to 2019,hewasDirectoroftheFrankfurtHumanitiesResearchCentreatGoetheUniversity Frankfurt.Previously,heheldseniormanagementpositionsincompaniesandfoundations. SteffenhaspublishedontheculturalhistoryoftheFirstWorldWarandthepost-warorder, Germancolonialhistory,thehistoryofNewSocialMovementsinGreatBritainand comparativeGerman-Spanishconstitutionalhistoryofthe1930sand1940s.Selectpublicationsinclude JahreohneSommer:EuropäischeKünstlerinKälteundKrieg [Years WithoutSummer:EuropeanArtistsinColdandWar](München,2016), Zeitenwende 1914:Künstler,DichterundDenkerimErstenWeltkrieg [TurnoftheTimesin1914: Artists,PoetsandIntellectualsintheFirstWorldWar])München,2014(and VolksgemeinschaftoderVolksstaat:Die ‘Ideenvon1914’ unddieNeuordnung DeutschlandsimErstenWeltkrieg [People’sCommunityorPeople’sState:The ‘Ideasof 1914’ andtheNewOrderforGermanyintheFirstWorldWar](Berlin,2003).Steffen becameinterestedinthe ‘Spanish’ Fluin2018,whencommemorationsoftheendofthe FirstWorldWarcoincidedwiththecentennialofthepandemic,whichhadpreviouslybeen overlooked.
SamuelKlineCohn,Jr. receivedaPhDinmedievalhistoryfromHarvardUniversityunder thesupervisionofDavidHerlihyandhastaughtatWesleyanUniversity,Brandeisandthe UniversityofGlasgowwithvisitingappointmentsatBrownUniversity,theUniversityof CaliforniaatBerkeley,AntwerpUniversityandL’UniversitàdeglistudidiMilano,wherehe wasthe firstFederigoChabodVisitingProfessor.HeisafellowoftheRoyalSocietyof EdinburghandanHonoraryFellowoftheInstituteforAdvancedStudiesatEdinburgh University.Hehaswrittentwelvebookswithtwofurtheronesinpress: Paradoxesof InequalityinRenaissanceItaly (CambridgeUniversityPress)toappearinJune2021and PopularProtestandIdealsofDemocracyinLateRenaissanceItaly (OxfordUniversityPress) inDecember2021.Overthepasttwodecades,hehasconcentratedeitheronpopular insurrectionorthehistoryofepidemics.His Epidemics:HateandCompassionfromthe PlagueofAthenstoAIDS (OxfordUniversityPress,2018)wasthespringboardforinterest inthepandemicof1918–19.However,the1918–19experiencewasalsoalivingpresence throughhisearlychildhoodandadolescence.Atagenine,hisuncleHermansurvivedthe pandemicbutshortlyafterwardsbecamedisabledmentallyandphysicallyforlife,probably byencephalitis.Often,CohnhelpedtowalkandlookafterHerman.Theywerefriends.
AstridErll isProfessorofEnglishatGoetheUniversityFrankfurtandleaderofthe FrankfurtMemoryStudiesPlatform(www.memorystudies-frankfurt.com).Shehasworked onmemoriesoftheFirstWorldWar,BritishimperialismandHomer’ s Odyssey.Her publicationsincludeanintroductiontothe fieldofMemoryStudies MemoryinCulture (PalgraveMacmillan,2011) andseveralstudiesonmediaandmemoryinatransnational field,including Mediation,RemediationandtheDynamicsofCulturalMemory (De Gruyter,2009), AudiovisualMemoryandtheRe-MakingofEurope (specialissueof Image &Narrative,2017)and CulturalMemoryaftertheTransnationalTurn (specialissueof MemoryStudies,2018),alleditedwithAnnRigney.ForherPhDthesisonmemoriesofthe FirstWorldWar(Gedächtnisromane,2003),Astridreadmorethan fiftyEnglishand Germanwarnovelspublishedinthelate1920s,butwithoutevernoticinganyreferences totheGreatFlu.Sheisstilltryingto findoutwhetherthiserrorofomissioncanbe attributedtothosenovelsortoherownselectivereading.
E.ThomasEwing isaProfessorintheDepartmentofHistoryatVirginiaTech.Hisbooks include TheTeachersofStalinism:Policy,Practice,andPowerinSovietSchoolsinthe1930s (PeterLang,2002), SeparateSchools:Gender,Policy,andPracticeinthePostwarSoviet Union (DeGruyter,2010)andtheco-editedvolume, ViralNetworks:ConnectingDigital HumanitiesandMedicalHistory (VTPublishing,2018).Hisarticlesonhistoricalepidemics havebeenpublishedin MedicalHistory, InfluenzaandOtherRespiratoryViruses, Public HealthReports and Humanities.Hiscurrentresearchprojectexploresthetransmissionof informationaboutthe ‘RussianInfluenza ’ (1889–90).Hisinterestinthe1918influenza epidemicbeganwithaDiggingintoDatagrant,applyingtextminingtoolstostudy historicalnewspapers.HehasreceivedfundingfromtheNationalEndowmentforthe Humanitiestorunteachers’ workshopsonthe1918influenza,whichincludedresearchat theNationalLibraryofMedicineoftheNationalInstitutesofHealth(NIH),Libraryof CongressandNationalArchives.InresponsetotheCOVID-19epidemic,hecoordinateda researchteamexploringtheuseofmasksduringthe1918epidemic,whichresultedin essayspublishedin TheWashingtonPost, CirculatingNow, NursingClio, Items:Insights fromtheSocialSciences and HistoryExtra (BBC).
CynthiaGabbay hasaPhDfromTheHebrewUniversityofJerusaleminRomanceand LatinAmericanStudies(2012).SheisavisitingresearcheratPotsdamUniversityandan associateresearcheratCentreMarcBlochBerlin.Authorof LosríosmetafísicosdeJulio Cortázar:delalíricaaldiálogo (Hispamérica/Eduvim,2015),hermain fieldsofresearch includeLatinAmericanpoetryandliterature,Jewishandtranslationstudies,andpopular culture.Shehasalsostudiedtherelationshipsbetweenurbanart,memoryandoblivion. Cynthiabecameinvolvedinthestudyofrepresentationsofthe ‘Spanish’ Flupandemicasa postdoctoralresearcherbetween2017and2018atBen-GurionUniversityoftheNegev, workingonGuyBeiner’sproject ‘ForgettingandRememberingtheGreatFlu:Layingthe FoundationsforaGlobal-TransnationalHistoryofCulturalAmnesiaandRediscovery’ , fundedbytheIsraelScienceFoundation.
PeterHobbins isHeadoftheKnowledgeTeamattheAustralianNationalMaritime MuseuminSydney.Trainedasapharmacologist,followedbyalengthycareerasa professionalmedicalwriter,Peterlongharbouredapassionforhistory.Itmayseemmorbid tostudysnakebites,shipwrecks,aircraftaccidentsandepidemics.YetforPeter,these momentsofexistentialcrisishelpusunderstandwhatpeopletrulyvalue,andwhothey genuinelytrust.Hisresearchinterestsdrewhimtowardsthenatureandethicsofmedical knowledge,culminatinginhismonograph, VenomousEncounters:Snakes,Vivisectionand ScientificMedicineinColonialAustralia (ManchesterUniversityPress,2017).Peteralso exploredthepracticalimpactofinfectiousdiseasesthroughhiscollaborativeworkwith historiansandarchaeologistsonthequarantinestationinSydney,Australia.Oneresultwas theco-authoredtradebook, StoriesfromtheSandstone:QuarantineInscriptionsfrom Australia’sImmigrantPast (Arbon,2016).Thiswork,whichencompassespublichistory andarchaeology,inspiredaregionalprojecttofostercommunityhistoriesofthe1918–19 influenzapandemic.Peter’sinvestigationsofthistopicdrewhimintovernacularhistory collectionsandmemories,oftendeeplyheldatfamilyandneighbourhoodlevels.
MarkHonigsbaum isamedicalhistorian,sciencewriterandSeniorLectureratCity, UniversityofLondon.Aregularcontributorto TheLancet,heistheauthorof fivebooks including TheFeverTrail:InSearchoftheCureforMalaria (Farrar,StrausandGiroux, 2001)and LivingwithEnza:TheForgottenStoryofBritainandtheGreatFluPandemicof 1918 (Macmillan,2009).Hismostrecentbook, ThePandemicCentury:OneHundredYears ofPanic,HysteriaandHubris (Hurst,2019),wasnameda ‘healthbookoftheyear’ bythe FinancialTimes anda ‘sciencebookoftheyear’ by TheTimes.Mark’sinterestinthe 1918–19influenzapandemicdatesfrom2005when TheObserver senthimtoVietnamto coveranoutbreakofH5N1avianinfluenza.BeforeboardingaplaneforHoChiMinhCity, MarkvisitedProfessorJohnOxfordatQueenMaryandWestfieldSchoolofMedicine,East London,whereOxfordwaskindenoughtogivehimatutorialoninfluenzavirologyand sharehisarchiveofarticlesandletterson ‘Spanish’ influenza.Itwasthebeginningofan obsessionthatled,bywayofaPhDandaWellcomeresearchfellowship,toadeep engagementwiththehistoryofepidemicsandpandemics.
MarkOsborneHumphries isanAssociateProfessoratWilfridLaurierUniversityin Waterloo,Ontario,Canadawhereheteacheshistory.Hepublishedsevenbooks including TheLastPlague:SpanishInfluenzaandthePoliticsofPublicHealthinCanada (Toronto
UniversityPress,2013) andmorethanadozenarticlesonthemilitaryandmedical historyoftheGreatWar,alsocoveringthe1918 fluandshellshock,beforebeginningto workonthesocialhistoryoftheNorthAmericanfurtrade.Hebeganstudyingthe1918 influenzapandemicin2005aftertalkingtohisgreat-grandmother,RoseJudy(then105), whosurvivedthepandemicbuthadnomemoryofit.Forherandherfamily,thepandemic paledinsignificancetoasmalloutbreakofsmallpoxatthelumbercampwhereherfather andbrothersworkedsevenyearsearlierandMarkwantedtounderstandhowsucha significantglobaleventcouldbeexperiencedinprofoundlydifferentwaysatthelocallevel.
DavidKillingray isEmeritusProfessorofModernHistoryatGoldsmithsLondon,and SeniorResearchFellowattheSchoolofAdvancedStudy,UniversityofLondon.Hewasthe co-organiser,withHowardPhillips,oftheinternationalconferenceon ‘SpanishFlu 1918–98:Theinfluenzapandemicafter80years’ (UniversityofCapeTown,September 1998)andtheco-editorofthesubsequentbook, TheSpanishInfluenzaPandemicof 1918–19:NewPerspectives (Routledge,2003).Hehaswritten ‘TheInfluenzaPandemicof 1918–19intheBritishCaribbean’ (SocialHistoryofMedicine,1994), ‘ANew “Imperial Disease”:TheInfluenzaPandemicof1918–19andItsImpactontheBritishEmpire’ (CaribbeanQuarterly,2003)andotheressaysonthe flupandemic.Asanhistorianof AfricaandtheCaribbean,itbecameobviousthatthe flupandemic,thelargestdemographic disasterofthetwentiethcentury,hadbeenmarginalisedandneededscholarlyattention. Sinceretirementin2002,Davidhascontinuedtoresearch,writeandpublishbooksand articlesonaspectsofAfrican,CaribbeanandblackAtlantichistory,andEnglishlocal history.
HannahMawdsley isaPropertyCuratorfortheNationalTrustintheUK.Shewas awardedaPhDbyQueenMary,UniversityofLondoninaCollaborativeDoctoral PartnershipwiththeImperialWarMuseums,forathesisthatexaminesthepoliticsof commemorationandevolvingmemoryofthe1918–19 ‘Spanish’ influenzapandemic.She wasco-curatoroftheaward-winningexhibition ‘SpanishFlu:NursingDuringHistory’ s DeadliestPandemic’ attheFlorenceNightingaleMuseuminLondon(2018–20)andcopresented(withMarkHonigsbaum)the firstseriesofthepodcast ‘GoingViral’ which exploredthehistoryofthe1918 flupandemic.She firstbecamefascinatedwiththe1918 pandemicthroughthe first-handaccountsofsurvivors,whichshedlightontheindividual andpersonalrealitiesofthatvastglobalevent.
ŁukaszMieszkowski isagraduateoftheInstituteofHistoryattheUniversityofWarsaw,a doctoralstudentoftheAnthroposDoctoralSchoolofthePolishAcademyofSciencesand therecipientofaFulbrightJuniorResearchAward.Heistheauthorof ‘AForeignLady: ThePolishEpisodeintheInfluenzaPandemicof1918’ (ActaPoloniaeHistorica,2016)and thepopularsciencebook Największa:PandemiahiszpankiuproguniepodległejPolski [TheBiggestOne:TheSpanishFluontheThresholdofIndependentPoland](Polityka, 2020).Heiscurrentlyworkingonhisdoctoraldissertationentitled ‘DragonsandLice: PolandinTimesofPlague1918–1922’.Hetookupthetopicofthe ‘Spanish’ Flubecauseof thecentennialanniversaryoftheFirstWorldWarandincreasedinterestinrelatedtopics. IdaMilne lecturesininternationalhistoryinCarlowCollege,Ireland.Shehasbeen researchingtheimpactofthe1918–19influenzapandemiconIrishsocietysince2005,
andwasawardedaPhDfromTrinityCollege,Dublinin2011.Auniquefeatureofherwork hasbeenoralhistoryinterviewswithchildsurvivorsinterviewedinoldage,whoreflected onitsimpactovertheirlifespan.Hermonograph, StackingtheCoffins:Influenza,Warand Revolution,1918–1919 (ManchesterUniversityPress,2018),waspublishedinthecentenary year,promptingafreshopportunitytoexplorepandemicmemory.Atinvitedtalkstomark theanniversary,membersofaudiencessharedtheirexperiences,stimulatinggroupdiscussionsofwhathadhappenedwithinthosecommunities.Shepresented(alongsidePatricia MarshandGuyBeiner)morerecentresearchonthetensionsbetweennationalforgetting andprivateorcommunityrememberingofthe1918–19influenzaatanationalcommemorationseminaronthepandemichostedbythePresidentofIreland,MichaelD.Higgins,in May2019.Milnehasusedherresearch findingstoplayapublicroleininformingthe COVID-19crisis,innationalandinternationalmedia,andinpublictalksandpresentations toprofessionalbodiesliketheIrishArmy,medicalassociationsandarchivalinstitutions.
RobertPeckham isMBLeeProfessorintheHumanitiesandMedicine,Chairofthe DepartmentofHistory,andDirectoroftheCentrefortheHumanitiesandMedicineat theUniversityofHongKong.Hisresearchfocusesonthehistoryofinfectiousdiseasein EastAsia,particularlyinrelationtocolonialscience,medicine,andpublichealth,onwhich hehaspublishedwidely.Heisalsointerestedinthehistoryofsurveillance,insocial responsestoepidemicsandintheconnectedhistoriesoffearandpanic.Hisresearchon the1918–19influenzapandemicformspartofalargerprojectthatseekstochallenge Western-centricperspectivesonglobaldiseaseeventsatthesametimeasofferingnew insightsintohowculturalandpoliticalassumptionshavebeen andcontinuetobe embeddedinscientificpractice.Heistheauthorof EpidemicsinModernAsia (Cambridge UniversityPress,2016).
HowardPhillips isanEmeritusProfessoroftheUniversityofCapeTown,wherehetaught thehistoryofhealth,medicineanddiseaseandthehistoryofpublichealthintheFaculties ofHumanitiesandHealthSciencesforfortyyears.Eversincethe1970s,whenhe first stumbleduponthethenunknowntopicof ‘BlackOctober’ inSouthAfrica(ascontemporarieslabelledthedevastatingepisodeofthe ‘Spanish’ Fluepidemic),hehaspursued researchonitsmanydimensionsinboththatcountryandotherpartsofAfrica.Among theworksthatthisresearchhasproducedare ‘BlackOctober’:TheImpactoftheSpanishFlu EpidemiconSouthAfrica (1990); TheSpanishInfluenzaPandemicof1918–19:New Perspectives (2003),co-editedwithDavidKillingray; ‘InfluenzaPandemic’ and ‘Influenza Pandemic(Africa)’ at 1914-1918-online (https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net); ‘No GreatWar,noGreatFlu.NoGreatFlu,noGermandefeat?’ in TheWorldduringtheFirst WorldWar (2014)editedbyH.BleyandA.Kremers;and InaTimeofPlague:Memoriesof the ‘Spanish’ FluEpidemicof1918inSouthAfrica (2018).
JeffreyS.Reznick isahistorianonthefederalstaffoftheNationalLibraryofMedicine (NLM)oftheNationalInstitutesofHealth(NIH),whereheservesasChiefoftheNLM HistoryofMedicineDivision.Hiscontributiontothisbookwasinspiredinpartbythe initiativeandtalentofhiscolleagueswhoserveontheNLMWebCollectingandArchiving WorkingGroup,anoutstandingteamofarchivists,historiansandlibrariansworking togethertoensuretheavailabilityofafuturehistoricalrecordoftheCOVID-19pandemic
aspartoftheNLMGlobalHealthEventswebarchivecollection.Asaculturalhistorian, ReznickisauthoroftwobookspublishedbyManchesterUniversityPressinitsCultural HistoryofModernWarseries,aswellasnumerousscholarlyarticles,bookreviewsand essaysforthepopularpress.Heisalsoco-author,withKennethM.Koyle,of ‘History Matters ...Inthe Past,Present,andFutureoftheNLM’ (JournaloftheMedicalLibrary Association,2021)and ‘WartimeandPostwarMedicalCommunication:TheRoleofthe U.S.ArmyMedicalLibrary’ , CommunicationandtheGreatWar,1914–2014,editedby JohnGriffiths(Routledge,2020).
GeoffreyW.Rice lecturedinEuropeanhistoryattheUniversityofCanterburyfrom1973, endingasProfessorandHeadofDepartment(2006–12)andisnowProfessorEmeritus.His pioneeringbook BlackNovember (1988,secondedition2005)wasthe firstmodernstudyof the1918influenzapandemicbasedonindividualdeathrecordsandassistedtheMinistryof HealthinthepreparationofNewZealand’sPandemicPlan.Hehaspublished fifteensoleauthoredbooksandbiographies,seveneditedorco-authoredbooks,andfortyacademic articlesandreviews.In2018hedeliveredoverthirtypubliclecturesonthe1918influenza pandemic,warningoftheincreasedlikelihoodofanotherglobalpandemic.InNovember 2019heassistedPrimeMinisterJacindaArderninunveilinganationalmemorialtoNew Zealand’svictimsofthe1918pandemic.Heiscurrentlyworkingonmedicalmenand publichealthinnineteenth-centuryChristchurch.Geoffrey’sinterestinthe1918influenza pandemicwassparkedbyacasualconversationwithhisfather,whohadwitnessedthe pandemicasaboy.Hisresearchlaterrevealedthathisgreat-grandmotherhadbeenthelast victimofthe fluinTaumarunui,butthefamilyhadforgottenthis.
UtzThimm isasciencewriterworkingforalargeGermanradiostationbasedinFrankfurt. He firstbecamepreoccupiedwiththe ‘Spanish’ Fluwhenheproduced fiveprogrammesofa quarter-houreachonthesubject.Hardlyanythingwasknownon ‘Spanish’ FluinGermany atthetime.Realisinghehadmerelyscratchedthesurface,researchingthepandemicin GermanyandtheLowCountriesbecameasortofhobbytohim.Thimmhasalsodone extensiveresearchonthefateofBelgianPOWsinGermanprisonercampsoftheGreat War.
JayWinter isCharlesJ.StilleProfessorofHistoryEmeritusatYaleUniversity.Hetaught formanyyearsattheUniversityofCambridgebeforecomingtoYalein2001.Heisan historianoftheFirstWorldWarandhascircledaroundthemedical,demographicand culturalhistoryoftheinfluenzaepidemicof1918–19fordecades.Heistheauthorof Sitesof Memory,SitesofMourning:TheGreatWarinEuropeanCulturalHistory (Cambridge UniversityPress,1995), RememberingWar:TheGreatWarbetweenMemoryandHistoryin theTwentiethCentury (YaleUniversityPress,2006)and WarBeyondWords:Languagesof MemoryfromtheGreatWartothePresent (CambridgeUniversityPress,2017),andeditor ofthethree-volume CambridgeHistoryoftheFirstWorldWar (CambridgeUniversity Press,2014).HehasreceivedhonorarydoctoratesfromtheUniversityofGraz,theKatholic UniversityofLeuvenandtheUniversityofParis8.In2017hereceivedtheVictorAdler PrizeoftheAustriangovernmentforalifetime’sworkinhistory.
Editor’sNote
InitsexaminationofthelegacyoftheGreatFlu,thisvolumepursuesthreemain themes:remembering,forgettingandrediscovery.Thechaptershavebeendivided intofourparts,whichinvestigatethesethemesindifferentspheres personal, communal,medicalandcultural yettherearenumerouscrossoversbetweenthe discussionsandtosomeextentthedivisionisarbitrary.Theessaysaregrounded indifferentgeographicallocationsaroundtheworld;inthecurrentstateof research,however,manyareasstillremaininsufficientlystudied(inparticular regardingtheculturalhistoryofthepandemic).TheIntroductionprovidesessentialhistoricalbackgroundandsurveysthehistoriographicalcontext,aswellas outliningatheoreticalframeworkforthehistoricalstudyofrememberingand forgetting.TheConclusionaddressesthethemeofrediscovery.Thevolumeopens withaPrefacebyahistorianofmemoryandcloseswithanAfterwordbya researcherofculturalmemory.Theoverallpurposeistoinitiatefurtherstudies. Whenpossible,attemptshavebeenmadetodrawadistinctionbetweenthe term ‘epidemic ’ (referringtoaspecificarea)and ‘pandemic’ (spreadacrossawider multinationalregion),thoughthesedistinctionshavebecomeblurredinthe currentdiscourse.Invertedcommasareusedtosignifythatthekeyterm ‘Spanish’ Fluoriginatesinamisnomer,whichhasacquiredcurrencyofitsown. Itisdifficulttopreciselyidentifytheendofthehistoricalevent,whichiscommonlydatedto1918–19,eventhoughsomelocationssufferedafourthwavein 1920.
