Pullman in the First World WarMain MenuPullman in the First World WarThe story of the people of the Pullman neighborhood and the Pullman Company during the First World WarIntroductionPullman, the town and the companyThat Rascal, Pancho VillaThe service of the people of Pullman during the Punitive Expedition to Mexico, 1916-1917Preparedness and NeutralityHow much should America prepare for a European war?Universal Military Training and PlattsburgTurning young middle and upper class men into soldiersForeign ServiceA number of Pullman residents and employees joined the armies of other nationsApril 6, 1917The United States declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917The 35thRebuilding the French railways systemRallies and Bond DrivesPaying for the warVictory Gardens and Food SecurityFood production and securityLossThe price Pullman paidWomen in ServiceWomen take their part in the war effortsThe Fourth HorsemanThe Influenza Epidemic of 1918-1919 and Pullman1918 and 1919The End of the War to End All WarsAndrew Bullene5d9366487bd54fdac2245f21f3b76927ff9be2d
The Influenza Blues
12018-07-25T18:45:52+00:00Andrew Bullene5d9366487bd54fdac2245f21f3b76927ff9be2d11Sheet music from the Broadway musical A Lonely Romeo (https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/a-lonely-romeo-8883).2018-07-25T18:45:52+00:00Music by Malvin M. Franklin and Robert Hood Bowers; Book by Harry B. Smith and Lew M. Fields; Lyrics by Robert B. Smith and Lorenz Hart; Additional music by Otis Spencer and Richard Rodgers; Musical Director: Robert Hood Bowers; Orchestrations for Malvin Franklin's numbers Charles Grant.1919Andrew Bullene5d9366487bd54fdac2245f21f3b76927ff9be2d
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12018-07-24T21:24:35+00:00The Fourth Horseman21The Influenza Epidemic of 1918-1919 and Pullmanimage_header252018-07-30T03:00:08+00:00Between January, 1918, and December, 1920, a virulent strain of the H1N1 influenza virus spread in a worldwide pandemic. The death toll of this outbreak is estimated to be between 20-50 million people; some sources claim that the disease and subsequent physiological reactions caused as many as 100 million casualties. By contrast, World War I resulted in 30 million casualties.
The disease was thought to have originated in the Allied troop staging area in Étaples, France. It probably was first harbored in birds; since the troop staging area had a vast livestock area for feeding the troops, the disease leapt from chickens to pigs, and from there, to humans.
The site of the very first confirmed outbreak was at Fort Riley, Kansas at a military training facility preparing American troops for involvement in World War I. The first victim diagnosed with the new strain of flu on Monday, March 11, 1918, was mess cook Private Albert Gitchell. The disease became known as the “Spanish Flu” epidemic because Spanish newspapers, free from wartime censorship, first reported on the outbreak.
With tightly packed row houses in the neighborhood and full production shifts in the Pullman Factory, Pullmanites suffered greatly from the effects of the Spanish Flu. (More information)
Column listing Pullman employees' activities in the Pullman Car Works Standard. This was a regular feature of the magazine; during the epidemic, it contained numerous examples of influenza illnesses and deaths.
Red Cross car the Walter Reed. Official Pullman Company photograph of the Walter Reed, a Pullman laboratory car. These cars, made for the front, were put to use in the United States combating the Influenza epidemic.
Interior of a Pullman laboratory car like the Walter Reed. These cars, initially made for the front, were put to use in the United States combating the Influenza epidemic.
The Influenza Blues Sheet music from the Broadway musical A Lonely Romeo
The tune, dealing with one man's sadness that no one is around to go out for an evening of fun because they are all sick and dying, can be heard here: