When the Spanish Influenza hit Delaware in 1918, the surge devastated Wilmington and overwhelmed city hospitals. With sickness everywhere that October, doctors and ambulances could not keep up. Gongs rang continuously on the streets day and night as the emergency vehicles rushed the most critical cases to Homeopathic, Delaware, and Physicians’ and Surgeons’ hospitals. This…
Telephone Operators Were Essential Workers in 1918
When the Spanish Influenza struck in 1918, Delmarva’s essential workers paid a heavy toll serving on the front line of the struggle during the weeks the illness ripped across the Peninsula. That autumn the nation already grappled with the burden of World War I, when the first contagious cases broke out here. As the virus…
Dixon Reappointed to the Historic District Commission
As a charter member of the Cecil County Historic District Commission, I have served on the panel since it was created in 1999. As my current term expires this month, I was just notified that the county executive reappointed me to serve until March 2023. The commission’s duties include making recommendations on applications for historic…
Salem County Shutdown During Flu Epidemic of 1918
One hundred two years ago, a mysterious killer came calling in Salem County about the time World War I was winding down. It started in remote corners of the county, in places such as Fort Mott, as a global pandemic, the “so-called Spanish Influenza,” spread throughout New Jersey. The epidemic hit Fort Mott hard. Of…