1918 influenza pandemic survivor interview: Mrs. Annie Laurie Williams, interviewed 2007

miss Williams we just appreciate you so much taking out the time to talk with us today about the pandemic influenza that was in 1918 I understand that you were actually living here in Selma Dallas County and your immediate family was affected by it and you just tell us a little bit about how it did affect your family well you know that I've reached my first birthday but there are some remembrances that I do have and that is one of the outstanding traumatic experiences that I've had in in my lifetime because my father who was a Jew was taken ill and was very ill and we didn't know whether he was going to live or not and it's a wonder that we all did not take it but there were girls my sister myself and my mother and she waited on him and I was three years old but I can very readily remember and very clearly remember that he was so sick and we were afraid that we were going to lose him and I remember it snowed that year and he got out of the bed and went in the backyard to try to find a diamond ring that mother had lost and we all were absolutely scared to death you know it was going to kill him but he must have been a very staunch steady individual and with a good health record because he never was in the hospital until he went when he died and that you know it was pretty representative of the town because there were so many people who were ill and out as well as I can remember now I can't say definitively but as well as I remember they had to close some of the places and my father worked at bay wig jury company and no I wasn't it was Hobbs and McGill when he first came here work for an old firm called Hobbs in McGill and there were so many people who were out with the flu that they had to close up some of the stores and as well as I remember that was one of them the doctors would come to the house and they would see their patients and some of them they took the hospital but do you realize that at that time they had no treatment that I can remember if I flew at all they had no pharmacy help you know pharmaceuticals and all they could do was just nurse them and try to feed them and bade them and keep them clean and let them rest and it was really a very very sad situation so many people died and I remember that they did but I don't remember the number I have no way that would have to be researched from some material that possibly you have and would be interesting you said the physician came in saw your father yes they made house calls up until even at my husband after he had his heart attack in 1962 and went back to work six months later he still made house calls and that's the last element I remember your father was affected by the flu of 1918 do you recall any of the symptoms that he had oh yes feeble headaches aching and that's about as much as I can remember because I was so small but I remember he was really sick you said that your mother was the primary caregiver of your father what all did she do for him during this illness my mother took cab and kept us away from him and much as she could and fed the family as she did throughout a life were your neighbors able to help each other out did they pull together during this time to try to care for the people that didn't have anyone to take care of them did they bring food and other items to you yes some of the neighbors had and of course in this community when someone is sick or in trouble the neighbors just came to our help and brought in food they didn't come in they were just coming to the door and just leave and leave Oh mother take it from them go do you recall how long your father was ill how long that illness actually lasted and do you recall that it came back no and I don't but I remember that it was a long and drawn-out illness because there was no medication there was nothing he did recover any I do not recall it having returned you know at that time I don't know I might be wrong you can look it up but I don't think the word viral had been discovered there was a pneumococcal and when bacterial anemic ocularis bacterial pneumonia the other thing that was mentioned I've heard a little bit about that some people were given aspirin do you don't recall that well I'm sure that was all they had that was all they had and I'm sure they gave them that to try to control the temperature because he had a very high fever yes he was ran high with that they can't possibly understand I even visualize the impact that it had on the entire society how are the businesses in the community affected do you recall that they were closed were people able to go to work well as well as I recall some of them had to close up because it didn't have the personnel to operate and people were afraid to go to town I mean we're more or less confined to the house and should have been I don't mean that it was a legal imposition but I think we just did it almost voluntarily because it was you didn't want to get out and I'm mothers and all of us who was not ill oh because my father was but they just did not turn us loose to roam the neighborhood what would you suggest for people today if this were to happen again would you what would your advice be since you have actually experienced this what would help us if this were to return well number one get to your doctor as soon as you can because they do have things today they did not have in 1918 go to your doctor get your medicine go home be sure you've got plenty of food and stay left and if you if you have to have a doctor and then call your doctor and let him get you to the hospital is there anything else you can think of or one of summarize or say about it miss Williams No except that was about the most traumatic traumatic experience that I've had in my life except going through right now

Channel: Alabama Department of Archives & History

Views: 88,610

Rating: 4.8996577 out of 5

Keywords: Interview, Alabama, 1918 Flu Pandemic (Disaster)

Id: CWrwv6-OonU

Length: 6min 51sec (411 seconds)

Published: Mon Aug 27 2012