the great pandemic title bar department of health and human services logo
Home life in 1918 the pandemic your state documents and media biographies learn more
Home > Documents & Media > Cartoons & Illustrations
Documents & Media
Ads & Posters
Cartoons & Illustrations
Charts & Diagrams
Documents
Newspapers & Telegrams
Photographs

Cartoons & Illustrations

 
 A cartoon.  A man wearing a hat which is labeled “The Public” holds a handkerchief.  He says “Use the Handkerchief and Do Your Bit to Protect Me!”  A young boy listens.  At the bottom of the image, a caption reads “Colds, Influenza, Pneumonia and Tuberculosis are spread this way.” 
The battle of Verdun was the longest and costliest battle during World War I. [Credit: The Library of Congress] This image was created by one of the nation’s most famous cartoonists, Clifford T. Berryman. A network of hospitals in the nation’s ports provided seamen with access to healthcare.
  
 
 A black and white drawing of steps leading up to a door. The door has a sign on it which reads “Diphtheria Keep Out.” Below the image is a caption which reads “Careful inspection at school prevents epidemics pf diphtheria, measles etc.” Black and white drawing of a flapper and a sailor dancing.
Coney Island in New York was the nation's most famous amusement park but by 1918, amusement parks could be found all over America. [Credit: The Library of Congress] Careful inspection at school prevents epidemics of diphtheria, measles, etc. [Credit: National Library of Medicine] 

During the 1920s, Americans were reluctant to remember the pandemic.

  
 
A drawing of a hospital filled with patients suffering from influenza. A black and white drawing of a young blind girl.  Her arms are stretched out in front of her.  The caption reads “Innocent victim of the venereal enemy.”  A black and white drawing of a subway station with passengers flocking to a subway car.  The caption reads “Subway New York Step Lively.”
in 1890, an influenza pandemic swept the globe, killing many in its wake. [Credit: National Library of Medicine] The Public Health Service believed that all diseases, even venereal disease, needed to be discussed openly. [Credit: Office of the Public Health Service Historian] From 1909 and onward, commuters---and diseases---swarmed subway stations in the nation’s busiest cities. [Credit: The Library of Congress]
  
 
A black and white drawing. A man wrapped in a blanket in a chair is clutching his throat on the left side of the image.  A table with medicines is next to him.  A huddle of doctors consult one another in the upper right hand corner of the image. A color drawing of a physician surrounded by other types of doctors (e.g. a horse doctor, lady doctor, tooth doctor, quack doctor).  A poem below the image is titled “Oh You Doctor.”  The opening lines read “You call yourself doctor.  Well any old fool can get a diploma who’s gone to some school.” Uncle Sam embraces a woman in a nurse’s uniform saying “If you are good enough for war, you are good enough to vote.”
Although doctors often made house calls, they were not always able to provide their patients with a correct diagnosis or a cure. [Credit: National Library of Medicine] Poor training and loose regulations meant that some doctors were little more than quacks. [Credit: National Library of Medicine] When men went to war in 1917, their jobs were filled by women. Many women believed that they should receive the vote in recognition of their services to the nation. [Credit: The Library of Congress]
  
 
the great pandemic home page