Ben Pate
Special to the Citizen
Many think that disease in Dublin is something new with covid19. But I thought that it might be helpful to know that we have been through this before. Though Polio is a disease that has been with us for centuries, I started looking in the 1948 Dublin Progress to learn more about Polio here.
In the July 2, 1948 issue of the Dublin Progress there were a series of articles about Polio striking Dublin. At that time there were 2 known cases of the dread disease Polio or Infantile Paralysis. The town swung into action. The Rotary Club took the lead, researching the first steps necessary to spray the town for flies. Flies were thought to be how the disease was spread. The spray equipment and the insecticide were going to cost $1200 and they needed a way to pay for it. The Chamber of Commerce was studying the type of spray equipment needed. The Boy Scouts distributed circulars in Dublin asking for donations to help defray the expenses of buying the sprayer and insecticide. Dr. Carl Jordan said: “More work is being done and less known about polio than any other disease. It hits in the hot months, June and July and is most common in children from 5 to 12 years.”
The Dublin Progress listed things that citizens should do to help, including: using insecticide to kill all flies, cleaning-up lots, chicken houses and outdoor toilets, covering all garbage cans and removing all trash. It went on to say to do these things TODAY.
The headline for the July 16, 1948 issue of the Dublin Progress stated: “Two Year Old Baby Dies Of Polio; Brother Stricken: Citizens Disturbed and Get Busy Cleaning Up”
The City Council passed a resolution asking that stores in town close all day. The purpose was to sanitize stores, clean-up the town and spray for flies.
The July 23, 1948 issue of the Dublin Progress stated: “No New Polio Cases Reported; Second Big Cleanup Day Thursday Shows Good Results.” Mayor D. R. Franks stated that “Over two hundred vehicles passed through the gates at the city dump yard hauling garbage and trash. Every business house in town closed and it seemed that everyone put in a complete day of hard work.” Work was underway to install new sewer lines so that fewer outdoor toilets were needed. A city worker was assigned the duty of spreading powdered lime in outdoor toilets.
With the hard work the people put in, the cleanliness of town was much better. The next problem was the clean-up of Resley Creek. Son LaBaume was a Commissioner and was an important part of making the creek better by clearing trees and filling low lying places where mosquitoes could breed.
In the United States, the 1952 polio epidemic became the worst outbreak in the nation’s history. Of the nearly 58,000 cases reported that year, 3,145 died and 21,269 were left with mild to disabling paralysis.
I did not see any cases of Polio in the Dublin Progress in 1952, so the town’s efforts to keep everything clean seemed to be paying off. But there were 4 cases in 1953. In the September 18, 1953 Dublin Progress, Mayor Hoffman signed a proclamation stating September 21 and 22 as official clean-up days to stop Polio. Once again, property owners were asked to cleanup trash, high weeds and debris from their homes and businesses. “City spraying equipment has been brought into service and nightly fogging has been done throughout the city for the past week.”
Years later it would be determined that Polio is passed person to person or by contact with contaminated fecal matter or contaminated water.
While all of this work was going on in Dublin, scientists were busy looking for a cure. Two scientists would become famous for their cure for Polio.
That sounds like another interesting article for a future Museum Matters.