Craig Daily Press

Compiled and Written by Chuck Mack

In the 1990s, when I was interviewing some of the old-timers of Mt. Harris, gathering information for the stories I was writing, I learned that most everyone I talked to had suffered the misfortune of losing a loved one, close friend or family member to the flu epidemic of 1918 when it raged through Mt. Harris.

From what the old-timers were telling me, the flu started the previous year in Europe and quickly spread to the United States when our fighting men started returning home from the war.

The following was taken from a Nov. 1, 1918, Routt County Sentinel article.

Epidemic general at Craig — where many deaths result — only few cases in Steamboat

The hope that Northwestern Colorado would escape the epidemic of influenza, which for the past six weeks has been general throughout the United States, was dissipated this week when the trouble broke out in a violent form in Craig, the county seat of Moffat County, 50 miles west of Steamboat Springs.

There had previously been a few cases at McGregor, Mt. Harris and in the Yellow Jacket Pass neighborhood, but thus far, Steamboat Springs has escaped lightly, although there have probably been a score of cases here.

In Craig, about 125 new cases have been reported this week, with a number of deaths. The town is headquarters for many homesteaders without permanent homes at that point and such great difficulty has been experienced in taking care of the large number of sick people that the fine large schoolhouse has been converted into a hospital and 15 or 20 patients have been taken there for treatment.

A number of deaths have occurred this week in Craig. Among the victims were Mrs. Barmelter and her young son, from a homestead west of Craig. Others were Mrs. W. E. Pratt and Mrs. Lawrence, a young child of Mr. and Mrs. James Hart, and Harold Castor.

Influenza was last week responsible for four deaths in Moffat County; the victims were: Mrs. Tom Smith, wife of the Craig-Sunbeam mail contractor, who leaves four children and whose husband is also ill; John A. Cross, a Douglas Mountain homesteader, whose relatives are in Texas; George McFarland of Craig, a widower with three children, the youngest of which is in Oklahoma; and Edgar Sperry, for the past four years located at Maybell. Sperry’s remains were taken to his former home in Denver for burial.

Mrs. Alice Pratt, wife of W. H. Pratt of Craig, died Thursday, after a short illness with influenza. She was a sister of Albert and Glenn Tower, both former residents of Steamboat Springs. Her father, Lee Tower, who died several years ago, was a pioneer in the Craig neighborhood.

On Nov. 15, 1918, it was reported:

At Craig, where there was a serious flu epidemic, conditions are reported as greatly improved. Two more deaths occurred there last week. T.J. Brenda of Salt Lake died after an illness of two weeks, and his wife who had come to take care of him took the body to Wichita, Texas for burial. A young daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Paul J. Gries, homesteaders in the Jackrabbit neighborhood, also died from influenza.

Mt. Harris quarantine

On account of the prevalence of influenza at Mt. Harris, the authorities of that town yesterday requested the County Commissioners to order a quarantine established. At that point, Sheriff E.E. Clark was sent to the coal town to maintain the quarantine.

The town of Hayden has adopted stringent methods to prevent a general epidemic at that point, signs having been posted at the depot and at the entrance of each road into town, forbidding anyone to come or go. Two cases only are reported there, Philip Norvell, principal of the school, and a young daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Leslie Kinsey. One or two early cases have already recovered.

A Nov. 29, 1918, Routt County Republican article reported:

The war has killed thousands of Americans, but the flu has killed in tens of thousands.

The total number killed in battle up to the signing of the armistice was about 36,000.

The first of the week, the government gave out a report on the flu from 36 of the largest cities in the U.S., out of these, there had already been 129,000 deaths from influenza, to say nothing of those who have been left with some defect or ailment which will greatly shorten life.

This country has never seen such a plague. Some families have been wiped out completely.

Locally, the flu is on the decline — it is much better at the coal camps above of us and on the Williams Fork. Craig is rapidly getting rid of it, Steamboat is now having a very hard siege of it, having five deaths there this week. Hayden has so far escaped the plague and it is the intention of the town officials to still keep things closed. The closing of the school will interfere greatly with completing this year’s work, but at any event we do not want to have the flu.