Hey listers, I ran across this article in the November issue of Reader's Digest and thought it to be informative to people searching this time period. It might answer questions as to why some people seemed to 'drop off the face of the earth' in the Philadelphia area. "1918 was the peak year of the greatest pandemic in recorded history, which in less than two years took at least 21 million lives." It goes on to say- "The toll was frightful. In Philadelphia, for example, some 2600 perished in the second week of October and 4500 in the third week." "Geographic isolation was no protection. In the Alaska Territory, the mortality in some villages was as high as 90 percent. All told, at least 500,000 Americans perished." Just though I would pass it along. Susan Hill