Little Egypt Heritage Articles Stories of Southern Illinois © Bill Oliver 14 November 2004 Vol 3 Issue: #33 ISBN: pending Osiyo, Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen of Little Egypt, This week my thoughts are a bit like the “rambling wreak from Georgia Tech”; all over the “field”, much like James Joyce’s writings. The term quarantine means: to separate and isolate to prevent the spread of disease. This includes bacterial infections, viruses, funguses, and parasites (both internal and external). Back in the 1930s the County Health Department used to issue signs which were posted on entrances to houses. They were quarantine signs for communicable diseases. These were large signs ... large enough to be read from sidewalks ... placed outside the home to warn people about the presence of deadly and/or very contagious diseases. Measles, Chicken Pox, diphtheria, typhoid fever, and Scarlet Fever, each had their own color and for the “life of me” I can’t remember which color belonged to which disease; though I will attempt a couple of them from memory. Quarantine signs were common and posted in front of homes in cities, towns, villages, and even farms across this land from the mid1800s until the middle of the 20th century. They were characterized with large bold headlines with warning that removal would result in prosecution. Diphtheria and scarlet fever were lumped together as “throat distemper”, yet had different colored notices; blue-gray for diptheria and scarlet for scarlet fever says my memory. Diptheria was much feared with thousands of cases reported each year, with large numbers of deaths. Scarlet fever was also a feared and deadly childhood bacterial infection characterized by an extremely high fever and unique red rash. The extremely high fever caused the death of my older brother in 1933. It was unfortunate that scarlet fever and diphtheria were often linked with poverty or unsanitary conditions. As a result, quarantine posters did play a part in limiting the spread of these diseases, but they also perpetuated the stigma by identifying who had the disease emphasizing isolation rather than education. Typhoid fever immunization was required for our family to join my Father overseas before World War II. As I remember, the posters for typhoid fever were a light purple. In the thirties [1930s that is], there were relatively few families who owned cars, so there were few garages. With so little traffic on our streets we were seldom disturbed playing “stick ball” in the streets. In the winter we could play “hockey” with old brooms and a pet milk can. There were alleys to play hide ‘n seek. Out front there were slate sidewalks for roller skating or riding home made scooters. For many years following World War II, it was a rare event to experience a sighting of our National Bird, the Bald Eagle. Along the shores of Lake Erie today there is a return of the bird. Perching high on a tree top they are a majestic sight. It is a lucky sight ... luckier if you sight a pair. They do travel in mating pairs. Often, with wing spans of six or more feet, the sight of them soaring high above captivates a person. Their screech vibrates excitement, like the sound of bagpipes. And this brings me to say that Veteran’s Day was this week. Courthouses closed, Government offices closed, there was no mail delivery, and many small cemeteries, with the help of volunteers, put flags on the known graves of Veterans. I learned that the place where my Father is interred doesn’t do that for Veteran’s Day. When asked why they didn’t; the answer was that they have more than 35,000 people buried in the cemetery. They only place flags at grave sites for Memorial Day. I mentioned that there had never, despite my request each year, been a flag placed at his grave even on Memorial Day. Their answer was that I was always welcome to place one there myself. They “always have extras at the office” and I could pick one up. Or, I could volunteer to place flags on Veterans’ gravesites for them, and they would even see if I could be assigned my Father’s section. Gee, I guess I could. After all, Dad was “one of the few” and very Proud of it. e-la-di-e-das-di ha-wi nv-wa-do-hi-ya nv-wa-to-hi-ya-da. (May you walk in peace and harmony) Wado, Bill -=- PostScript: = = = = http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/SOIL http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/ILMASSAC http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ne/state/BillsArticles/LittleEgypt/intro.html