Sunday, April 12, 2026

Collection of facts about the Spanish flu

This post is a collection of facts about the Spanish flu (1918-1920). There are 16 facts listed below.

  • H1N1 subtype of the influenza A virus
  • Indeterminate origin (newspapers misattributed epicenter to Spain)
  • Began during the end of World War I
  • Possibly began at an army camp in Étaples, France in 1916
  • First recorded case in Haskell County, Kansas (January 1918)
  • Conventionally began March 4th, 1918 at Camp Funston in Kansas
  • Reached European ports in April 1918
  • Reported in China in June 1918
  • Second wave began in August 1918
  • United States had 292,000 deaths between Sept - Dec 1918
  • India had estimated 12 million deaths in 1918
  • Third wave began in early 1919
  • Fourth wave occurred late 1919 - early 1920
  • Considered over by mid-1920
  • Cases: 500 million (1/3 of the world population)
  • Deaths: 17 - 100 million