HH Note: Yes! Chocolate was a ration in the American Revolution! No wonder I love America so much! What can we say? This story definitely gets the Fayette Front Page coveted four chocolate covered strawberries award.
(ARA) – You’ve probably heard the saying, “As American as baseball, mom and apple pie.” Well, the original author of that famous phrase left something out. Chocolate is all-American too. So as you celebrate Thanksgiving over a meal with friends and family this year, take a moment to consider how chocolate has helped to shape the American experience for more than three centuries.
People tend to associate chocolate with European culture, yet the confection’s roots are actually a whole lot deeper in the Americas. The trees that grow the cacao beans, ultimately made into chocolate, actually originated in the tropical regions of the Americas. Chocolate didn’t find its way to Europe until Christopher Columbus brought the cacao bean back to Spain from his “New World” adventure. So, to eat and drink chocolate is to share a common connection throughout American history from before the Revolutionary War into the 21st century.
Here are some other interesting facts about chocolate in the Americas:
* Chocolate was a military ration during the American Revolutionary War.
* In 1768, John Hancock, protesting Britain’s decision to tax the colonies without representation in Parliament, organized a boycott of tea from China sold by the British East India Company. As it was unpatriotic to drink tea, colonists breakfasted on coffee and chocolate instead.
* George and Martha Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin all drank chocolate.
* Chocolate was drunk for its purported medicinal benefits during the Lewis and Clark Expedition and on the Overland Trails by California Gold Rush miners.
* Amelia Earhart had a cup of chocolate during her record-setting flight over the Pacific from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland on Jan. 11, 1935.
Even though it seems as if chocolate is ubiquitous, we do not yet know all of the facts surrounding the origins of this tasty treat. Mars, Incorporated, maker of some of the world’s favorite brands such as Dove Chocolate, M&M's and Snickers, is leading the effort to identify and weave these threads into the true history of chocolate in the Americas. This effort has unearthed evidence of chocolate 60 years prior to all previous accounts and will be presented in a book that will be published in January 2009 called, Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage, authored by a team of scientists and historians. The book delves into the culinary, cultural, economic and social implications of chocolate from the Colonial era through the early 20th century.
“This book is a beginning,” says Howard-Yana Shapiro, Mars global director, plant science and external research. “Mars is a leader in cocoa science and has been making high-quality chocolate products for more than 100 years. Our intention is to uncover the mysteries and interesting stories surrounding the origins of chocolate.”
But you won’t necessarily have to pick up a copy of the book to learn more about the history of chocolate in America. Just log on to www.AmericanHeritageChocolate.com and go back in time to experience chocolate the way our ancestors did. The site features information about the history of chocolate and the role it played in the lives of early Americans, as well as recipes for chocolate desserts made the old-fashioned way.
Chocolate making is an art as well as a science. The modern chocolate making process is finely calibrated to consistently produce a smooth texture. In Colonial America, chocolate was either ground by hand or with stone mills. Sometimes chocolate makers, or “chocolate millers” as they were called, were diversified and also made ginger, mustard and pepper in their mills. As a result, early American chocolate often carried hints of these flavors.
Want to experience some “authentic Americana” for yourself? Try sampling American Heritage Chocolate (www.AmericanHeritageChocolate.com), which Mars manufactures. This chocolate is sold exclusively through and at the following historical sites: Colonial Williamsburg, Historic Deerfield, the Fortress of Louisbourg in Canada, Monticello, Mount Vernon, the Smithsonian and Fort Ticonderoga.
Here’s a recipe for chocolate ice cream with an old-world flair:
Ingredients:
1 5-oz. American Heritage Chocolate Bar
1 package of American Heritage Chocolate Spice Drink
1 quart of whole milk
6 large eggs
1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp. of vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
Directions:
Grate the chocolate bar into a bowl. Add the entire contents of the spice drink package, and set aside.
Separate the egg yolks from the whites. Whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Save the whites for another recipe.
Split the vanilla bean in half down the entire length of the pod and scrape out the seeds from both halves. Put the seeds and scraped pods into the milk.
Pour all the milk and the chocolate into a sauce pan and heat to a boil, stirring continuously. Add the sugar and cook until both the sugar and the chocolate are melted.
Take a quarter of a cup of the hot mixture and slowly add to the egg yolks, stirring constantly with a whisk, to prevent scrambling.
Stir the warmed egg yolk mixture into the saucepan and bring all the ingredients to a boil for about a minute or until slightly thickened. Strain the hot custard through a sieve into another bowl. Set aside and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.
Cover and refrigerate the mixture for 4 hours or overnight.
Freeze the cooled chocolate mixture in an ice cream freezer according to the manufacturer’s directions
You may also want to try an old-world recipe for a chocolate tart:
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. rice flour
3 Tbsp. white sugar or to taste
5 medium egg yolks or 4 large eggs
1 Tbsp. whole milk
1 pint heavy cream
1 5-oz. American Heritage Chocolate Bar
1 prepared frozen 9-inch pie shell
Pinch of salt
Directions:
Grate the chocolate into a bowl and set aside.
Combine salt, egg yolks, rice flour and milk in a separate bowl and set aside.
Pour all the cream and the chocolate into a sauce pan and heat to a boil, stirring continuously. Add the sugar and cook until both the sugar and the chocolate are melted.
Take a quarter of a cup of the hot mixture and slowly add to the egg yolk and rice flour mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk, to prevent scrambling.
Stir the warmed egg yolk mixture into the sauce pan and bring all the ingredients to a boil for about a minute. Set aside and allow it to cool to room temperature. While the mixture is cooling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Pour the chocolate mixture into the frozen pie shell, set it upon a cookie sheet to prevent spillage and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until set.
Remove from oven and let it cool to room temperature.
Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours or overnight.
For more recipe ideas, log on to www.AmericanHeritageChocolate.com.
Courtesy of ARAcontent
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Sunday, September 28, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
"Today in Fayetteville" January 2, 1903
Fayetteville was having some cold weather early in 1903. Let us see what the Fayetteville News had to say about these conditions... Fayetteville News January 2, 1903 Coldest of the Season
Every section of the country was in winters icy grip the coldest weather of the winter prevailed Friday through the united states.
Louisville 9 degrees, which is 21 degrees below normal. Nashville 14, Chattanooga 16, Memphis 20, Atlanta 18, and little rock 22 degrees.
The young people enjoyed an old fashioned shindig at Mr. James peavys Friday night.
Mr. and Mrs. john evens had a family reunion and Christmas dinner on DEC 25th. Mr. BM Harrison, who spent Christmas with home folks here returned to oxford Tuesday to resume his studies at Emory.
Mr. and Mrs. AP sams entertained a party of young people at their home Monday night. This was one of the most pleasant parties of young people of Fayetteville during the entire holiday season.
submitted by CB glover |
Friday, September 26, 2008
FBI 100: The Legend of 'Machine Gun Kelly'
It was 75 years ago today—September 26, 1933—that wanted gangster George “Machine Gun” Kelly and three others were captured by Bureau agents and local police.
That date might not have meant much to history except for the reporting that followed. As the legend goes, the surrounded and frightened Kelly shouted something like, “Don’t shoot, G-Men, don’t shoot!” Originally slang for all government agents, the term “G-Men” soon became synonymous solely with FBI special agents.
Did Kelly really say those words? Probably not—it appears to have been manufactured by the media. But it quickly grabbed hold of the popular imagination as Hollywood, the press, the American people, and even the FBI accepted it as fact.
Here’s the story behind the myth and how it grew. On July 22, 1933, George Kelly and his gang kidnapped Charles Urschel, a wealthy oil magnate. After Urschel’s family paid a hefty ransom, he was freed. Over the next few months, our agents—then a largely unknown group of investigators—tracked down those involved. Kelly was among the last of the gang to be located by the Bureau.
Our earliest account of what happened was written between three and five days after Kelly’s arrest:
“Agent Rorer saw that Kelly…had proceeded into the front bedroom and was in a corner with his hands raised. He was covered by [Memphis Police] Sergeant [name withheld].”
And that was it, quick and quiet; Kelly wasn’t reported to have spoken at all.
When did the “Don’t Shoot, G-Men” storyline begin? It’s unclear. The earliest reference to such a story that we could find was in a Philadelphia newspaper story written many months later. Kelly, according to the reporter, said that he didn’t shoot because, “It was them G’s. Them G’s would have slaughtered me.” According to historian Richard Gid Powers, it was a few months after this version that writer Rex Collier first wrote the myth as we now know it.
"G-Men" inspired a generation of toys.
By April 1935, the image of the FBI agent as “G-Man” had become part of the popular culture. The movie G-Men, starring Jimmy Cagney, appeared in theaters across the country and was widely successful. It spawned more movies, news stories, films, comic books, radio shows, and even toys and games about the FBI’s G-Men.
In 1956, when reporter Don Whitehead wrote The FBI Story with extensive Bureau help, he included the story as a key event in FBI history. Bureau fact-checkers didn’t question his account, thus tacitly accepting it. The storyline was even included in our 1985 revision of the official case write-up.
Good myths, though, die hard, and this one does make a great story!
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Tuesday, September 23, 2008
From Mounds to Megachurches - A New Book on Religion in Georgia
David S. Williams, director of the Honors Program and Meigs Professor of Religion at the University of Georgia, offers a sweeping overview of the role religion has played in Georgia’s historical and cultural heritage in a new book From Mounds to Megachurches (University of Georgia Press, $26.95). Spanning precolonial days to the modern era, Williams sheds light on what it means to be a Georgian by exploring an issue that remains central to life in the Sunbelt South.
Williams, whose primary field of study is biblical studies, has a long academic career at the university. He started research on the book five years ago when he was head of the department of religion and thought it would take two years to complete. In 2004, he took over director of the Honors Program and considered shelving the project, but he found himself drawn back to the research.
“The book really tugged at me and, ultimately, I decided that I had to finish it,” Williams said. “I wanted to provide a partial explanation of why daily life in Georgia looks and feels the way it does.The influence of religion, especially evangelical Christianity, is pervasive in the state. I think to understand Georgia deeply demands attention to not only the influence of evangelicalism but also the legacy of religious expressions that have existed beyond the borders of the recognized denominations.”
“Williams has written a masterful and remarkably concise synthesis of Georgia’s religious odyssey,” said James C. Cobb, the Spalding Distinguished Professor of History at UGA and a widely-recognized authority on the history of the south. “His title is no mere artifice of alliteration, for he does indeed take us from thousand-year old moundbuilders to modern megachurches, and from Moravians to Muslims as well, reminding us of a persistent strain of religious diversity while placing the emergence and evolution of a Protestant evangelical ethos at the center of Georgia’s historical experience.”
Williams was especially interested in how the story of race is intimately entwined with that of religion. “I have long been struck by Dr. King’s observation that Sunday morning is the most segregated time in American life,” he said. “I wanted to explore more deeply how this came to be. I wanted to provide an extended thought piece about how our religious heritage is tied up with racial matters as well as the role played by evangelicalism.”
Williams previously has published two books, three biblical commentaries and an array of journal articles for scholars of religious studies. From Mounds to Megachurches may seem like a departure from this more specialized work, but Williams sees it as a logical step in a career that has included teaching religious studies to undergraduates at UGA for nearly two decades.
Firmly rooting religious history in a social, cultural and political context, Williams presents a balanced and accessible account of Georgia’s religious heritage that also includes timely commentary, such as how the state has taken center stage in some of America’s culture wars.
“I know no other book that covers such a range of material, with such chronological sweep, in such short compass, for any southern state,” said John B. Boles, William Pettus Hobby Professor of history at Rice University and editor of the Journal of Southern History. “Georgia and its citizens are privileged to have such an accessible survey of their religious heritage available.”
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Williams, whose primary field of study is biblical studies, has a long academic career at the university. He started research on the book five years ago when he was head of the department of religion and thought it would take two years to complete. In 2004, he took over director of the Honors Program and considered shelving the project, but he found himself drawn back to the research.
“The book really tugged at me and, ultimately, I decided that I had to finish it,” Williams said. “I wanted to provide a partial explanation of why daily life in Georgia looks and feels the way it does.The influence of religion, especially evangelical Christianity, is pervasive in the state. I think to understand Georgia deeply demands attention to not only the influence of evangelicalism but also the legacy of religious expressions that have existed beyond the borders of the recognized denominations.”
“Williams has written a masterful and remarkably concise synthesis of Georgia’s religious odyssey,” said James C. Cobb, the Spalding Distinguished Professor of History at UGA and a widely-recognized authority on the history of the south. “His title is no mere artifice of alliteration, for he does indeed take us from thousand-year old moundbuilders to modern megachurches, and from Moravians to Muslims as well, reminding us of a persistent strain of religious diversity while placing the emergence and evolution of a Protestant evangelical ethos at the center of Georgia’s historical experience.”
Williams was especially interested in how the story of race is intimately entwined with that of religion. “I have long been struck by Dr. King’s observation that Sunday morning is the most segregated time in American life,” he said. “I wanted to explore more deeply how this came to be. I wanted to provide an extended thought piece about how our religious heritage is tied up with racial matters as well as the role played by evangelicalism.”
Williams previously has published two books, three biblical commentaries and an array of journal articles for scholars of religious studies. From Mounds to Megachurches may seem like a departure from this more specialized work, but Williams sees it as a logical step in a career that has included teaching religious studies to undergraduates at UGA for nearly two decades.
Firmly rooting religious history in a social, cultural and political context, Williams presents a balanced and accessible account of Georgia’s religious heritage that also includes timely commentary, such as how the state has taken center stage in some of America’s culture wars.
“I know no other book that covers such a range of material, with such chronological sweep, in such short compass, for any southern state,” said John B. Boles, William Pettus Hobby Professor of history at Rice University and editor of the Journal of Southern History. “Georgia and its citizens are privileged to have such an accessible survey of their religious heritage available.”
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Thursday, September 18, 2008
Constitution Day Bell Ringing in Fayetteville Georgia
Carolyn Balog and James Waldrop Chapter DAR Regent Betty HarrahThe James Waldrop Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution joined in the Bells Across America Celebration on September 17 as the country celebrated the 221st anniversary of the signing of the US Constitution. Over 2 dozen local citizens, DAR members and SAR members rang bells for two minutes in honor of the signing. A 6 foot long scroll with over 500 names of local citizens who have pledged support of the Constitution over the last month was on display. The Marquis de Lafayette Chapter Sons of the American Revolution provided a musket salute.
The James Waldrop Chapter DAR is chartered in Fayetteville, GA.
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FBI: The Case of the Cuban Spy
Just 10 days after the attacks of 9/11, the FBI arrested a 44-year-old woman named Ana Belen Montes.
She had nothing to do with the terrorist strikes, but her arrest had everything to do with protecting the country at a time when national security was of paramount importance.
Montes, it turned out, was spying for the Cubans from inside the U.S. intelligence community itself—as a senior analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency, or DIA. And she was soon to have access to classified information about America’s planned invasion of Afghanistan the following month.
Montes was actually the DIA’s top Cuban analyst and was known throughout the U.S. intelligence community for her expertise. Little did anyone know how much of an expert she had become…and how much she was leaking classified U.S. military information and deliberately distorting the government’s views on Cuba.
It began as a classic tale of recruitment. In 1984, Montes held a clerical job at the Department of Justice in Washington. She often spoke openly against the U.S. government’s policies towards Central America. Soon, her opinions caught the attention of Cuban “officials” who thought she’d be sympathetic to their cause. She met with them. Soon after, Montes agreed to help Cuba.
She knew she needed a job inside the intelligence community to do that, so she applied at DIA, a key producer of intelligence for the Pentagon. By the time she started work there in 1985, she was a fully recruited spy.
Montes was smart. To escape detection, she never removed any documents from work, electronically or in hard copy. Instead, she kept the details in her head and went home and typed them up on her laptop. Then, she transferred the information onto encrypted disks. After receiving instructions from the Cubans in code via short-wave radio, she’d meet with her handler and turn over the disks.
During her years at DIA, security officials learned about her foreign policy views and were concerned about her access to sensitive information, but they had no reason to believe she was sharing secrets. And she had passed a polygraph.
Her downfall began in 1996, when an astute DIA colleague—acting on a gut feeling—reported to a security official that he felt Montes might be under the influence of Cuban intelligence. The official interviewed her, but she admitted nothing.
The security officer filed the interview away until four years later, when he learned that the FBI was working to uncover an unidentified Cuban agent operating in Washington. He contacted the Bureau with his suspicions. After a careful review of the facts, the FBI opened an investigation.
Through physical and electronic surveillance and covert searches, the FBI was able to build a case against Montes. Agents also wanted to identify her Cuban handler and were waiting for a face-to-face meeting between the two of them, which is why they held off arresting her for some time. However, outside events overtook the investigation—as a result of the 9/11 attacks, Montes was about to be assigned work related to U.S. war plans. The Bureau and DIA didn’t want that to happen, so she was arrested.
What was Montes’ motivation for spying? Pure ideology—she disagreed with U.S. foreign policy. Montes accepted no money for passing classified information, except for reimbursements for some expenses.
Montes, who acknowledged revealing the identities of four American undercover intelligence officers working in Cuba, pled guilty in 2002 and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
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She had nothing to do with the terrorist strikes, but her arrest had everything to do with protecting the country at a time when national security was of paramount importance.
Montes, it turned out, was spying for the Cubans from inside the U.S. intelligence community itself—as a senior analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency, or DIA. And she was soon to have access to classified information about America’s planned invasion of Afghanistan the following month.
Montes was actually the DIA’s top Cuban analyst and was known throughout the U.S. intelligence community for her expertise. Little did anyone know how much of an expert she had become…and how much she was leaking classified U.S. military information and deliberately distorting the government’s views on Cuba.
It began as a classic tale of recruitment. In 1984, Montes held a clerical job at the Department of Justice in Washington. She often spoke openly against the U.S. government’s policies towards Central America. Soon, her opinions caught the attention of Cuban “officials” who thought she’d be sympathetic to their cause. She met with them. Soon after, Montes agreed to help Cuba.
She knew she needed a job inside the intelligence community to do that, so she applied at DIA, a key producer of intelligence for the Pentagon. By the time she started work there in 1985, she was a fully recruited spy.
Montes was smart. To escape detection, she never removed any documents from work, electronically or in hard copy. Instead, she kept the details in her head and went home and typed them up on her laptop. Then, she transferred the information onto encrypted disks. After receiving instructions from the Cubans in code via short-wave radio, she’d meet with her handler and turn over the disks.
During her years at DIA, security officials learned about her foreign policy views and were concerned about her access to sensitive information, but they had no reason to believe she was sharing secrets. And she had passed a polygraph.
Her downfall began in 1996, when an astute DIA colleague—acting on a gut feeling—reported to a security official that he felt Montes might be under the influence of Cuban intelligence. The official interviewed her, but she admitted nothing.
The security officer filed the interview away until four years later, when he learned that the FBI was working to uncover an unidentified Cuban agent operating in Washington. He contacted the Bureau with his suspicions. After a careful review of the facts, the FBI opened an investigation.
Through physical and electronic surveillance and covert searches, the FBI was able to build a case against Montes. Agents also wanted to identify her Cuban handler and were waiting for a face-to-face meeting between the two of them, which is why they held off arresting her for some time. However, outside events overtook the investigation—as a result of the 9/11 attacks, Montes was about to be assigned work related to U.S. war plans. The Bureau and DIA didn’t want that to happen, so she was arrested.
What was Montes’ motivation for spying? Pure ideology—she disagreed with U.S. foreign policy. Montes accepted no money for passing classified information, except for reimbursements for some expenses.
Montes, who acknowledged revealing the identities of four American undercover intelligence officers working in Cuba, pled guilty in 2002 and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
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Monday, September 15, 2008
"I Saw the Walking Dead" Lecture September 16
In partnership with the ongoing “Anne Frank: A History for Today” exhibit, the Ingram Library at the University of West Georgia will host Dr. Leon Bass, a veteran who helped liberate the Buchenwald Concentration Camp. “I Saw the Walking Dead” will be presented on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. in the Campus Center Ballroom. The event is free and the community is invited to hear this remarkable story.
Bass, an African-American, served in the 183rd Engineer Combat Battalion during World War II and described what he saw at Buchenwald to be “the walking dead.” A retired principal at a high school in Philadelphia, Bass has become a national speaker on the subject and was featured in the Academy Award-nominated documentary “Liberators: Fighting on Two Fronts in World War II.”
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Bass, an African-American, served in the 183rd Engineer Combat Battalion during World War II and described what he saw at Buchenwald to be “the walking dead.” A retired principal at a high school in Philadelphia, Bass has become a national speaker on the subject and was featured in the Academy Award-nominated documentary “Liberators: Fighting on Two Fronts in World War II.”
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Fayetteville Intermediate School Learns About the Constitution from DAR
The fourth and fifth graders at Fayetteville Intermediate School learned about the Constitution from the James Waldrop Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution in a special Constitution Week program. To conclude the presentation, the children read the Preamble to the Constitution and waited in line to pledge their support to the Constitution, which turns 221 years old on September 17.
Pictured (l-r) are Regent Betty Harrah and Carol Key of Fayetteville.
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Sunday, September 14, 2008
"Today in Fayetteville" December 1, 1905
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Another interesting look into Fayetteville's history... TheFayettevilleNews Dec. 1, 1905 Ex-congressman's wife killed and several others badly hurt. Mrs Frances Burton Harrison, the wife of Ex-congressman Harrison, was instantly killed in an automobile accident in Long Island City. The machine became uncontrollable on a steep hill, plunged to the side of the road and turned over. Mrs Harrison neck was broken, Lawrence Scott, and wife were injured and Charles Crocker, brother of Mrs Harrison and the chauffeur were slightly hurt. Lyman Hall laboratory dedicated The memory of Dr Lyman Hall, late president of the Georgia School of Technology was fittingly honored when memorial services were held in the Tech chapel at Atlanta a few days ago. FAYETTEVILLE PHONE EXCHANGE W.B. Roberts, manager, Atlanta, Ga. Miss Vara Coppege, operator Fayetteville exchange. W.M. Garrison, assistant, and night operator. Local rural lines to any county residence, mills, farms, ginneries, etc. get in talking distance with the business world. for phones apply to above named manager or local employees. SIX MILLION PEOPLE Six million people are dependent on rail roads for a living. In round numbers the wages for the railway employs amount to 500,000,000 a year. Judge and Mrs W.T. Glower have announced the engagement of their granddaughter and ward, Miss Ozella Adams, to Rupert Waller of Raleigh, Ga. The wedding will occur at the residence on Railroad St. at an early date. The News extends congratulations in advance. Submitted by CB Glover |
The Treaty of Paris Turns 225 Years Old
Special to the Fayette Front Page
By Susan Sloan
James Waldrop Chapter DAR
Fayetteville, GA
The Treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary War between Great Britain and the United States, recognized American independence and established borders for the new nation. After the British defeat at Yorktown in Dec 1781, peace talks in Paris began in April 1782 between Richard Oswarld representing Great Britain and the American Peace Commissioners Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, and John Adams. The American negotiators were joined by Henry Laurens two days before the preliminary articles of peace were signed on November 30, 1782.
The Treaty of Paris, formally ending the war, was not signed until September 3, 1783. Benjamin Franklin, John Jay and John Adams signed for the Americans and David Hartley, a member of the British Parliament represented the British Monarch, King George III.
The Continental Congress, which was temporarily situated in Annapolis, Maryland, at the time, ratified the Treaty of Paris on January 14, 1784. There were 10 Articles or Items in the Treaty, only one of which was still in force in 2007. That item was Item 1, which recognized the thirteen colonies as free and sovereign states.
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By Susan Sloan
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Fayetteville, GA
The Treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary War between Great Britain and the United States, recognized American independence and established borders for the new nation. After the British defeat at Yorktown in Dec 1781, peace talks in Paris began in April 1782 between Richard Oswarld representing Great Britain and the American Peace Commissioners Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, and John Adams. The American negotiators were joined by Henry Laurens two days before the preliminary articles of peace were signed on November 30, 1782.
The Treaty of Paris, formally ending the war, was not signed until September 3, 1783. Benjamin Franklin, John Jay and John Adams signed for the Americans and David Hartley, a member of the British Parliament represented the British Monarch, King George III.
The Continental Congress, which was temporarily situated in Annapolis, Maryland, at the time, ratified the Treaty of Paris on January 14, 1784. There were 10 Articles or Items in the Treaty, only one of which was still in force in 2007. That item was Item 1, which recognized the thirteen colonies as free and sovereign states.
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Friday, September 12, 2008
Susan Copeland Helps Tells the Story of a German PW in Georgia
It’s a piece of American history that few Americans under the age of 60 know much, if anything, about. Stories of German prisoners of war (PWs in military-speak) working for farmers in the United States before being “re-educated” for their eventual return to the Fatherland.
It’s a saga that Dr. Susan Copeland, assistant professor of English in the College of Arts & Sciences at Clayton State University, knows well, since she’s helped one of those former PWs, Heinz Gaertner, tell his story in a recent edition of Georgia Historical Quarterly.
A German PW in Arizona, California, Tennessee, and Georgia from June 1944 to December 1945, Gaertner had gone to a German prisoner of war site on the Web and found a blog mentioning an article that Copeland did for the New Georgia Encyclopedia (NGE) Online, “Foreign Prisoners of War in Georgia.” (Copeland also edited the military articles in the Government and Politics section of the NGE.) Gaertner then contacted Copeland to help him tell in English a remarkable story he’d already told in Germany… a story of being wounded by sniper fire at Normandy at the age of 17, being taken prisoner when the German hospital he was in surrendered to the Americans, and coming to the U.S. and working in four states before being re-educated at Fort Benning.
“He wanted his story remembered in the U.S. Some parts of his narrative are humorous, and some are quite tense,” says Copeland. “He was the youngest in all the camps and the only one who spoke and wrote in English.
“When he was asked by the Americans at his first camp to translate, he was frightened that the Rommel’s Afrika Korps PW’s would not see this function in positive light, to put it mildly. But they came very quickly to call him their `little one’ and protected him, so he survived and translated.”
Now a resident of Henry County, Copeland’s interest in Germans in Georgia goes back to her childhood in South Georgia.
“When I was growing up in South Georgia my mother told stories of her WWII childhood, when huge floodlights in her dad's fields scanned the night sky for invading German and Japanese aircraft and PW's worked the fields in place of American men who were fighting in the war,” she recalls. “This seemed like an important aspect of Georgia history. PW's in general were surprised by the positive experiences they had in Georgia. They were surprised by being able to sleep in new barracks with clean sheets and having good food, and they appreciated southern hospitality among the farming folks for whom they worked.”
In other words, Gaertner’s trip to the internet put him in touch with the right person. A worker for the combined German telephone and postal service before being forced into the war at 16, Gaertner went back to work for the telephone/postal service, returning to Germany after his re-education and eventually becoming postmaster of his hometown, Lagge Lippe. Now 82 years old, he retired in the 1980's and still lives there.
“When the decision was made to start returning PW's, the farmers, the railroad workers, and the government utility/service employees were given priority because of the importance of rebuilding West Germany in the light of the rise of the Soviet Union as a threat to the West,” explains Copeland. “The `re-education’ process was a requirement before those selected to return to rebuild Germany were allowed to return.
“They were taught American history and democratic rule by American GI's. Herr Gaertner enjoyed the course but pointed out to the GI's the hypocrisy of having racism, as he had witnessed it in the south, in a democracy.”
Copeland’s present article in Georgia Historical Quarterly focuses specifically on Gaertner’s time in Tennessee and Georgia.
“I edited his words, consulted with him over confusing spots, and added footnotes of explanation where necessary,” she says. “I submitted the article at the suggestion of Gene Hatfield [chair of the Clayton State Social Sciences Department], who also asked me to present on Herr Gaertner's experiences at the annual conference of the Georgia Association of Historians in February. I look forward to publishing the entire narrative as a book sometime in the near future.”
A unit of the University System of Georgia, Clayton State University is an outstanding comprehensive metropolitan university located 15 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta.
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It’s a saga that Dr. Susan Copeland, assistant professor of English in the College of Arts & Sciences at Clayton State University, knows well, since she’s helped one of those former PWs, Heinz Gaertner, tell his story in a recent edition of Georgia Historical Quarterly.
A German PW in Arizona, California, Tennessee, and Georgia from June 1944 to December 1945, Gaertner had gone to a German prisoner of war site on the Web and found a blog mentioning an article that Copeland did for the New Georgia Encyclopedia (NGE) Online, “Foreign Prisoners of War in Georgia.” (Copeland also edited the military articles in the Government and Politics section of the NGE.) Gaertner then contacted Copeland to help him tell in English a remarkable story he’d already told in Germany… a story of being wounded by sniper fire at Normandy at the age of 17, being taken prisoner when the German hospital he was in surrendered to the Americans, and coming to the U.S. and working in four states before being re-educated at Fort Benning.
“He wanted his story remembered in the U.S. Some parts of his narrative are humorous, and some are quite tense,” says Copeland. “He was the youngest in all the camps and the only one who spoke and wrote in English.
“When he was asked by the Americans at his first camp to translate, he was frightened that the Rommel’s Afrika Korps PW’s would not see this function in positive light, to put it mildly. But they came very quickly to call him their `little one’ and protected him, so he survived and translated.”
Now a resident of Henry County, Copeland’s interest in Germans in Georgia goes back to her childhood in South Georgia.
“When I was growing up in South Georgia my mother told stories of her WWII childhood, when huge floodlights in her dad's fields scanned the night sky for invading German and Japanese aircraft and PW's worked the fields in place of American men who were fighting in the war,” she recalls. “This seemed like an important aspect of Georgia history. PW's in general were surprised by the positive experiences they had in Georgia. They were surprised by being able to sleep in new barracks with clean sheets and having good food, and they appreciated southern hospitality among the farming folks for whom they worked.”
In other words, Gaertner’s trip to the internet put him in touch with the right person. A worker for the combined German telephone and postal service before being forced into the war at 16, Gaertner went back to work for the telephone/postal service, returning to Germany after his re-education and eventually becoming postmaster of his hometown, Lagge Lippe. Now 82 years old, he retired in the 1980's and still lives there.
“When the decision was made to start returning PW's, the farmers, the railroad workers, and the government utility/service employees were given priority because of the importance of rebuilding West Germany in the light of the rise of the Soviet Union as a threat to the West,” explains Copeland. “The `re-education’ process was a requirement before those selected to return to rebuild Germany were allowed to return.
“They were taught American history and democratic rule by American GI's. Herr Gaertner enjoyed the course but pointed out to the GI's the hypocrisy of having racism, as he had witnessed it in the south, in a democracy.”
Copeland’s present article in Georgia Historical Quarterly focuses specifically on Gaertner’s time in Tennessee and Georgia.
“I edited his words, consulted with him over confusing spots, and added footnotes of explanation where necessary,” she says. “I submitted the article at the suggestion of Gene Hatfield [chair of the Clayton State Social Sciences Department], who also asked me to present on Herr Gaertner's experiences at the annual conference of the Georgia Association of Historians in February. I look forward to publishing the entire narrative as a book sometime in the near future.”
A unit of the University System of Georgia, Clayton State University is an outstanding comprehensive metropolitan university located 15 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta.
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Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Constitution Day Celebration at University of West Georgia Planned for September 17
The University of West Georgia and the Ingram Library will honor Constitution Day on Wednesday, Sept. 17, with a reception and intriguing dialogue about government, democracy and the Constitution.
The event is free and the community is invited to attend Dr. Robert M. Schaefer, professor and chair of the Department of Political Science and Planning, will lecture on “The American Constitution: A Celebratory Address (with an Admonition)” at 11 a.m. on the main floor of the library.
The presentation will focus on the establishment of American republic and the difficulty of preserving a constitution. Schaefer said the admonition is serious yet not preachy.
“This will be a political oration on behalf of the Constitution,” said Schaefer. “And to talk about the Constitution you have to talk about Rome, Athens and the difficultly of founding a good regime. The Constitution is fundamental to every aspect of our lives and it is important for citizens to give thought about what the Constitution means to this country.”
Constitution Day commemorates Sept. 17, 1787, which is the day the Constitutional Convention delegates signed the document. A federal law passed in 2004 requires all educational institutions that receive federal funds to observe Constitution Day.
Each year, the president issues a proclamation encouraging government officials and educational organizations to celebrate the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and reaffirm the rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship.
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The event is free and the community is invited to attend Dr. Robert M. Schaefer, professor and chair of the Department of Political Science and Planning, will lecture on “The American Constitution: A Celebratory Address (with an Admonition)” at 11 a.m. on the main floor of the library.
The presentation will focus on the establishment of American republic and the difficulty of preserving a constitution. Schaefer said the admonition is serious yet not preachy.
“This will be a political oration on behalf of the Constitution,” said Schaefer. “And to talk about the Constitution you have to talk about Rome, Athens and the difficultly of founding a good regime. The Constitution is fundamental to every aspect of our lives and it is important for citizens to give thought about what the Constitution means to this country.”
Constitution Day commemorates Sept. 17, 1787, which is the day the Constitutional Convention delegates signed the document. A federal law passed in 2004 requires all educational institutions that receive federal funds to observe Constitution Day.
Each year, the president issues a proclamation encouraging government officials and educational organizations to celebrate the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and reaffirm the rights and responsibilities of U.S. citizenship.
_____
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National Museum of the Marine Corps Thrives
BUSINESS WIRE --Amidst celebrations for the millionth visitor and continuing rave reviews from visitors, the National Museum of the Marine Corps and Marine Corps Heritage Foundation announce expansion plans. The announcement comes after the release of results from a visitors’ survey made available through the American Association for State & Local History. The survey found that the National Museum of the Marine Corps exceeded results of the top three museums previously measured in the AASLH survey in overall visitor experience, visitor expectations, impact, value, visitor return, visitor recommendation and reputation.
The Museum will soon expand to include three additional galleries with exhibits interpreting the periods from 1775 through World War 1. The galleries will feature immersive experiences for which the Museum is world-renowned. Construction on the new galleries will begin in October with the opening expected in the spring of 2010.
The Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s fundraising campaign to complete the Museum is also under way. New components that the Foundation and its supporters will fund include over 80,000 square feet of additional historical galleries, a large-screen theater, a permanent art gallery and artist studios, a performance space, classrooms and a display-storage gallery for many artifacts currently not accessible to the public.
With funding provided by the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation and its supporters, the adjacent Semper Fidelis Memorial Park also continues to expand. Additional trails and overlooks are already lined with 10,000 commemorative bricks and another 2,000 are reserved for new trail segments. Memorial benches and monuments will be installed in the next phase of development, along with the construction of a new chapel slated to begin in October. The nondenominational chapel will be a quiet,contemplative space where visitors can remember the sacrifices of Marines. Designed by Fentress Architects, the structure will evoke images and memories of improvised field chapels familiar to combat Marines.
In the less than two years since dedication, the Museum has become recognized as a top Virginia destination for families across the region and throughout the nation. Recent surveys found that 75% of visitors to the Museum were from outside the state of Virginia.
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The Museum will soon expand to include three additional galleries with exhibits interpreting the periods from 1775 through World War 1. The galleries will feature immersive experiences for which the Museum is world-renowned. Construction on the new galleries will begin in October with the opening expected in the spring of 2010.
The Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s fundraising campaign to complete the Museum is also under way. New components that the Foundation and its supporters will fund include over 80,000 square feet of additional historical galleries, a large-screen theater, a permanent art gallery and artist studios, a performance space, classrooms and a display-storage gallery for many artifacts currently not accessible to the public.
With funding provided by the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation and its supporters, the adjacent Semper Fidelis Memorial Park also continues to expand. Additional trails and overlooks are already lined with 10,000 commemorative bricks and another 2,000 are reserved for new trail segments. Memorial benches and monuments will be installed in the next phase of development, along with the construction of a new chapel slated to begin in October. The nondenominational chapel will be a quiet,contemplative space where visitors can remember the sacrifices of Marines. Designed by Fentress Architects, the structure will evoke images and memories of improvised field chapels familiar to combat Marines.
In the less than two years since dedication, the Museum has become recognized as a top Virginia destination for families across the region and throughout the nation. Recent surveys found that 75% of visitors to the Museum were from outside the state of Virginia.
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Friday, September 5, 2008
Opinion: The U.S. Constitution and Georgia Men
"Hold on, my friends, to the Constitution and to the Republic for which it stands. Miracles do not cluster, and what has happened once in 6000 years, may not happen again. Hold on to the Constitution, for if the American Constitution should fail, there will be anarchy throughout the world."- Daniel Webster
As the United States of America gets ready to honor the 221st anniversary of the framing of the US Constitution, we, as Americans, should make it our goal to learn more about this legendary document. As children, our teachers taught us the basics of where the Constitution was written and who signed it from each state. We also learned about the Bill of Rights and the amendments.
Now, as adults, we start to realize the importance of this document in our lives. It provides the basis of the freedoms we enjoy. The freedom of speech, the freedom to worship, the right to bear arms, the right to vote are just a few of the many privileges we enjoy in America.
Who were the men who framed the Constitution? Who were the men who represented Georgia? How many men were elected to represent Georgia?
William Few (1748-1828) and Abraham Baldwin (1754-1807) are the two men of the state of Georgia who signed the Constitution in 1787. Did you know that a total of six Georgia men were appointed to attend the convention? Two of men did not attend and two others, William Leigh Pierce and William Houston, were not there for the majority of the debates.
Both Pierce and Houston were Georgia natives. Pierce made his home in Savannah and was a member of the Georgia House of Representatives. Pierce did participate in several debates on key points. He favored strengthening of the federal government as long as the states still retained some power. Pierce left the convention early as his business in Savannah suffered, and eventually went bankrupt. He died shortly after in 1789.
Born in Savannah, Houston enjoyed a childhood of privilege. His father was highly involved in the royal government of Georgia. He returned home to Georgia from his schooling in England when the Revolutionary War began. He is known for his belief in colonists' rights, and is one of the original trustees of the University of Georgia. Houston died in 1813.
The 55 men who attended the convention had much to say. These delegates, or deputies, were appointed by the legislatures of the 13 states. Some of the deputies left early as Pierce and Houston did. Others who were appointed to attend did not. Why? Was it not convenient? Was it a sense of not comprehending the importance of revising the Articles of Confederation? Was it a shirk of their duty? We don't know the answers. What we do know is the masterpiece document that these men framed.
The words of Benjamin Franklin, in a speech delivered to the convention in late June 1787, provide a glimpse for us: "....In these sentiments, Sir, I agree to this Constitution, with all its faults, — if they are such; because I think a general Government necessary for us, and there is no form of government but what may be a blessing to the people, if well administered; and I believe, farther, that this is likely to be well administered for a course of years, and can only end in despotism, as other forms have done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic government, being incapable of any other."
Could the framers have imagined the longevity of our Constitution?
Celebrate, American citizens. Read the Constitution. Honor the Constitution. Protect the Constitution.
Ann Eldredge
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Editor's Note: National Constitution Week is rapidly approaching. Kudos to the organizations who strive to increase our awareness of the Constitution, and a special kudos to the James Waldrop Chapter DAR of Fayetteville and Fayette County, whose endeavors with regards to educating the school children and adults has become well known and honored beyond our area. Take a few moments and view the videos released last year.
Part 1 Constitution Week Video
Part 2 Constitution Week Video
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Thursday, September 4, 2008
Fayetteville Georgia Proclaims Constitution Week for September 17-23
Pictured (l-r) are Linda Robinson, Ann Eldredge and Mayor Ken Steele.
The City of Fayetteville proclaimed September 17-23 as Constitution Week at a recent City Council Meeting. Ann Eldredge, Constitution Week Chairman of the James Waldrop Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution, commented that this year Americans celebrate the 221st anniversary of the signing of the U. S. Constitution. The James Waldrop Chapter DAR and the City of Fayetteville urge all citizens to reaffirm the ideals of the Constitution and to vigilantly protect the freedoms guaranteed to us through this guardian of our liberties, remembering that lost rights may never be regained.
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"Celebrating the Constitution" at the National Archives in Morrow
Article III, Section 3 of the United States ConstitutionIn September, 1865 the United States Circuit Court of Western Tennessee in Memphis issued a writ of Habeas Corpus charging Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest with treason.
The National Archives-Southeast Region will celebrate the anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution on Wednesday, September 17, 2008, from 10:00-11:00 A.M. with an exciting program featuring readings, speeches, and a special document exhibit. "James Madison" (Former President and Founding Father as well as the Father of the Constitution) will join the National Archives staff in welcoming the public to this free event.
The National Archives, our nation's recordkeeper, is the official custodian of the original Constitution which is on permanent display in the Rotunda of the National Archives Building, located on Constitution Avenue between 7th and 9th Streets, NW, Washington, D.C.
The ceremony in the Southeast Region celebrates the world's oldest written national constitution still in effect. The completed document was accepted by the Constitutional Convention on September 15, 1787, and the final draft was signed on September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This date marks a milestone in our history.
Dr. Jamil S. Zainaldin, President of the Georgia Humanities Council will be the special guest speaker for the ceremony at the National Archives-Southeast Region. Zainaldin holds the BA in history from the University of Virginia and the PhD in history from the University of Chicago. He is a frequent writer and speaker on the importance of history, literature, ethics, and civic values.
After the formal program, guests are invited to view a display of original documents reflecting specific sections of the Constitution. Documents related to the indictments of Aaron Burr and Nathan Bedford Forrest for treason, filings in Federal court cases related to freedom of speech and the press, and numerous documents from the modern Civil Rights Movement related to the 14th and 15th amendments to the Constitution will be on display.
Following the ceremony, a complimentary light lunch will be served.
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Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Bacterial Pneumonia Caused Most Deaths in 1918 Influenza Pandemic
HH Note: The 1918 Influenza Outbreak resulted in so many deaths. Here is a new study from the NIH which may be of interest to history buffs.
The majority of deaths during the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 were not caused by the influenza virus acting alone, report researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. Instead, most victims succumbed to bacterial pneumonia following influenza virus infection. The pneumonia was caused when bacteria that normally inhabit the nose and throat invaded the lungs along a pathway created when the virus destroyed the cells that line the bronchial tubes and lungs.
A future influenza pandemic may unfold in a similar manner, say the NIAID authors, whose paper in the Oct. 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases is now available online. Therefore, the authors conclude, comprehensive pandemic preparations should include not only efforts to produce new or improved influenza vaccines and antiviral drugs but also provisions to stockpile antibiotics and bacterial vaccines as well.
The work presents complementary lines of evidence from the fields of pathology and history of medicine to support this conclusion. "The weight of evidence we examined from both historical and modern analyses of the 1918 influenza pandemic favors a scenario in which viral damage followed by bacterial pneumonia led to the vast majority of deaths," says co-author NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. "In essence, the virus landed the first blow while bacteria delivered the knockout punch."
NIAID co-author and pathologist Jeffery Taubenberger, M.D., Ph.D., examined lung tissue samples from 58 soldiers who died of influenza at various U. S. military bases in 1918 and 1919. The samples, preserved in paraffin blocks, were re-cut and stained to allow microscopic evaluation. Examination revealed a spectrum of tissue damage "ranging from changes characteristic of the primary viral pneumonia and evidence of tissue repair to evidence of severe, acute, secondary bacterial pneumonia," says Dr. Taubenberger. In most cases, he adds, the predominant disease at the time of death appeared to have been bacterial pneumonia. There also was evidence that the virus destroyed the cells lining the bronchial tubes, including cells with protective hair-like projections, or cilia. This loss made other kinds of cells throughout the entire respiratory tract — including cells deep in the lungs — vulnerable to attack by bacteria that migrated down the newly created pathway from the nose and throat.
In a quest to obtain all scientific publications reporting on the pathology and bacteriology of the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic, Dr. Taubenberger and NIAID co-author David Morens, M.D., searched bibliography sources for papers in any language. They also reviewed scientific and medical journals published in English, French and German, and located all papers reporting on autopsies conducted on influenza victims. From a pool of more than 2,000 publications that appeared between 1919 and 1929, the researchers identified 118 key autopsy series reports. In total, the autopsy series they reviewed represented 8,398 individual autopsies conducted in 15 countries.
The published reports "clearly and consistently implicated secondary bacterial pneumonia caused by common upper respiratory flora in most influenza fatalities," says Dr. Morens. Pathologists of the time, he adds, were nearly unanimous in the conviction that deaths were not caused directly by the then-unidentified influenza virus, but rather resulted from severe secondary pneumonia caused by various bacteria. Absent the secondary bacterial infections, many patients might have survived, experts at the time believed. Indeed, the availability of antibiotics during the other influenza pandemics of the 20th century, specifically those of 1957 and 1968, was probably a key factor in the lower number of worldwide deaths during those outbreaks, notes Dr. Morens.
The cause and timing of the next influenza pandemic cannot be predicted with certainty, the authors acknowledge, nor can the virulence of the pandemic influenza virus strain. However, it is possible that — as in 1918 — a similar pattern of viral damage followed by bacterial invasion could unfold, say the authors. Preparations for diagnosing, treating and preventing bacterial pneumonia should be among highest priorities in influenza pandemic planning, they write. "We are encouraged by the fact that pandemic planners are already considering and implementing some of these actions," says Dr. Fauci.
Reference:
DM Morens et al. Predominant role of bacterial pneumonia as a cause of death in pandemic influenza: Implications for pandemic influenza preparedness. The Journal of Infectious Diseases DOI: 10.1086/591708 (2008).
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The majority of deaths during the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 were not caused by the influenza virus acting alone, report researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. Instead, most victims succumbed to bacterial pneumonia following influenza virus infection. The pneumonia was caused when bacteria that normally inhabit the nose and throat invaded the lungs along a pathway created when the virus destroyed the cells that line the bronchial tubes and lungs.
A future influenza pandemic may unfold in a similar manner, say the NIAID authors, whose paper in the Oct. 1 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases is now available online. Therefore, the authors conclude, comprehensive pandemic preparations should include not only efforts to produce new or improved influenza vaccines and antiviral drugs but also provisions to stockpile antibiotics and bacterial vaccines as well.
The work presents complementary lines of evidence from the fields of pathology and history of medicine to support this conclusion. "The weight of evidence we examined from both historical and modern analyses of the 1918 influenza pandemic favors a scenario in which viral damage followed by bacterial pneumonia led to the vast majority of deaths," says co-author NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. "In essence, the virus landed the first blow while bacteria delivered the knockout punch."
NIAID co-author and pathologist Jeffery Taubenberger, M.D., Ph.D., examined lung tissue samples from 58 soldiers who died of influenza at various U. S. military bases in 1918 and 1919. The samples, preserved in paraffin blocks, were re-cut and stained to allow microscopic evaluation. Examination revealed a spectrum of tissue damage "ranging from changes characteristic of the primary viral pneumonia and evidence of tissue repair to evidence of severe, acute, secondary bacterial pneumonia," says Dr. Taubenberger. In most cases, he adds, the predominant disease at the time of death appeared to have been bacterial pneumonia. There also was evidence that the virus destroyed the cells lining the bronchial tubes, including cells with protective hair-like projections, or cilia. This loss made other kinds of cells throughout the entire respiratory tract — including cells deep in the lungs — vulnerable to attack by bacteria that migrated down the newly created pathway from the nose and throat.
In a quest to obtain all scientific publications reporting on the pathology and bacteriology of the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic, Dr. Taubenberger and NIAID co-author David Morens, M.D., searched bibliography sources for papers in any language. They also reviewed scientific and medical journals published in English, French and German, and located all papers reporting on autopsies conducted on influenza victims. From a pool of more than 2,000 publications that appeared between 1919 and 1929, the researchers identified 118 key autopsy series reports. In total, the autopsy series they reviewed represented 8,398 individual autopsies conducted in 15 countries.
The published reports "clearly and consistently implicated secondary bacterial pneumonia caused by common upper respiratory flora in most influenza fatalities," says Dr. Morens. Pathologists of the time, he adds, were nearly unanimous in the conviction that deaths were not caused directly by the then-unidentified influenza virus, but rather resulted from severe secondary pneumonia caused by various bacteria. Absent the secondary bacterial infections, many patients might have survived, experts at the time believed. Indeed, the availability of antibiotics during the other influenza pandemics of the 20th century, specifically those of 1957 and 1968, was probably a key factor in the lower number of worldwide deaths during those outbreaks, notes Dr. Morens.
The cause and timing of the next influenza pandemic cannot be predicted with certainty, the authors acknowledge, nor can the virulence of the pandemic influenza virus strain. However, it is possible that — as in 1918 — a similar pattern of viral damage followed by bacterial invasion could unfold, say the authors. Preparations for diagnosing, treating and preventing bacterial pneumonia should be among highest priorities in influenza pandemic planning, they write. "We are encouraged by the fact that pandemic planners are already considering and implementing some of these actions," says Dr. Fauci.
Reference:
DM Morens et al. Predominant role of bacterial pneumonia as a cause of death in pandemic influenza: Implications for pandemic influenza preparedness. The Journal of Infectious Diseases DOI: 10.1086/591708 (2008).
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Tuesday, September 2, 2008
"Today in Fayetteville" April 20, 1898
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