Maine Memory Network

Letter during influenza pandemic to Annie Cromwell Blake from daughter Alice, Jonesport, 1919

Contributed by: An individual through Westport Island History Committee Date: 1919-01-09 Location: Westport Island; Jonesport; Kelley Point; Beals Island Media: Ink on paper

  view a full transcription

Letter about measles, influenza, Brunswick, 1815

Contributed by: Pierce Family Collection through Maine Historical Society Date: 1815 Location: Brunswick Media: Ink on paper

  view a full transcription

WWI Memorial Trees along Portland's Baxter Boulevard

On Memorial Day of 1920, the City of Portland planted 100 Linden trees on Forest Avenue, each dedicated to the memory of one military service member who had died in World War I, or who had served honorably.

Doing Good: Medical Stories of Maine

Throughout Maine’s history, individuals have worked to improve and expand medical care, not only for the health of those living in Maine, but for many around the world who need care and help.

Mercy Hospital - The Spanish Flu

"The global Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1919 killed between 50 and 100 million people worldwide, far more than the 21 million killed in the much more…"

Mercy Hospital - 100 Years of Mercy Hospital

"… city's history, the pandemic known as the Spanish Influenza. This emergency, along with limited proper hospital facilities in the Portland area…"

Vegetarians and Zoonosis
by Avery Yale Kamila

Colds, influenza, tuberculosis, measles, smallpox, plague and COVID-19 group under zoonotic diseases

Pandemic ruminations and the death of Rose Cleveland
by Tilly Laskey

Correlations between the 1918 and 2020 Pandemics

Primary Sources: Healthcare History in Maine

Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12 Content Area: Social Studies
This lesson plan will give students the opportunity to read and analyze letters, literature, and other primary documents and articles of material culture from the MHS collections relating to how people in Maine have given and received healthcare throughout history. Students will discuss the giving and receiving of medicines and treatments from the 18th-21st centuries, the evolving role of hospitals since the 19th century, and how the nursing profession has changed since the Civil War. Students will also look at how people and healthcare facilities in Maine have addressed epidemics in the past, such as influenza and tuberculosis, and what we can learn today from studying the history of healthcare and medicine.