To maintain morale during the Spanish flu outbreak, World War I censors minimized early reports of the virus in Germany, Britain, France, and the U.S. Papers were allowed to report on its effects in Spain, a neutral country, creating an impression of Spain being especially hard hit, which in turn led to the pandemic being named “Spanish flu.” The actual geographic origin is unknown. Read more about the deadly Spanish flu pandemic a century ago in On the Shore (1917-1925), a tale of conflict between generations in a Lower East Side immigrant family (see NOVELS).
