Jackson County Library Services and Southern Oregon Historical Society are proud to announce “What to do?  The October, 1918 Killer Flu Hits Southern Oregon” as the next topic in the 2016 “Windows in Time” history series. This noon lecture will be presented by Joe Peterson on Wednesday, October 3, at the Medford Branch Library, 205 South Central Avenue, and Wednesday, October 10, at the Ashland Branch Library, 410 Siskiyou Boulevard.
 
October, 1918 remains the deadliest month in American history ever.  Far more Americans died of flu than in war.  Overall, nearly six times more. How have our history books missed this?  Exactly 100 years ago this month, otherwise healthy citizens of Medford and Ashland were dying within days of contracting the flu.  In what some have labeled the biggest disaster of the 20th century, what did Medford and Ashland public officials do to address the crisis?  Were individual rights sacrificed for the public good?
 
Joe Peterson has taught history, political science, and education courses at Southern Oregon University in Ashland and has written and managed Teaching American History federal grants for the Southern Oregon Educational Service District in Medford. He is the author of three books including one on the history of Ashland, Oregon and numerous articles. 

The monthly “Windows in Time” lunchtime lectures are offered free to the public from 12 noon – 1:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month at the Medford Library and the second Wednesday of each month at the Ashland Library.  These lectures feature well-known writers and historians, and bring alive the people, values, and events that shaped our Southern Oregon heritage. Lectures are jointly sponsored by the Southern Oregon Historical Society and Jackson County Library Services.