Princeton Student Naval Training Corps, 1918. From The Princeton Bric-a-Brac Vol. XLIV, June 1, 1919
Princeton University proved to be an interesting example of a successful protective sequestration. As in other universities, nearly the entire student body was enrolled in either the Student Army or Student Naval Training Corps. Unlike other universities, however, Princeton managed to escape the epidemic with relatively few cases and no student deaths.
At a Glance:
- Type of Site: University, with Student ArmyTraining Corps and Student Naval Training Corps.
- Population: 1,142 men at the University; 92%enrollment in SATC and SNTC.
- Pop. Density: 3,176 ppl./sq. mi in town.
- Geographical Considerations: Princeton University is adjacent to the borough of Princeton.
- Influenza Cases: Approx. 400 in town; 68 cases in training corps as of Dec. 1918; 192 cases campus-wide for the 1918–1919 school year.
- Influenza Deaths: 32 deaths in town; 1 on campus (a professor); 0 in student body.
- First Reported Case: Sept. 5, 1918.
- NPI Implemented: Students forbidden from entering off-campus buildings; disinfecting plant treated all entering campus; rigid inspection every morning by medical officer; ventilation of barracks; isolation of suspected cases.
Case Study
The Town of Princeton and the Influenza Epidemic
In 1918, Princeton, New Jersey, had a population of approximately 5,700, not including 1,142 university students. On October 1, 1918, in response to the influenza pandemic, the Princeton Board of Health ordered closed all places of public gathering, including schools, churches, movie theaters, and pool halls. The action was taken as a precaution; although influenza-related pneumonia had claimed two lives in Princeton, the area was not yet widely affected by the pandemic. Interestingly, the USPHS formed a military sanitation board for the town, consisting of the local health officer and several military and merchant marine officers. This board was given “unlimited authority to enforce all federal and state sanitary codes, and to regulation [sic] of conditions through the town.” The board promised to deal severely with any violations of public health measures.
By October 18, influenza had reached epidemic status in the town of Princeton. The local newspaper reported that more than 300 cases of influenza and 50 cases of pneumonia had been reported, with 15 of these cases resulting in death. The town influenza hospital, opened only a week earlier, was now full.
On Sunday, November 3, the town lifted its closure order. It was one of the last towns or cities in New Jersey to do so. Although the number of new cases was declining, and fewer than 16 people had died in the town from influenza-related pneumonia, the epidemic was still raging in nearby cities, especially New York City. Local authorities therefore urged residents to continue to exercise caution. Those suffering from suspected cases of influenza were urged to keep out of contact with others, and families were advised to maintain a separate room for members who were sick.
Princeton University and the Various Student Military Training Corps
Like many universities at the time, in fall of 1918 Princeton University was temporarily transformed into a mobilization and training camp for U.S. military troops to be sent to fight on the European front. Indeed, in 1918 the vast majority (1,047 or 92 percent) of Princeton University’s student body of 1,142 students, entered into the various branches of the military training corps, including the Army, Navy, Aeronautical, and Paymaster’s School. Of this number, 706 were inducted into the Student Army Training Corps (SATC) and 341 into the Student Navy Training Corps (SNTC). Only 95 of the school’s student body—those graduate students, those not of age 18 upon enrollment, or those physically disqualified—were not in one of the military training corps. It is reasonable to assume that the majority of these 1,142 men were single and without children.
The first influenza case in the university appeared on September 5 in the Navy Paymaster’s School. With that case, the University immediately began to isolate all those presenting with symptoms of upper respiratory infection. Perhaps because of these isolation measures mixed with a healthy dose of good fortune, only five cases appeared in September. On October 1, 200 men from the Naval Training Camp at Pelham Bay Park in New York arrived at the Paymaster’s School by rail. The Pelham camp experienced very high influenza and mortality rates during the pandemic, and it is therefore not surprising that the Princeton training corps’ first cases appeared among the men from Pelham Bay Park. Several measures were taken to prevent the spread of pandemic influenza. Upon their arrival at Princeton, each man was medically examined for influenza symptoms and all were treated with a nasopharyngeal spray consisting of chlorazene solution and menthol. Suspected cases were sent to sick quarters for isolation and observation.
In addition, students of the Paymaster’s School were separated from other Princeton students by geography and practice. First, the Paymaster Corps was housed at Princeton University’s graduate school. Second, each of the two battalions had its own instructor and four assistants, occupied its own lecture and reading rooms, and slept in its own dormitory building. Much of daily life for the Paymaster Corps, therefore, was kept separate from other Princeton University student trainees. This separation was not absolute, however, as Paymaster cadets had a daily evening recreation period from 5:00 p.m. to 6:20 p.m. Evidence also suggests that some students may have been given weekend leave, although given the protective sequestration measures taken during this period, it is unclear if such leave allowed for off-campus travel.
Starting in October, with the onset of the epidemic in the town of Princeton, all student trainees transferred to Princeton University from other locations were disinfected at a specially constructed disinfecting plant. Rigid inspections were carried out each morning by an attending physician or by another designated officer to detect and isolate all cases or suspected cases. University President James Hibben designated the Princeton Athletic Club field house as an isolation hospital, which only admitted what were deemed to be “serious cases.” Two medical assistants from the Paymaster’s School were detailed to help at the field house, along with an orderly and an extra day and extra night nurse. For several weeks after the Board of Health ordered Princeton’s public places closed, university students were prohibited from crossing Nassau Street (cordon sanitaire) or entering any off-campus buildings. Passes for travel out of town were strictly withheld, and only allowed “where exceptional circumstances of great weight render such furloughs very necessary.” Barracks were kept well ventilated and bedding was aired out regularly. In the Paymaster’s School, cots in the dormitories were separated by at least five feet of space. Intense training requirements were relaxed so as not to overexert the cadets, and wherever possible training was done either outdoors or in a way to reduce crowding.
As influenza and pneumonia cases mounted in the town of Princeton, student trainees came under more restrictions. The various student military training units posted a line of sentries, mostly freshmen, around each dormitory every evening, forbidding student cadets to enter or leave without a proper pass. Members of the training corps were forbidden to patronize ice cream parlors or to loiter on Nassau Street, the main thoroughfare through Princeton. Handkerchiefs were worn around the arms of these sentries to distinguish them from other students, and to indicate that they had the authority to stop student trainees. Although students were kept on campus, however, there is no indication that faculty were restricted in their movements. Neither were parents, several of whom, on at least one occasion, visited their children, much to the chagrin of the officers.
Due in part to the measures implemented, there were only 68 cases of influenza and no deaths among the S.A.T.C. cadets during the second wave of the epidemic, although one faculty member died of pneumonia. No morbidity data exists for the SNTC men. These numbers compare quite favorably to the experience of other universities with military training corps. For example, the 2,570-member SATC at the University of Michigan (the largest SATC organized in the United States at this time) experienced 1,207 cases of influenza and at least 59 deaths. Dartmouth experienced 325 cases and at least five deaths. Harvard experienced 136 influenza cases and two deaths out of its 1,450-member SATC.
Research Materials
Newspapers:
Archival Material:
- Records of the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Record Group 52, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC
- Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs, War College Division and War Plans Division Subordinate Offices—Education and Recreation Branch Committee on Education and Special Training Records of the Student Army Training Corps Units, 1918–19, RG 165, NARA, College Park, MD
- Historical Subject Files, Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
The Princeton Packet
| Date | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| 9/6/1918 | Princeton To Adopt New Army Plan | pp01 |
| 9/27/1918 | University Now Under Government Control | pp02 |
| 10/4/1918 | Health Board Stops Public Gatherings | pp03 |
| 10/4/1918 | Two Spanish Influenza Victims Here | pp03 |
| 10/4/1918 | The Local Influenza Situation | pp04 |
| 10/4/1918 | No School! | pp05 |
| 10/4/1918 | Spanish Influenza | pp06 |
| 10/4/1918 | Board Closes Schools | pp07 |
| 10/11/1918 | Princeton Now Has a Town Hospital | pp08 |
| 10/11/1918 | Special Notice | pp09 |
| 10/11/1918 | Liberty Programme Cancelled By Health Board | pp09 |
| 10/11/1918 | Red Cross Column | pp10 |
| 10/18/1918 | Health Board’s More Stringent Restrictions | pp11 |
| 10/18/1918 | Guards on the Campus | pp12 |
| 10/18/1918 | Uncle Sam’s Advice on Flu | pp13 |
| 10/25/1918 | Hospital Proving a Great Help During the Epidemic | pp14 |
| 10/25/1918 | Board of Health Notice | pp15 |
| 11/1/1918 | Quarantine To Be Lifted This Sunday | pp16 |
| 11/8/1918 | Town May Have a Permanent Hospital | pp17 |
| 11/29/1918 | S.A.T.C. to Demobilize on December First | pp18 |
| 12/6/1918 | Advice to ‘Flu’ Convalescents | pp19 |
| 12/6/1918 | U.S. Health Service Issues Warning | pp19 |
| 12/20/1918 | Health Board Holds Meeting | pp20 |
| 12/27/1918 | Influenza | pp21 |
Records of the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Record Group 52, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC
| Box/Folder | From/To | Date | Description or Title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box 584/F:130212 D-4 Princeton | Material School for the Pay Corps to W. Braisted | 10/18/1918 | Approx. 500 men at the school; sanitary conditions of Princeton (town) are very good; rooms are being well ventilated; describes influenza situation in Princeton and in the training corps | bumed_sntc01 |
Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs, War College Division and War Plans Division Subordinate Offices – Education and Recreation Branch Committee on Education and Special Training Records of the Student Army Training Corps Units, 1918-19, RG 165, NARA, College Park, MD
| Box/Folder | From/To | Date | Description or Title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box 473/F:211.26 Contract Surgeon | Committee on Education to Commanding Officer [telegram] | 9/25/1918 | Asks that men be properly housed in warm quarters to safeguard their health. | rg165satc01 |
| “ | W. MacLarin to Acting Surgeon Genl. | 10/22/1918 | Information regarding medical facilities on/near campus; there is a small college infirmary but no hospital nearby; will adapt a club house for hospital use if necessary. | rg165satc02 |
| “ | W. MacLarin to Acting Surgeon Genl. | 10/24/1918 | Report on the sanitary conditions of the SATC; provides information on number of men, housing conditions, water supply, food and mess facilities, and care of sick. | rg165satc03 |
| Box 474/F:720.4 Health quarantine | C. O’Connor to Senior Army Officer, Princeton SATC | 10/8/1918 | Copies a telegram regarding care of men during influenza epidemic; instruction to be carried out in open air and in lightened form to avoid overexertion. | rg165satc04 |
| “ | C. O’Connor to Senior Army Officer, Princeton SATC | 10/9/1918 | Copies a telegram stating that all individual furloughs and leaves are to be suspended to avoid spread of influenza in civilian communities. | rg165satc05 |
| Box 474/F:720.5 Fumigation | W. Mitchell to Princeton SATC | 10/12/1918 | Recommends that certain rooms be cleaned with carbolic solution and bedding and room be aired. | rg165satc06 |
| Box 474/F:Telegram from Comm of Ed&Spec.Trg | Simpson to Princeton SATC | 10/10/1918 | Telegram ordering that specific numbers of men be sent to certain camps, regardless of quarantine at Princeton or at destination; only men who are not ill are to be sent. | rg165satc07 |
| “ | Simpson to Princeton SATC | 10/10/1918 | Copy of same telegram as above. | rg165satc08 |
| Box 474/F:Monthly Rosters & Reports | J. Carnochan to Medical Dept., US Army | 10/1918 | “Sanitary Report” for Princeton SATC. | rg165satc09 |
| Box 475/F: (unidentified) | J. Pearson to Committee on Education and Special Training | 10/16/1918 | “Bi-Weekly Report to War Department”; includes information on health, food, and housing at Princeton SATC. | rg165satc10 |
| “ | J. Pearson to Committee on Education and Special Training | 10/31/1918 | “Bi-Weekly Report to War Department”; includes information on health, food, and housing at Princeton SATC. | rg165satc11 |
| “ | J. Pearson to Committee on Education and Special Training | 11/15/1918 | “Bi-Weekly Report to War Department”; includes information on health, food, and housing at Princeton SATC. | rg165satc12 |
| “ | J. Pearson to Committee on Education and Special Training | 11/30/1918 | “Semi-Monthly Report”; includes information on health, food, and housing at Princeton SATC. | rg165satc13 |
| Box 474/F:352.1 Circular Information | R. Rees to SATCs | 12/2/1918 | Encloses an order and instructs that it be published and read to the commands at the last formation prior to discharge of the bulk of men; statement to be read commends the men for their service. | rg165satc14 |
Historical Subject Files, Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
| Box/Folder | From/To | Date | Description or Title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Historical Subject Files, Box 279/F: McCosh Infirmary General, 1916-1990 | “Why Princeton Needs a New Infirmary”; discusses the lack of adequate medical facilities at Princeton during the influenza epidemic. | mudd01 | ||
| Box 280/F: McCosh Infirmary Reports, 1919 Report | 1919 | “Ladies Auxiliary to the Isabella McCosh Infirmary, Annual Report, 1918-1919”; includes information on influenza at Princeton training corps. | mudd02 | |
| 12/31/1919 | Official Register of Princeton University, Vol. XI, No. 2, December 1919, “Annual Report of the President, 1919”; includes section on the infirmary. | mudd03 | ||
| Box 410/F: Military History, WWI Naval Training Unit | C. Goodrich, Commandant Princeton SATC to Commandant, 3rd Naval District | 1/23/1919 | Provides general information on and history of the Princeton SNTC; states that the college was hard-hit during the influenza epidemic, and discusses the measures taken to deal with the crisis. | mudd04 |
| “ | C. Goodrich | Rear Admiral Caspar F. Goodrich, “The Princeton Naval Unit,” United States Naval Institute Proceedings, Vol. 45, No. 197 (July 1919); provides history of the Princeton SNTC. | mudd05 | |
| “ | 10/16/1918 | “The Daily Life of the Student Sailor,” The Princeton Alumni Weekly, 10/16/1918. | mudd06 | |
| “ | “Princeton in the Great War,” The Princeton Alumni Weekly, vol. 19, no. 3; discusses deaths, wounded, and citations for military service among Princeton students. | mudd07 | ||
| “ | A. Ross to Secy of Navy | 12/18/1918 | “Inspection of Princeton Naval Unit and Paymaster Officer Material School”; provides numbers of men in unit; includes discussion of influenza epidemic. | mudd08 |
| Box 412/F: Military History, WWI | American Red Cross, Atlantic Division, to All Chapters | 10/6/1918 | Discusses Red Cross’s conduct, operations, and command and control during the epidemic. | mudd09 |
| “ | N. Baker, Secy of War, to Presidents of All Institutions of Collegiate Grade | 5/8/1918 | Informs them that the War Department will be instituting a new training program from college students. | mudd10 |
| Box 413/F: Military History, WWI Student Army Training Corps | V. Collins | 12/1918 | “Report on Student Army Training Corps”; discusses how the SATC program worked; mentions influenza epidemic and use of measures to prevent spread of disease; includes report form to be used to send information to Army as to how SATCs affected college work. | mudd11 |
| “ | R. Perry to ? | 8/20/1918 | Plan for organization of the Student Army Training Corps has been approved; provides some details on how the program is to work. | mudd12 |
| “ | R. Kelly to State Directors and College Presidents | 8/29/1918 | Plans for SATC are moving ahead. | mudd13 |
| “ | R. Perry to Presidents of SATC Institutions | 12/11/1918 | Asks each institution to make a statement so that a history of all units can be compiled; provides some general history of the SATC across the nation. | mudd14 |
| “ | ? to R. Handy | 9/20/1918 | Discusses the SATC and SNTC plans at Princeton, reimbursement for expenses, etc. | mudd15 |
| “ | F. Smith/C. Briscoe to SATCs | 11/14/1918 | Informs that changes to the bi-weekly report forms have been made. | mudd16 |
| Box 71/F4: Letter from Pres. Hibben to CO, Bureau of Navigation | Hibben to CO, Bureau of Navigation | 3/8/1919 | Expresses his appreciation for the services of Admiral Goodrich, especially during the influenza epidemic. | mudd17 |
| – | The Princeton Bric-a-Brac, June 1, 1919; provides information on the SATC and SNTC. | mudd18 | ||
| – | Catalogue of Princeton University, One Hundred and Seventy-Second Year, 1918-1919 (Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 1918); provides numbers students and numbers of cadets in military training units. | mudd19 | ||
| Selden Collection Health Services Box 1, F: 1911-1920 | 6/14/1919 | Infirmary report; discusses influenza epidemic and the infirmary’s role in it. | mudd20 | |
| Office of President Hibben, AC #117, Box 71/F: 3 | R. MacLaurin to J. Hibben [telegram] | 10/18/1918 | Appreciates the difficulties that early withdrawal of men presents. | mudd21 |
| “ | J. Hibben to R. MacLaurin | 10/19/1918 | Acknowledges telegram of 10/18/1918; can take at least 200 more men in the Princeton SATC. | mudd22 |
| “ | J. Hibben to R. MacLaurin | 10/20/1918 | Upset that 167 men have been withdrawn when it was Hibben’s understanding that no students would be taken until January 1; if the policy continues, all academic work will be futile. | mudd23 |
| “ | R. Reese to J. Hibben | 10/22/1918 | Military necessity dictates that SATC men be withdrawn on occasion; plans for replacements will be announced presently. | mudd24 |
| “ | J. Hibben to R. Reese | 10/23/1918 | Despite difficulties with withdrawals, Princeton is prepared to meet any demands upon its forces. | mudd25 |
| “ | R. MacLaurin to J. Hibben | 10/24/1918 | Understands financial implications of early withdrawal of student trainees, and every effort will be made to replace those men as soon as possible. | mudd26 |
| AC #117, Box 71/F: 4 | J. Hibben to R. Reese | 12/2/1918 | While the military wishes to maintain a training corps at the university, students are now desirous of returning to normal course of study; it would be difficult therefore to re-establish an Officers Reserve Training Corps at the start of the new term in January. | mudd27 |
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