Remember the panic about the H1N1 flu a decade ago? There was good reason for that.

The first time H1N1 struck was back in 1918. In the U.S., it was originally detected among military personnel, in the spring of that year.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates one-third of the world’s population was infected (about 500 million) by what was then called the Spanish Flu. There were at least 50 million deaths.

The death toll included Private John Henry Wigger.

Gary‘s grandmother on his father’s side was a Wigger. John was Emma’s older brother by two years.

In all, there were seven Wigger siblings. John Henry was the third oldest; he was born just before Christmas in 1894. They lived on a farm here in Spencer County, Indiana, just north of our farm.

John signed his military registration card on June 5, 1917. He was called up by the Army a year later to train as a replacement soldier, as World War I continued to rage in Europe.

John helped his dad, Paul, on the farm until it was time to head to Michigan for training.

According to Indiana’s Gold Star Honor Roll, he entered the service on August 25, 1918.

The Army assigned John to 3rd Company, 1st Training Battalion, 160th Depot Brigade at Camp Custer, located near Battle Creek, Michigan. It was to be the location of John’s final days.

This is his death certificate:

The Cause of Death portion, above, is particularly hard to read. Here’s the text, as best I can tell: Broncho-pneumonia, acute, right and left lower lobes. Confirmed by autopsy, which further showed (1) Nephritis, sub-acute, diffuse. (2) Acute splenic tumor.

John passed away on Tuesday, October 8, 1918. He was just 23 years old.

He was buried at St. Ferdinand Cemetery, less than a month before the armistice was signed, ending the fighting between Germany and the Allied Forces.

This is the prayer card from John’s funeral:

Today, more than 100 years after Gary’s great-uncle John’s death, we remember him and all the other brave men and women who gave their lives while in service of our country.

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