The California Department of Public Health on Tuesday announced that counties that have attested to meeting the criteria for accelerated re-opening may reopen hair salons and barbershops with modifications such as mandatory face coverings for both barbers or stylists and clients.
Those counties include Lake County, which had its variance request granted last week, as Lake County News has reported.
State public health leaders noted that Californians staying at home and exercising caution when out helped flatten the COVID-19 curve.
Public health leaders acknowledge that Tuesday’s announcement is also possible based on statewide indicators such as personal protective equipment, testing capacity, hospital surge capacity and hospitalizations.
Permitted activities include services that can be provided with both the worker and customer wearing face coverings throughout the service.
These include haircuts, hair coloring, blowouts, weaves and extensions, braiding, lock maintenance, wig maintenance and hair relaxing treatments.
Salon activities that cannot be done with face coverings on both the worker and client – or that require touching the client’s face – such as shaving, facial waxing, threading, eyelash services and facials – remain prohibited at this time in all counties. Likewise, nail salons remain closed.
“Together, Californians have limited infections in our state, and because of that work, many counties may make a decision to restart modified hair and barber services,” said Dr. Sonia Angell, State Public Health officer and director of the California Department of Public Health. “However, COVID-19 is still present in our communities and we are still at risk. As we venture outside our homes, it is critically important to keep physical distance, wear face coverings in public, and wash hands frequently to help protect yourself and those around you.”
Under the new guidance to reopen, salons and barbers must:
· Implement measures to ensure physical distancing of at least 6 feet between and among workers and customers, except when providing haircutting and other close contact services.
· Provide temperature and/or symptom screenings for all workers at the beginning of their shift and any vendors, contractors, or other workers entering the establishment.
· Encourage workers and customers who are sick or exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 to stay home.
· Screen customers upon arrival and be prepared to cancel or reschedule customers who indicate they have any signs of illness.
· Require workers and customers to use face coverings during the entire haircutting and other close contact hair services.
With states reopening – or planning to reopen – in the coming weeks and months, you may be worried about what returning to work will mean for you and your family, particularly if it means increased exposure to COVID-19.
As a professor specializing in employment law, I don’t have a lot of reassurance to offer. Employment law is a patchwork at the best of times – let alone during a global pandemic – and legal protections may not cover your situation. Like so many of the challenges people are facing right now, you may be mostly on your own, negotiating the least bad of many bad options.
Here is a basic overview of what your options are under some common scenarios.
I’ve been called back to the office, but I don’t like the idea of being in an enclosed space for nine hours a day.
If you have a medical condition that makes you especially vulnerable to the coronavirus, you may be entitled to a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. That means your employer needs to engage in a dialogue with you to figure out if there is a way to limit your exposure – such as remote work, a temporary reassignment or a modified shift.
Otherwise, your options are more limited.
Unionized workers can ask their union for assistance. If the office opening is in violation of a state stay-at-home order, you might be able to file a complaint with a state workplace health and safety agency. Or you could try negotiating some sort of temporary or intermittent remote work arrangement with your employer.
Everyone else has little choice but to head back to the office. To make matters worse, the Department of Labor has issued guidance suggesting that if you refuse to return to work due to general coronavirus-related apprehension – as opposed to a specific safety hazard – you may not be eligible for extended unemployment insurance.
I believe I’m being asked to work in unsafe conditions.
Under federal workplace safety law, the first thing you are expected to do is talk to your employer about the unsafe condition. Be specific about the condition that concerns you and the fact that you are worried about your safety.
If you are unionized, conveying your concern to the union will enable it to address the problem on behalf of everyone. Even if you’re not unionized, banding together with other employees to advocate for safer working conditions is protected under the National Labor Relations Act.
If your employer does not address your safety concerns, you can complain to the state workplace safety agency or the local branch of the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The agency should send an inspector to examine the situation.
In the meantime, you should refuse to work only if you have no “reasonable alternative” and the unsafe condition would pose a “real danger of death or serious injury.”
I have to go to work but have children at home and no child care options.
Beyond those 12 weeks of leave, companies are not required to make accommodations for employee child care issues. If the leave runs out – or you work for a large company not covered by the leave law – you may be eligible for expanded unemployment insurance under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act.
I live with a family member who is in a vulnerable population, and I don’t want to expose the person to the virus.
If you need to care for the family member – and work for a company with fewer than 500 employees – you may be eligible for leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. Your employer might request documentation that a health care provider advised the family member to self-quarantine.
Otherwise, you may be out of luck – and may not even get unemployment insurance if you refuse to work. That may mean doing your best to limit your exposure at work and transmission at home.
I think I just got sick from exposure to the coronavirus at work.
You should be eligible for two weeks of paid sick leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act if you work for a company with fewer than 500 employees. If you are still sick after that, you may be eligible for Family and Medical Leave. You’ll also want to check your company’s sick leave policy. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration advises companies to adopt flexible sick leave policies that actively encourage sick workers to stay home.
You might be eligible to file for workers’ compensation, which covers medical costs and provides some wage replacement for workers who are injured because of work. State law varies a lot when it comes to workers’ compensation, including whether infectious diseases like COVID-19 count as a workplace injury. Your claim will also depend on whether you can show that you contracted the coronavirus at work – as opposed to exposure from other places. Some states are issuing presumptions that certain kinds of frontline workers – like health care workers and first responders – contracted the virus at work.
I was injured by a customer who got violent after being asked to wear a mask.
Some retail workers are reporting being violently assaulted by customers when enforcing new social distancing rules, such as wearing a mask. It’s not clear how common this is, but even prior to the pandemic, workplace violence was a major cause of workplace injury, affecting an average of 1.7 million workers per year.
Of course, it’s better to avoid being injured in the first place, so frontline workers should consider asking management about the plan for responding if a customer’s behavior starts to escalate.
[The Conversation’s newsletter explains what’s going on with the coronavirus pandemic. Subscribe now.]
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Hope Harbor COVID-19 shelter, Lake County's only communal homeless shelter run by the Lake Ministerial Association, and the Lakeport Senior Activity Center have instituted a new volunteer program.
Shelter guests will be given an opportunity to work at the center's kitchen and Meals on Wheels Thrift Store.
These volunteer positions could eventually turn into paid employment opportunities thanks to Senior Center Executive Director Jonathan Crooks and Hope Harbor Manager Gary Deas.
"This is a great opportunity to help our shelter guests get on a successful path to employment while helping to feed area seniors who rely on MealsOn Wheels for their food needs," said Deas.
Employment is a big need for Hope Harbor's current occupants, many of whom cannot qualify for permanent housing because they have no source of income.
Over the last months three of the shelter's guests have found employment, nine permanent housing and 10 have moved on to other programs that better meet their needs.
Hope Harbor has been working with Lakeport Senior Center already, during the duration of the COVID-19 shelter in place order to fill the pantry for the shelter's meals.
Hope Harbor will continue to provide a safe place for Lake County's unsheltered neighbors to be until the shelter in place order is lifted.
To make a contribution or donation to Hope Harbor you can call 707-533-0522 or visit www.hopeharborlakecounty.com . You can donate to the Lakeport Senior Center by calling 707-263-4218 or visit www.lcseniors.com .
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors will hold a special meeting to discuss items related to helping businesses reopen and funding for the COVID-19 shelter for the homeless.
The board will meet virtually beginning at 1 p.m. Tuesday, May 26.
The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8, online at https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx and on the county’s Facebook page. Accompanying board documents, the agenda and archived board meeting videos also are available at that link.
Because the meeting will be held virtually, members of the public are asked to submit comments on items to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Please note the agenda item number addressed.
At 1:02 p.m., Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace will give the board his weekly COVID-19 update.
At 1:15 p.m., the board will discuss resuming in-person meetings.
In an untimed item, the board will consider ratifying the order issued by Sheriff Brian Martin, acting as the county’s director of the Office of Emergency Services, allowing local businesses temporary use of county property under certain conditions during Stage 2 of Gov. Newsom’s plan for gradual reopening from the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the same agenda item, the board will consider a letter to Caltrans urging it to allow local businesses temporary use of state-owned properties during the reopening.
In another untimed item, Behavioral Health Services Administrator Todd Metcalf will ask the board to consider the first amendment to the agreement with the Harbor Warming Center Project for the COVID-19 shelter for homeless, increasing the contract maximum from $79,511.74 to $152,664.66.
The full agenda is below.
CONSENT AGENDA
5.1: Adopt resolution authorizing acceptance of grant funds from Children's Advocacy Centers of California for the Emergency Response to Interpersonal Violence - 2020 Pandemic Program.
5.2: Sitting as the Lake County Watershed Protection District Board of Directors, adopt resolution authorizing the director of the Lake County Water Resources Department to serve as the authorized signatory authority for the agreement between the California Department of Water Resources and the department for the awarded funds secured by the department through DWR’s 2019 Sustainable Groundwater Management Grant Program Planning Round 3 for the development of a Groundwater Sustainability Plan for the Big Valley Groundwater Basin.
TIMED ITEMS
6.1, 1:01 p.m.: Public input.
6.2, 1:02 p.m.: Consideration of update on COVID-19.
6.3, 1:15 p.m.: Consideration of timeline for resumption of in-person Board of Supervisors meetings.
UNTIMED ITEMS
7.2: (a) Consideration of confirming the order of the sheriff/OES director allowing local businesses temporary use of county property under certain conditions during State 2 of Gov. Newsom’s plan for gradual reopening from the COVID-19 pandemic; and (b) consideration of letter to Caltrans urging said agency to allow local businesses temporary use of state-owned properties for during State 2 of Gov. Newsom’s plan for gradual reopening from the COVID-19 pandemic.
7.3: Consideration of first amendment to the agreement between the county of Lake – Lake County Behavioral Health Services as Lead Agency for the Lake County Continuum of Care and Kelseyville United Methodist Church as the fiscal agent for the Hope Harbor Warming Center Project for fiscal year 2019-20 to increase the contract maximum to $152,664.66 and authorize the board chair to sign.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Two more Lake County residents have been confirmed to have COVID-19, the county’s Public Health officer reported on Memorial Day.
The newest cases bring Lake County’s COVID-19 case total to 14.
Dr. Gary Pace said the two latest cases were detected through a recent testing site.
Pace said given recent increases in community activity and broader availability of testing, new infections are probable right now. Just last week, four new cases were reported in Lake County.
He said an impromptu testing site was created last Friday to follow up on some contacts from a previous case and results began returning over the weekend.
The two newly confirmed cases were among 40 tests received so far from that recent testing site. Pace said the results from 55 tests are still pending.
The two individuals newly confirmed to have the virus are stable and isolating at home, and further contact tracing has begun, Pace said.
“I am very pleased to report the previous cases are all doing well, and the person who was recently in the hospital has been released to their home in good condition,” Pace said in a Monday statement.
Pace said the county continues to try to strike a balance between allowing more activity and protecting people from the transmission of the virus.
“Over the next 10 to 14 days, we will monitor the effects increased social mixing and out-of-town visitors have on the infection rate in Lake County,” he said.
If someone believes they may have been exposed, Pace said drive-thru testing is available at different locations around the county, open daily during the week.
People in need of testing can go to the Verily website and get screened and make an appointment.
Frequently asked questions on drive-thru testing are available here.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Clearlake Animal Control is starting off the week with four dogs available for adoption.
While the shelter has moved most of its dogs into foster, potential adopters can make appointments to meet and adopt available dogs.
The following dogs are ready for adoption or foster.
‘Lady’
“Lady” is a female German Shepherd mix.
She has been spayed.
She is dog No. 3683.
‘Princess’
“Princess” is a female German Shepherd with a black and tan coat.
She has been spayed.
Princess is young and energetic. She previously lived around a smaller dog and has been around the office cat. She will benefit from training and attention.
She is dog No. 3669.
‘Spud’
“Spud” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier with a short brindle and white coat.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 3733.
‘Tyson’
“Tyson” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier with a short gray and white coat.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 1863.
Clearlake Animal Control’s shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53, off Airport Road.
Hours of operation are noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The shelter is closed Sundays, Mondays and major holidays; the shelter offers appointments on the days it’s closed to accommodate people.
Call the Clearlake Animal Control shelter at 707-273-9440, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to inquire about adoptions.
Visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or at the city’s website.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – During a special meeting last week, the Clearlake Planning Commission discussed the proposed sale of the former Austin Resort property to a developer.
In March, the Clearlake City Council gave City Manager Alan Flora approval to sign a letter of intent with Bailey Building and Loans LLC, which wants to build a resort on the property, as Lake County News has reported.
The former resort property includes two parcels totaling 7.68 acres located at 14061 and 14071 Lakeshore Drive, across from Clearlake City Hall.
City staff took the matter to the commission in order for it to consider whether or not the sale is consistent with the city’s general plan. Staff reported they have found it to be compliant.
Flora told the commission that one of the parcels was purchased by the city’s former redevelopment agency, the other is owned by the city.
There were some plans to develop a waterfront trail along part of it, however, when the city got interest from the developer for this larger project, Flora said staff decided to recommend selling both properties.
He said the intention is to maintain access by the public to the lakeshore.
Flora’s written and verbal reports to the commission noted that the project will be a “large resort-type development,” including a hotel, restaurant, retail and a large marina, and may possibly boat ramps.
“This is a great potential project,” he said.
Flora said the commission’s finding of general plan compliance was the first step in moving the sale forward.
It must also be approved by the city council and the redevelopment oversight committee. Flora said that if those approvals go through, the city would begin working more actively with the developer in establishing its plan.
He said the project also would have to come back before the commission for approval of the use permit.
Flora said the developer is looking at three years before the project is fully developed. The marina portion of the work will require US Army Corps of Engineers permits, which generally take a significant period of time.
Commissioner Lisa Wilson asked Flora about the wording in the letter of intent regarding possible consideration of a lease or license agreement for an adjoining city property.
Flora explained that it refers to Austin Beach. He said the developer wants the project to be a destination and had asked the city if it would be interested in selling Austin Beach.
He said they told the developer that’s probably not going to happen but that the city would consider a lease or licensing agreement. The developer has an interest in making physical site improvements to the beach so it seems like part of the whole resort property, even though it would remain under the city’s ownership.
Wilson said the intention to maintain waterfront access for the public in perpetuity “super.”
Commissioner Robert Coker asked about a roundabout mentioned in the plans and what that would entail.
“We don’t know at this point,” said Flora, explaining that the city initially had started planning for a roundabout at Lakeshore and Olympic Drive. “We kind of put that hold over the last year.”
Flora said they instead tried to focus on finding funding for curb, gutter and sidewalks along Lakeshore Drive.
The developer likes the idea of a possible roundabout there as it would create a focal point entrance into the resort property. Flora said it hasn’t been determined on what that may look like but the developer asked for language in the purchase agreement to speak to that.
Flora said there is some funding that the city could acquire to fund part of the project and that the developer would be expected to participate in the project cost as well.
Chair Richard Bean asked if it’s negotiable that the project should contribute to the roundabout. Flora said yes, that it could be included in the developer impact fee.
Bean also aksed about a requested provision by the developer for the police department to provide additional scrutiny or oversight. “Why was the police department mentioned in that letter of intent?”
Flora said it speaks to the fact that Clearlake’s history of crime still “is out there,” and the developer wants to make sure they have a safe environment and that the city is committed to the project.
Wilson moved to adopt the resolution, which was adopted 4-0. Commissioner Erin McCarrick recused herself from the vote.
Flora told the commission that there likely are going to have several more general plan conformity reports coming up as the city tries to push properties that have been sitting for decades and getting some investment going.
He said he appreciated the commission being flexible and holding the special meeting, as does the developer, as timelines for such projects take a while.
In addition to the special meeting, the city council will have its own upcoming special meeting on the project and the oversight committee has been asked to meet to consider the sale proposal on June 8, Flora said.
Those special meetings will carve off about a month’s worth of time in the effort to move the project forward, he said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
“Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity; and that mountain parks and reservations are useful not only as fountains of timber and irrigating rivers, but as fountains of life.” – John Muir, 1901
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – This is my first article and I wanted to highlight some of the healing properties of nature.
Up until a few months ago, I had no idea Tuleyome was a thing. I am glad I found it.
I recently retired from the fire service and the military with post-traumatic stress disorder and was really struggling with getting through daily life and simple tasks involving memory.
I have been working with various therapists from Veteran’s Affairs and civilian side and they all had similar advice. “Get outside” was something that they all would say.
The thing about PTSD is it creates a lot of anxiety. For me, I really withdrew and became a professional at making excuses to avoid social situations and just shut myself in. Tuleyome makes it easy to get outside by offering several guided hikes and ways to volunteer.
There are a lot of recent studies that show that nature has healing properties for mental health. The sense of “awe” from a beautiful sunset or sunrise, looking from a hillside down at the valley below, seeing Elk interact with each other or birds in flight.
That’s all it takes to create a sense of well-being and according to the U.C. Berkeley study conducted in 2014.
In the Berkeley study, 72 veterans and 52 at-risk teens were taken separately on a white-water rafting trip on the south fork of the American River.
The research pointed out several things that bolster the case for getting out into nature.
First, one study found that a week after river-rafting, study cohorts reported an average 29-percent reduction in PTSD symptoms, a 21 percent decrease in general stress, a 10 percent improvement in social relationships, a 9 percent improvement in life satisfaction and an 8 percent increase in happiness.
Studies also have shown so much success that bills have been brought to Congress on the issue. Most recently, Accelerating Veterans Recovery Outdoors Act, H.R. 2435, would form a task force on the use of public lands to provide medical treatment and therapy to veterans through outdoor recreation.
The first step and the hardest is to ask for help. Here are some places that can help:
The next step, equally as hard for me, is to put a foot forward and actually get outside. Tuleyome has great staff and a board with a vast knowledge of trails at all ability levels.
Visit Tuleyome’s trails page to find something for you.
I hope this helps someone that is struggling or inspires people to check in with themselves and get out into nature.
Contact Tuleyome at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and you can learn more at http://tuleyome.org/ .
Daryl Sager is a columnist for Tuleyome, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit conservation organization based in Woodland. For more information go to www.tuleyome.org .
As stay-at-home rules are relaxed around the state of California, hikers are undoubtedly anxious to take advantage of the opportunity to visit their favorite hills, mountains, paths and trails.
It's important to remember that snakes are enjoying the fine weather this time of year as well.
With the coming of summer, snakes of many species are through hunkering down, making human encounters with these elusive creatures more likely.
Although most native snakes are harmless, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife recommends giving the venomous rattlesnake plenty of space and knowing what to do in the rare event of a bite.
Early mornings and late afternoons are prime times for when snakes come out; they avoid the midday heat. In general, snakes are not aggressive. When people are bitten, it's most often because the animal was surprised.
The most basic but important tip to remember: If you're outdoors, make sure to stay on trails, as you'll be in a better position to see (and avoid) a snake if it's on the path or crossing in front of you.
Rattlesnakes are widespread in California and are found in a variety of habitats throughout the state, from coastal to desert. They may also turn up around homes and yards in brushy areas and under woodpiles.
Rattlesnakes will likely retreat if given room and are not provoked or threatened. Most bites occur when a rattlesnake is handled or accidentally brushed against by someone walking or climbing.
On occasion, rattlesnake bites have caused severe injury – even death. However, the potential of encountering a rattlesnake should not deter anyone from venturing outdoors.
The California Poison Control System notes that the chances of being bitten are small compared to the risk of other environmental injuries.
Most bites occur between the months of April and October when snakes and humans are most active outdoors.
CDFW provides tips for safely living in snake country on its website, as well as tips for keeping snakes out of your yard and what to do (and not to do) in the event of a snake bite.
Additional resources can be found on the "Living with Rattlesnakes" page at www.CaliforniaHerps.com and at www.wildlife.ca.gov/keep-me-wild .
The California Department of Public Health announced Monday the statewide reopening of places of worship for religious services and in-store retail shopping.
Modifications are required to keep Californians safe and limit the spread of COVID-19.
Subject to approval by county public health departments, all retail stores can reopen for in-store shopping under previously issued guidelines.
Under the new guidance, places of worship can hold religious services and funerals that limit attendance to 25 percent of a building’s capacity – or up to 100 attendees, whichever is lower – upon approval by the county department of public health.
While the vast majority of large gatherings remain prohibited under the state’s stay-at-home order, the Department of Public Health has released guidelines for in-person protests and events designed for political expression. The guidance limits attendance to 25 percent of an area’s maximum occupancy – or up to 100 attendees.
“Together, our actions have helped bend the curve and reduce infections in our state. As sectors continue to open with changes that aim to lower risk, remember that COVID-19 is still present in our communities,” said Dr. Sonia Angell, State Public Health officer and director of the California Department of Public Health. “As more of us may be leaving our homes, keeping physical distance, wearing face coverings in public, and washing your hands frequently are more important than ever to help protect yourself and those around you.”
The new guidance for religious services and cultural ceremonies encourages organizations to continue online services and activities, including to protect individuals who are most at risk for more severe COVID-19, including older adults and people with specific medical conditions.
To reopen for religious services and funerals, places of worship must:
– Establish and implement a COVID-19 prevention plan for every location, train staff on the plan, and regularly evaluate workplaces for compliance. – Train employees and volunteers on COVID-19, including how to prevent it from spreading and which underlying health conditions may make individuals more susceptible to contracting the virus. – Implement cleaning and disinfecting protocols. – Set physical distancing guidelines. – Recommend that staff and guests wear cloth face coverings, and screen staff for temperature and symptoms at the beginning of their shifts. – Set parameters around or consider eliminating singing and group recitations. These activities dramatically increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission. For this reason, congregants engaging in singing, particularly in the choir, and group recitation should wear face coverings at all times and when possible, these activities should be conducted outside with greater than 6-foot distancing.
The existing guidance for retailers, previously allowed for counties approved to advance in the reopening process, now applies statewide. Retail can now open for in-store shopping statewide.
The guidelines help reduce the risk for workers and customers. Retail does not include personal services such as hair salons, nail salons and barbershops.
In 21 days, the Department of Public Health, in consultation with local departments of public health, will review and assess the impact of the religious services guidelines and provide further direction as part of a phased-in restoration of activities.
This 21-day interval accounts for seven days for religious communities to prepare and reopen in addition to a 14-day incubation period of COVID-19.
In the years following the bitter Civil War, a former Union general took a holiday originated by former Confederates and helped spread it across the entire country.
The holiday was Memorial Day, an annual commemoration was born in the former Confederate States in 1866 and adopted by the United States in 1868. It is a holiday in which the nation honors its military dead.
Yet when General Logan established the holiday, he acknowledged its genesis among the Union’s former enemies, saying, “It was not too late for the Union men of the nation to follow the example of the people of the South.”
I’m a scholar who has written – with co-author Daniel Bellware – a history of Memorial Day. Cities and towns across America have for more than a century claimed to be the holiday’s birthplace, but we have sifted through the myths and half-truths and uncovered the authentic story of how this holiday came into being.
Generous acts bore fruit
During 1866, the first year of this annual observance in the South, a feature of the holiday emerged that made awareness, admiration and eventually imitation of it spread quickly to the North.
During the inaugural Memorial Day observances which were conceived in Columbus, Georgia, many Southern participants – especially women – decorated graves of Confederate soldiers as well as, unexpectedly, those of their former enemies who fought for the Union.
Shortly after those first Memorial Day observances all across the South, newspaper coverage in the North was highly favorable to the ex-Confederates.
“The action of the ladies on this occasion, in burying whatever animosities or ill-feeling may have been engendered in the late war towards those who fought against them, is worthy of all praise and commendation,” wrote one paper.
On May 9, 1866, the Cleveland Daily Leader lauded the Southern women during their first Memorial Day.
“The act was as beautiful as it was unselfish, and will be appreciated in the North.”
The New York Commercial Advertiser, recognizing the magnanimous deeds of the women of Columbus, Georgia, echoed the sentiment. “Let this incident, touching and beautiful as it is, impart to our Washington authorities a lesson in conciliation.”
Power of a poem
To be sure, this sentiment was not unanimous. There were many in both parts of the U.S. who had no interest in conciliation.
“It struck me that the South was holding out a friendly hand, and that it was our duty, not only as conquerors, but as men and their fellow citizens of the nation, to grasp it.”
Finch’s poem seemed to extend a full pardon to the South: “They banish our anger forever when they laurel the graves of our dead” was one of the lines.
Almost immediately, the poem circulated across America in books, magazines and newspapers. By the end of the 19th century, school children everywhere were required to memorize Finch’s poem. The ubiquitous publication of Finch’s rhyme meant that by the end of 1867, the southern Memorial Day holiday was a familiar phenomenon throughout the entire, and recently reunited, country.
General Logan was aware of the forgiving sentiments of people like Finch. When Logan’s order establishing Memorial Day was published in various newspapers in May 1868, Finch’s poem was sometimes appended to the order.
‘The blue and the grey’
It was not long before Northerners decided that they would not only adopt the Southern custom of Memorial Day, but also the Southern custom of “burying the hatchet.” A group of Union veterans explained their intentions in a letter to the Philadelphia Evening Telegraph on May 28, 1869:
“Wishing to bury forever the harsh feelings engendered by the war, Post 19 has decided not to pass by the graves of the Confederates sleeping in our lines, but divide each year between the blue and the grey the first floral offerings of a common country. We have no powerless foes. Post 19 thinks of the Southern dead only as brave men.”
Other reports of reciprocal magnanimity circulated in the North, including the gesture of a 10-year-old who made a wreath of flowers and sent it to the overseer of the holiday, Colonel Leaming, in Lafayette, Indiana, with the following note attached, published in The New Hampshire Patriot on July 15, 1868:
“Will you please put this wreath upon some rebel soldier’s grave? My dear papa is buried at Andersonville, (Georgia) and perhaps some little girl will be kind enough to put a few flowers upon his grave.”
President Abraham Lincoln’s wish that there be “malice toward none” and “charity for all” was visible in the magnanimous actions of participants on both sides, who extended an olive branch during the Memorial Day observances in those first three years.
Although not known by many today, the early evolution of the Memorial Day holiday was a manifestation of Lincoln’s hope for reconciliation between North and South.
This is an updated version of an article originally published on May 25, 2018.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The “Spanish Influenza” epidemic that enveloped the world in 1918 and 1919 infected about 500 million people and killed an estimated 20 to 40 million worldwide. In the United States, about 675,000 people died.
The age groups that suffered the highest death rates were the very young, the elderly, and people in their 20s to 40s.
October 1918 has been called the deadliest month in American history when 195,000 people died.
Eight Californians died of influenza in September 1918, while 4,420 Californians died of influenza in October 1918, the deadliest month in American history.
Lake County’s first known flu cases showed up in mid-October. Florence Crawford, 18, Gladys Trafts, 26, and Rose Middleton, 27, typical of the pandemic’s many young victims, were among Lake County’s first losses. The flu killed at least eight Lake County people in October and the sorrow had just begun.
Incomplete data make an exact count of Lake County’s flu victims elusive. California’s State Board of Health published only state-level mortality statistics in its Monthly Bulletins and Biennial Reports. Other available sources indicate spikes in mortality in Lake County in 1918.
Lake County’s human stories matter more than do the imprecise statistics, and local newspapers provide those in abundance.
Weekly newspapers, the Lake County Bee and the Clear Lake Press, both published in Lakeport, the Kelseyville Sun and the Lower Lake Bulletin, kept Lake County’s estimated 5,500 residents informed with the hard news and the social news columns.
Lake County’s day to day life unfolds in the antique social media. Routine reports of property sales, cattlemen in town on business, and relatives visiting each other are interspersed with flu cases and flu deaths. Red Cross volunteers reported on making clothing for soldiers in combat and for European refugees, and on making gauze anti-flu masks.
The newspapers convey a sense of Lake County fighting influenza on its own. Relatives, friends, neighbors and nurses cared for patients at home. Overwhelmed caregivers begged for volunteer nurses. Doctors like Walter Fearn, Henry Stipp, J.B. Baker, county health officer Murdock Craig and Calistoga’s Walter Blodgett coped with the crisis as best they could.
Local newspapers printed Surgeon General Rupert Blue’s “Advice on Flu” that recommended avoiding crowds, covering coughs and sneezes, getting fresh air, eating wholesome food and wearing masks.
In October Dr. Craig advised people to avoid public gatherings for a week. Although the moving picture show, churches services and schools closed for a few days, some folks doubted the need for concern.
The Lake County Bee scoffed, “There is no epidemic of influenza here, nor of anything else unless it is fright. The Board of Health acted on the theory that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure and that a majority of the people of Lakeport wanted them to take the action they did.”
The social news tells the other side of the story. People came to Lake County from cities to avoid the influenza. Social customs changed as small unostentatious weddings and outdoor funerals became the norm. Masks became fashionable.
In October concerned citizens urged Lakeport’s Board of Health to close schools and public gatherings. Flu skeptics Percy Millberry, Dr. Stipp and druggist Oscar Meddaugh refused to act and resigned from the board under duress. Dr. Fearn, George Neal and G. E. Nichols replaced them and took action.
At the behest of the new board, Lakeport’s town trustees passed an ordinance that required people to wear masks in public and to avoid groups of three or more while the danger lasted. Fines for violating the ordinance ranged from $5 to $100.
The public generally complied with a request from the local Red Cross to wear masks, but the practice wasn’t universal. The Red Cross succeeded in meeting the demands for gauze masks.
As October wore on, coverage of the town trustees competed for newspaper space with notices of cancelled meetings, Lake County’s influenza deaths, war news and pre-election controversies. The military continued to call Lake County men for war service.
Despite influenza’s spread in Lake County, there is little sense of urgency in the hard news. Perhaps the routine presence of whooping cough, scarlet fever and typhoid in Lake County made officials unconcerned about the new disease.
Officials imposed and rescinded orders that banned gatherings and required masks in public so often it makes your head spin. Orders might expire in a week, then be reinstated a few days later as illnesses increased. In December Lakeport’s Board of Health again banned public gatherings. From the Bee: “The Board did not pass an order making it compulsory to wear masks but advised the wearing of them by those who believe in the efficacy of wearing them.”
Lake County’s doctors sometimes tried unproven treatments to fight the disease. Dr. Baker received some influenza vaccine from the State Hygienic Laboratory of the University of California, and about 20 patients were started on the three-dose vaccine injections.
Dr. Timothy Leary of Massachusetts, whose namesake nephew would become infamous in the 1960s, had perfected the vaccine which was a culture of “influenza bacillus.” Dr. Baker gave out the vaccine for free and eventually administered it to at least seventy patients. An effective vaccine for the Spanish flu was never developed.
Lake County’s case load became so heavy that Dr. Blodgett motored over from Calistoga to attend patients in Middletown. Some Middletown patients went to the Calistoga Sanitarium or even to Napa for care they couldn’t get in Lake County, which had no hospitals before the 1920s.
The Lake County Bee in mid-November noted that the “County Board of Supervisors are holding their regular monthly session this week, but up to the hour of going to press have done nothing of importance except canvass the vote and pass bills. A resolution was passed Wednesday authorizing the erection on the court house square of a monument dedicated to the soldiers who participated in the present war.”
The supervisors passed a resolution on Jan. 14, 1919, recommending that all Lake County citizens wear masks when congregating in schools and churches, and while out in public.
Although Lake County was spared the extreme devastation that big cities suffered, conditions were bad enough here.
The Kurihara family that lived near Sulphur Banks caught the flu in October. Mr. Kurihara and the children all recovered, but Mrs. Toshi Kurihara died. A. M. Russell held Toshi’s embalmed body at his undertaking parlor in Lakeport until he could arrange ship passage to Japan, then escorted her remains to the port of San Francisco.
Among Lake County’s tribal communities Amy Charlie, 42, of Scotts Valley Rancheria, Lorena Fred, infant daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Bob Fred of Mission Rancheria, and Louise Sutherlin, 39, of Fee’s Rancheria near Lakeport died in November and December. The Yee family of Mission Rancheria welcomed a son, Edsel, in November and four months later bade him farewell when the flu killed him.
Perhaps hardest hit was the Brookins family from the south county. In the span of eight days Edwin Brookins, his sister Rosa Copsey, his 5-year-old granddaughter Nina Rannells and his wife’s cousin Mary Mullins all died. For a time the family also feared for the life of Brice Rannells, Edwin’s son-in-law. Abe Brookins, Edwin’s son, was released from the draft because his widowed mother needed him at home.
Influenza killed businesses as well as people. Alonzo and Lavinia Noel ran the Lower Lake Bulletin for eight years, then Lavinia operated it as “owner, proprietress and editor” after Alonzo died in 1893. Lavinia published her last issue in January 1919, not believing her influenza was serious. When she died five days later the Lower Lake Bulletin died with her.
District Attorney H. B Churchill and Superintendent of Schools Minerva Ferguson both caught the flu early on. Churchill recovered quickly, but Miss Ferguson wasn’t able to work again until the following June.
As 1918 gave way to 1919, people began to go out and to mingle even as the flu persisted. In February, “On account of the ‘flu’ epidemic, a much deferred high school party was given last Friday evening at the I.O.O.F. hall [in Upper Lake]. Only the faculty, parents, trustees and their families were bidden to the ‘high jinks.’ The Freshmen came in for their share of ridiculous stunts but took their punishment good-naturedly and gracefully as all freshies do. Games and dancing were the chief amusements after which refreshments were served.”
People started new businesses. Farmers worked on their spring chores. The Red Cross volunteers stopped reporting mask-making. Celebrations honored servicemen home from war. High schools put on class plays and graduations.
Eventually the influenza died out and Lake County life adapted to their changed world. Besides the people mentioned above, other current or former Lake County residents who died of flu-related causes included Pearl Bond, Mary Bonham, Lawrence Dilger, Opal Fields, Claude Harrow, Mary Keesling, David Keithly, William Lane, Lucile McClenden, Thomas Rhodes, Irving Roddie and George Vincent.
The Lake County Library’s collection of microfilmed Lake County newspapers supplied the stories about what happened here. The collection, which stretches back into the 1870s, makes it possible to read a good deal of Lake County’s history as it was happening.
The library’s microfilm collection is available to the public during normal operating hours and short newspaper reference questions can also be submitted through the “Ask A Question” feature on the library website http://library.lakecountyca.gov . Library staff can scan and email articles for researchers. A list of newspapers in the collection is on the website.
Statistical information for the article came from the California State Library, from the Centers For Disease Control, and the US Census Bureau.
Many books, articles and websites cover the influenza pandemic of 1918.
The Lake County Library’s digital resource collection includes eBook titles “Pale Rider: the Spanish Flu of 1918 and how it changed the world” by Laura Spinney, “The Great Influenza” by John M. Barry and “Pandemic 1918” by Catharine Arnold.
The digital collection is accessible while the library is closed for the shelter in place.
Jan Cook is library technician for the Lake County Library and a historical researcher and writer.