The 1901 Smallpox Scare

In the spring and summer of 2020, we all experienced quarantining due to the COVID-19 pandemic, something we had never had to deal with before. Among the sacrifices made during that time was the graduation ceremony at Washington High School and the suspension of all public activities, including church services.

As monumental as 2020 was, it was not without precedent in Washington, just not the same magnitude.

In 1901, a dangerous, highly contagious disease was going through the area.  The prevailing thought was that it could be Smallpox, although the many Washington doctors who weighed in on the topic seemed to have differing opinions.

Regardless of what it was, it was scary enough that Mayor H.L. Price issued a quarantine order for the town in May.

This led to the school board postponing the May 31 graduation exercises for the Class of 1901 until the sickness abated.

By late June, the fear had subsided.  Cases of the mysterious "Smallpox-like" disease in Washington were mild and few, while other towns in Tazewell County suffered greatly. 

The school board met with the graduates to determine a new commencement date, and the class response was: "The postponement has naturally caused us to lose interest in the commencement, and as the weather is extremely hot, we prefer to give it up." 

The 1901 Washington High School commencement ceremony was never held.