The Kansas Flu?

Did the deadly 1918-1920 influenza pandemic begin in Kansas? While this pandemic is often called the “Spanish flu”, there is a strong possibility it originated in Camp Funston, a training camp for WWI recruits at Fort Riley. We will follow the paper trail to trace the origins of this theory. So how did it get to Camp Funston? To help answer this question, we’ll talk with historian John Barry about his work on the Kansas origins of the flu pandemic. Finally, we’ll explore the question of why and how it matters where a pandemic started.