The Journals of Martha E. McMillan

California Trip (1904) Michael J. Newman 2015 In December 1903, Martha McMillan, her husband James, and their youngest son Paul (who turned 14 in April during the trip), travelled from their home in Cedarville, Ohio to Los Angeles, California to visit Martha’s son Homer, his wife Mary, and their infant son Richard. From what Martha writes about in her daily journals, the trip was greatly enjoyable, but fraught with sickness and ill-health. What the entries in this journal do is show readers how sickness was dealt with in the past, which can also be useful for those studying medicine today. Medicine in the early 20 th Century was nowhere near as advanced as it is today. People got sick quite often, and when they did, Doctors came and took house calls. On Easter Sunday (April 3) 1904, Martha writes: “Morgan has his last meeting tonight but Richard is so very sick no one feels like attending - there is not any doubt as to him having the measles - for he is covered with them from head to foot. I never saw a stricken boy. The measles are serving him badly. Dr. Hunt here tonight.” The next day Martha writes: “On account of the measles the ‘folks are little shy’ about coming around here.” It can be assumed that Richard got the measles from his mother, Mary, who wasn’t feeling well for about a week. The first vaccine was created in 1879 for cholera. This is right around the time when Martha and her family were living in Cedarville, Ohio. But in the California journal entries especially, measles was definitely the biggest concern. It was highly contagious, and unfortunately, the vaccine for measles was not created until 1964. But on January 5, 1904, Paul receives a vaccination, though what for is never told. However, in the weeks following, Paul’s arm continues to bother him. 207