Published by The Evansville Courier

The subzero temperatures and deep snow that began in early December 1917 persisted - with only brief respites - through January. Many people - especially the poor - suffered tremendously with little food and often no coal at all.

More than 3 feet of snow piled up on city streets, paralyzing traffic and isolating thousands in Evansville and the surrounding area. The Ohio River froze so solidly that teams and wagons crossed over from Kentucky. The river remained frozen for weeks.

While the Midwest struggled to survive the winter, The Evansville Courier reported on an even more deadly winter in Europe, where soldiers and families by the thousand were dying from weather- and war-related hardships. Evansville Red Cross committees collected used clothing to send overseas for Belgian relief.

Germany was losing the war by September 1918, but the city's joy was taken by a terrible flu epidemic that caused thousands of deaths in the Midwest and around the world. The death toll from what was called the Spanish flu reached even higher in military hospitals and Army camps.

When a false news report that the war was over made its way to Evansville on Nov. 7, 1918, the community took to the streets with raucous celebrations. People learned two hours later that an armistice had not yet been signed, but they began preparing anyway for Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm II to abdicate the throne.

Early in the morning four days later, word came that the armistice would be signed officially at 11 a.m. in France - 5 a.m. Evansville time. So at 5 in the morning on Nov. 11, 1918, the streets were filled with the sounds of horns, whistles and spontaneous parades. Work and school were canceled and the party continued into the night.