Clio Logo
This is a contributing entry for The Spanish Influenza Tour of Spring Hill and only appears as part of that tour.Learn More.

Vera Fay Davis Shank

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

The 1918 Spanish Influenza Pandemic ravaged the world in a way man had not seen in generations. One of the few truly worldwide pandemics, the 1918 Spanish Influenza Pandemic claimed an estimated 50-100 million deaths worldwide(1). This number is more than both world wars combined. In 1918, Spring Hill Cemetery was one of the primary cemeteries for Huntington, West Virginia. As such, a number of victims from the Spanish Influenza Pandemic are buried here. The Spanish Influenza hit Huntington fairly hard with 200 deaths, most of which occurring in the month of October(2). Even Huntington's Mayor, Leon S. Wiles, perished from the flu. On this tour, you will visit 17 gravesites of Huntington residents who perished from the Spanish Influenza Pandemic. Please keep in mind during the tour that you are visiting the final resting places of these people. Please treat all graves and the cemetery with the utmost respect and courtesy. Do your best not to step on top of a person’s final resting place and follow all posted rules.

Images

Shank Family Headstone

Vase-shaped headstone with broken sundial on top reading "SHANK"

Grave Marker of Vera Shank

Grave marker reading "VERA FAY SHANK 1894-1918"

Death Certificate of Vera Shank

Death Certificate of Vera Shank

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Vera Fay Davis Shank was married to Hugh Poindexter Shank, who is buried next to Vera. On top of the headstone, there is a sundial of which the gnomon is missing. There is also a carving of an hourglass with wings along with the inscription "Night Follows Darkness". Surrounding the dial are indicators of where the sun's rays will hit on the solstices and equinoxes throughout the year. Truly a beautiful piece worthy of recognition. Vera Shank eft this Earth on October 30th, 1918 when she was between 23-24 years old. She was the daughter of Morris B and Virginia Davis.

Sources

  1. Spreeuwenberg, Peter. Reassessing the Global Mortality Burden of the 1918 Influenza Pandemic. American Journal of Epidemiology, ser. 2561-2567, vol. 187, no. 12. Published September 7th 2018. NCBI.
  2. Casto, James E.. "Deadly 1918 flu hit Huntington hard." The Herald-Dispatch (Huntington) May 1st 2009.
Image Sources(Click to expand)

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/63891654/vera-fay-shank

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/63891654/vera-fay-shank

http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_dcdetail.aspx?Id=696949

Additional Information