5. San Francisco ordered its citizens to wear masks
The Governor of California announced that wearing masks provided protection against the spread of Spanish Flu. The Governor, William Stephenson, described wearing masks as a “patriotic duty” though he took no steps to make them mandatory. San Francisco did. The city enacted an ordinance which made appearing in public without a mask “disturbing the peace” and liable to arrest and a fine of $5 (about $86 in 2020). San Francisco suffered considerably lower rates of infection during the early waves of the flu, though the masks offered little protection against the flu virus. Nonetheless, city officials touted their success.
Like St. Louis, San Francisco took early and aggressive action to control the spread of the virus by closing the schools, and banning large gatherings of people. Places are defined as “public amusements” closed by order of the city. The city also placed nearby military installations and ships in the bay under strict quarantine, with the cooperation of military authorities. During the second wave in the fall of 1918, San Francisco managed to control the rate of illness suffered by its citizens. On November 21, the city literally sounded the all-clear, alerting the citizens they could remove their masks and return to normal life by steam whistles. It proved to be premature, and the faith in masks was misplaced.