In another universe, he might have been an athlete, a doctor, lawyer, or businessman. He may have served in the armed forces, or one day married; had a family and lived out a long fruitful life. But in the summer of 1952, one 10 year-old Oil City boy's life changed forever, as he was taken down a markedly different path.
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| Harlan Gene Colgin |
Harlan was born 08-Jan-1942 to Hoy C., Sr. (1901-1945) and Delia Charleville Colgin (1911-1998). He had two brothers - Hoy C., Jr. (1933-1994) and -Hugh Don (still living).
Below he is pictured with his first grade classmates at then Oil City High School during the 1948-49 school year....
1949 Bengal
....and as a fourth grader during the 1951-52 school year. This photo may be (and is certainly one of) the last to show Harlan standing on his own.
1952 Bengal
In the summer of 1952, the Caddo Parish Health Unit Director announced that Harlan was one of several area persons confirmed to have contracted polio.
Shreveport Times 03-Jul-1952, Page 1-A
Polio, short for poliomyelitis (also known as infantile paralysis) is a viral disease characterized by weakening of the muscles and paralysis of the nervous system. Its most notable victim is likely President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In the early 1950s there was a particularly widespread epidemic that swept the country, including the local area. In 1951 there were 269 cases occurring in Caddo Parish that year, with a total of 400 under treatment that year at the polio center of the charity hospital in Shreveport. The 1952 epidemic is said to be the worst in U. S. history.
Harlan was initially hospitalized and placed in an iron lung, but later allowed to return home. He and other patients attended a rodeo in April 1953, that featured movie/television cowboy Roy Rogers and wife Dale Evans.
Times 25-Apr-1953, Page 10-A
In 1955, the first vaccine, developed by Dr. Jonas Salk, came into use. Many from that time will recall getting an initial shot, with followup boosters. While reducing the number of future cases, this was a preventative, not a cure for existing victims like Harlan.
Times 23-May-1971, Page 15-F
The 1956 Bengal yearbook was dedicated to Harlan, who attended classes by special phone hookup. Today handicapped students in many cases are able to attend classes with their able-bodied classmates, however in addition to the debilitating effect the disease has on its victims, it is highly contagious; hence his separation from his classmates.
1956 Bengal
1957 Bengal
He later attended the Caddo School for Exceptional Children, as well as Byrd High; the latter by phone.
Times 13-Dec-1958, Page 7-A
Below he is pictured (lower right) with his aforementioned phone-in classmates.
1959 Byrd High Yellow Jacket (yearbook), Page 344
On the sixth anniversary of the announcement of the Salk vaccine, the Caddo-Shreveport Health Unit reported a single new case single case of polio in 1959.
An oral vaccine developed by Dr. Albert Sabin that was commercialized in 1961 virtually eradicated the disease in the U.S. In 1963, a mass immunization campaign was conducted to inoculate the populace. As with the Salk vaccine, this provided no relief for existing patients.
Times 06-Feb-1963, Page 3-A
The Sabin vaccine was administered in a sugar cube.
Times 23-May-1971, Page 15-F
Based on age, Harlan would have finished high school in 1960. However, the difficult circumstances he endured resulted in his graduation coming later. In the spring of 1964, he was identified among three Byrd students who were the first to complete their studies by phone.
He was mentioned in a 1971 Shreveport Times article about the early 1950 polio epidemic and its impact on the local area.
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Though not mentioned in any of the articles about him, Harlan was apparently involved in a business card/desk calendar printing enterprise.
A 1973 article about three nurses retiring from Confederate Memorial Hospital (now part of the LSU Health Sciences Center) identified Harlan as one of two remaining polio patients at that facility, along with Bill Neely.
Harlan (at right below) and hospital roommate Bill were featured in the Shreveport Times in October 1975. Despite their physical challenges, both were operating small businesses. Harlan published a newsletter, "The Practical Formula Newsletter" that he advertised for subscriptions in Mother Earth News. The article also noted his interest in "arts and crafts." One from a few years earlier also mentioned him enjoying fishing, when someone would take him.
From another article about the two published the following year, Harlan is pictured below with his "freedom machine," a motorized wheel chair. After 18 years at the hospital, he and Bill had moved to a house purchased by the latter. With a housekeeper provided by Family Services, as well as personal family support, the men were able to enjoy a level of normalcy; even keeping a menagerie of pets.
Harlan passed away eight months later at the young age of 35.
Photo by Ellen Stevens
Interment: Gray (TX) Cemetery
Just read the article above Harlan
ReplyDeleteI too graduated from Byrd in.1964 and I too contracted polio in 1952 but unlike Harlan, I was fortunate not to have any lasting effects after a month or so stay in the Willis Knighton hospital. Your story about Harlan, his struggles and accomplishments, I found very sensitive and touching on.a personnel level.