Measles

Sat., April 27, 1935 - Went to Norfolk on train this noon.  Got favors for my party on May 1.  Got a new sweater.  Tried it on tonite and found out it was too small. To bed early.
Sun., April 28, 1935 - Washed and waved my hair this a.m.  We practiced at the pavilion this p.m.  We had a good crowd tonite.  Play went off fine.  Howard brought me home.
Mon., April 29, 1935 - Rainy.  I'm tired as the dickens.  Frederick Niemann has measles.  We talked over Co. Exams.  The eighth graders should pass.  To bed early tonite.

Here's some interesting information regarding measles from galegroup.com:

     Measles, an infectious disease caused by a virus, primarily infects children. The symptoms of measles include high fever, headache, hacking cough, conjunctivitis, and a rash. This rash usually begins inside the mouth as white spots (called Koplik's spots) and progresses to a red rash that spreads to face, neck, trunk, and extremities. The incubation period of measles varies, but is usually 10-12 days until symptoms appear. Due to this incubation period, measles are sometimes called nine- or ten-day measles. (Rubeola is yet another name for the illness). Whatever its name, patients normally make a full recovery from the disease, but complications can arise if a secondary bacterial infection occurs (such as pneumonia or ear infection).

     Measles was described as long ago as the ninth century when a Persian physician, Rhazes, first differentiated between measles and smallpox. He also made the observation that fever is a defense the body has against a disease, not a disease itself. His writings on the subject were translated into English and published in 1847.

     The virus that causes measles was first discovered in the 1930s. John F. Enders of Children's Hospital in Boston eventually isolated the measles virus in 1954 and began looking for an attenuated strain to be suitable for a live-virus vaccine. A successful immunization program for measles was begun soon after.

     Today, measles is controlled in the United States with a vaccination that confers immunity against measles, mumps, and rubella and is commonly called the MMR vaccine. After a series of measles epidemics occurred in the teenage population, a second MMR shot is now required of many school-age children, as it was found that only one vaccination appeared not to confer lifelong immunity.

Here is a bit more from an article about the recent phenomenon of parents not vaccinating their children.  How heartbreaking to have lived through the outbreak in Baltimore in the 1930s.  From baltimorecity.gov:

     In the 1930s, measles infections in Baltimore sickened thousands and killed or permanently injured hundreds of children every year. Outbreaks came and went, seemingly at random, bringing
uncertainty, fear, and tragedy to families across our city.  Then a scientist recognized a pattern. He found that the outbreaks occurred at times when most children in Baltimore had not experienced measles and were therefore susceptible to the infection. He correctly reasoned that when enough children were immune to measles by virtue of having survived a past infection, the virus could not easily spread.  This pattern turned out to be the key to the effectiveness of vaccination, one of the safest and most successful medical advances in history. By increasing the number of children who are immune, vaccines prevent outbreaks of lethal disease.

     After an effective measles vaccine was developed in the 1960s, the number of measles cases in
Baltimore began to decline. For the last ten years, our city has seen zero measles infections. Zero
hospitalizations. Zero permanent injuries. Zero deaths.

I am not sure of the time frame for "the last ten years", but the same article cites data from 2014, so that helps narrow it down a bit.