1889-1890 pandemic

The pandemic of 1889 to 1890 or Asiatic flu or Russian flu was a time when many people became sick. Scientists think the virus causing the sickness was an H3N8 or H2N2 influenza virus but other scientists think it could have been a coronavirus. It killed about one million people.

The most important part of the epidemic was from 1889 to 1890, but there were two other large parts from 1890 to 1892. This epidemic caused approximately 1 million deaths worldwide. It was one of the most serious epidemics in the 19th century. In 1889, the disease was seen in St. Petersburg in the Russian Empire. People also became sick in Canada, Greenland and other places. Historians believe this was the first pandemic to spread much on railroads. It spread to much of Europe.