Arthur Link was the only son of William and Elizabeth Link. He was born on December 11, 1930, and died of pneumonia on March 11, 1932, aged fifteen months.

He was, of course, Mom’s little brother. And she spoke of him pretty often. Losing a child is a traumatic thing for a family, and it was no less so ninety years ago than it would be today. It’s just that back then it was more common.

Louise, Francis, Arthur and Georgina Link. Taken standing in the basement stairwell of their parent's house.
(L to R) Louise, Francis, Arthur, and Georgina Link in 1931. As far as we know, this is the only picture of Arthur.

Walt’s Comments

It’s pretty amazing to think about how far medical technology and knowledge have advanced in the last ninety years. In 1932 there were no antibiotics. There were antiseptics, and they helped a lot, but it was still entirely possible to die of an infected cut on your finger.

As a child I knew a lot of old men who were missing a finger or two. Some were severed in accidents, but a couple were amputations. If a finger (or anything else) got badly infected, it would have to be amputated lest the infection spread to the rest of the body.

Pneumonia was incurable – you survived it, or you didn’t. Sadly, Arthur didn’t.

Mom told stories of local children dying in epidemics of diphtheria and whooping cough. Grandma survived smallpox. Diseases that are all but unheard of in America today still ran rampant a century ago.

In 1932 many of the vaccines we take for granted hadn’t been developed yet. There were no CAT scans, MRI’s, or ultrasounds. The number of medical breakthroughs in the last ninety years is truly staggering. Once in a while it’s worth remembering a young life lost, and saying a prayer of gratitude for how far we’ve come since.