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5 deaths. 7 days. no answers. The nuns were dying.
Five nuns at Dickinson's St. Joseph's Hospital died from encephalitis lethargica in February 1926, after initial fears of poisoning or toxic fumes were ruled out by medical examiners.
- St. Joseph's Hospital in Dickinson recorded five nuns' deaths between February 21 and February 22, 2026, within one week, as documented in the records.
- Initial reports focused on toxic vapors from new floor stain at the construction site after two nuns inspected the wood stain used during hospital remodeling, while arsenic poisoning allegations and anti-German sentiment targeting claims circulated but were denied by local officials.
- Dr. H. M. Banks performed post-mortem examinations while chemists tested the wood stain, concluding encephalitis lethargica caused the deaths and ruling out gas fumes and foul play.
- Fear gripped Dickinson as residents suspected rumors and community anxiety grew, while Midwestern newspapers reported the story beyond Dickinson, increasing scrutiny.
- Their graves at St. Patrick's Cemetery and reports of hauntings, mentioned in a 2023 retrospective by James Miller Jr., kept the story alive in Dickinson lore.
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Duluth News Tribune+20 Reposted by 20 other sources
5 deaths. 7 days. no answers. The nuns were dying.
DICKINSON — In February 1926, residents of Dickinson, N.D., were a lot like the Badlands at the edge of town — rugged, tough and not easily rattled. But that winter, 100 years ago, a medical mystery shook the town to its core. At St. Joseph’s Hospital, Catholic sisters began falling ill. Then they began dying — one after another. Five nuns died in one week and no one knew why. Residents struggled to understand what they were witnessing. Within d…
·Cherokee County, United States
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Total News Sources21
Leaning Left0Leaning Right11Center5Last UpdatedBias Distribution69% Right
Bias Distribution
- 69% of the sources lean Right
69% Right
C 31%
R 69%
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