Last Updated on October 14, 2025 by Matt Staff
The year 1918 stood at the crossroads of history. The Great War was slowly coming to an end, leaving behind a world reshaped by loss and uncertainty. Across continents, soldiers returned home to cities forever changed, and families tried to rebuild amid the shadow of a deadly influenza outbreak. It was a time of quiet resilience and restless change, when women assumed new roles, communities redefined themselves, and hope began to emerge from the years of hardship.
These 20 photographs capture not just grand events, but the small human moments that history books often overlook, including laughter after years of fear, daily life amid recovery, and the determination to move forward. Each image opens a window into the spirit of 1918, reminding us that even in the darkest times, people find ways to endure, adapt, and begin again. Let’s take a look at 20 photos that open a window into life in 1918.
1. A family covers their faces during the Spanish Flu epidemic, 1918
2. Ice delivery girls in Texas, 1918
3. American soldiers paying tribute to the millions of horses, donkeys, and mules that perished during WWII
4. This man luckily walked away with just a scratch, 1918
5. Helen Keller meeting Charlie Chaplin, 1918
6. “My great-grandpa took his family into the Idaho woods in 1918 to distance themselves from the Spanish Flu.”
7. A pyramid of captured German helmets in New York, 1918
8. Posing for a photo during the Spanish Flu pandemic, 1918
9. Wall Street in New York, celebrating as Germany surrendered, 1918
10. A member of the 369th Infantry Regiment holding a puppy that he saved during the war, 1918
11. An officer in California arrested a man who refused to wear a mask during the Spanish Flu, 1918
12. An American soldier shaking hands with a German soldier after Germany surrendered, November 1918
13. A Canadian Tommy soldier, covered in mud, returning from the front lines, 1918
14. A 14-year-old boy intently studying the playground exhibit at the Children’s Welfare Exposition, 1918
15. Taking a walk during the influenza pandemic, 1918
16. Buster Keaton, Roscoe Arbuckle, and Al St. John, 1918
17. Annie Oakley, teaching women how to shoot a rifle, 1918
18. “My dad and his dog, 1918.”
19. Charlie Chaplin selling war bonds on Wall Street, 1918
20. American troops, holding a boxing match on a ship during the trip home from France, 1918
Want to see more early 1900s content?
Check out 49 Photos From The First Decade of the 20th Century (1900-1910), or take a look at 20 Colorized Photos From 1905. Finally, if you want to see the best photos from the mid-1910s, check out 30 Vintage Photos From the Mid-1910s.
