Martha Manock, Polk County

Interviewee: Martha Manock
Interviewer: Thomas Sullivan
Date of Interview: December 7, 2007
Run Time: Approximately 60M

Cassette
Biographical Data Form
Oral History Release
Transcript

Fifty-one years later, Martha Manock still recalls the smell of the hot wool sheets wrapped around her arms and legs. On September 16, 1956, Martha woke up in sudden pain. Her parents rushed to her family doctor the next morning in Boone. After receiving a spinal tap, she anxiously waited for the doctor’s response, unable to move due to the procedure. The family physician confirmed her worst fears: she had polio. Manock was taken to Blank Memorial Hospital in Des Moines and quarantined with several other children. What bothered her the most as a child, she remarks, was the thought of her parents burning her clothes, stuffed animals, and even her toothbrush to prevent the spread of polio. Martha had experienced a similar panic a week or two earlier when a local 13-year-old girl had been diagnosed with polio. Swimming pools and drinking water was tested, but no answer emerged as to why the two girls contracted this condition. During her stay, she found comfort in the words and care of Blank’s Dr. Hill. “He was really positive,” says Martha. “He must have been kind of way ahead of his time and his day. He said, ‘I don’t want you to ever let this polio stop you from doing anything you want to do.’” Hill’s advice remained with her throughout her childhood, pushing her to participate in a number of activities such as Student Council, Campfire Girls, and playing hardball with the neighborhood boys. Today, Martha lives with the pain of post-polio but refuses to let post-polio determine her lifestyle. Refusing to dwell on her pain, Manock devotes her energy and time to her family in Des Moines, Iowa.