Benzonia Academy Lecture Series - Great Influenza Pandemic (1918-1920)

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Barb Mort, Executive Director, Benzie Area Historical Society PHONE: 231.882.5539 and 231.342.4177 EMAIL: bmortbenziehistory@gmail.com Benzonia Academy Lecture Series “The Great Influenza Pandemic (1918-1920)” “The Great Influenza Pandemic (1918-1920)” will be presented by Michael Nagle online Thursday, January 13, 4:00 p.m. as part of the Benzonia Academy Lecture Series. This month’s lecture will be offered live on Zoom and recorded for later viewing on Benzie Area Historical Society’s website www.benziemuseum.org. The Great Influenza pandemic, also known as the Spanish Flu, was the deadliest pandemic in recent history. It struck in four deadly waves beginning in 1918. Experts believe it infected one third of the world’s population at that time and led to the deaths of at least 50 million worldwide, including 675,000 in the United States. How and where did it originate? How did health officials respond? How did the population react to mask mandates and school closures? What can we learn from history as we enter the third year of living through another pandemic? Michael Nagle, West Shore Community College Professor of history and political science, will address these and other questions, associated with the Great Influenza and its legacy. Michael Nagle holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in education and Master of Arts degree in history from Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington. He teaches history and political science at West Shore Community College, in Scottville, Michigan, where he also serves as chair of the social sciences division. Nagle is an award-winning teacher and noted speaker covering a range of topics in American and Michigan history. Nagle is the author of Justus S. Stearns; Michigan Pine King and Kentucky Coal Baron, 1845-1933, published in 2015 by Wayne State University Press. He is currently working on a biography of the Detroit industrialist Eber Brock Ward. When he died in 1875, Ward was the wealthiest man in Michigan and probably throughout all the Midwest. Nagle lives in Ludington, Michigan. This presentation is part of the Benzonia Academy Lecture Series, held on the second Thursday of each month, and offered by the Benzie Area Historical Society. The Zoom meeting link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89591872225. To learn more about the lecture, visit the Benzie Area Historical Society’s Facebook page, their website www.benziemuseum.org or call the Benzie Area Historical Museum at (231) 882-5539. # # # --