MSPL hosts "A Far Different Path" author

Lucile Ball was 22 when she moved to Munising from a small farming community in the Lower Peninsula to teach in 1918. It took her a 22-hour train ride to get to the upcoming city along the shores of Lake Superior, which at the time was known for its impressive amount of timber mills and saloons.

With a fiancé overseas in the first world war, Lucile was searching for an exciting adventure of her own. However, due to a lack of nurses as the 1918 Flu Pandemic swept over the nation just months after Lucile moved to the Upper Peninsula, teachers were paired off daily to check every household in Munising for signs of illness.

On Nov. 2, the Munising School Public Library hosted a virtual event where Michael Stone, author of “A Far Different Path”, discussed his book which entails the fascinating and true story of his grandmother’s experience in the U.P. during World War I and the 1918 Flu Pandemic. “A Far Different Path” was published in 2018, 100 years after the world was visited by the dreaded “Spanish lady” and just two years before the current pandemic we find ourselves in the midst of began.

After discovering a box in Lucile’s basement containing letters from her then fiancé, Howard, a medical gauze mask, photographs, and other materials, Stone and his mother – Lucile and Howard’s daughter, wanted to bring Lucile’s past experiences in Munising to light. Stone, who currently lives in Illinois, traveled to Munising for the first time in the mid-1990s with his sister when they researched old articles from local newspapers on microfilm at Munising’s library. Stone also credits the Alger County Centennial Book, 1885-1985 - which was produced by the local historical society, as being especially helpful. Though, several essays Lucile wrote about her time in Munising and the 37 letters she received from Howard during the war, some of which are published in the book, were undoubtedly the most critical materials used as reference.

On Oct. 25, 1918, Michigan closed places of recreation, limited how many people could be indoors at the same time, and so on. Munising was “ahead of everyone else,” Stone said, as Munising Mayor T.G. Sullivan closed the school immediately upon hearing about the influenza from state officials, while nearby schools remained opened. It was due to the fast actions of local officials that perhaps can be credited to the fact that Munising’s influenza cases and deaths remained fairly low during the pandemic, Stone suggested.

To go along with his virtual book meeting, MSPL created a Pop-Up Pandemic History Walk through Munising. While participating in the self-guided walk, people had the chance to stand in the same places mentioned in the book and learn more about them. The event was made possible by Library Director Lisa Cromell as part of her participation in the Next Level Leadership for Small and Rural Libraries Program. The project was implemented with grant funds from University of Michigan School of Information, the Library of Michigan and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

 A recording of the event featuring Stone can be viewed at msplonline.org.