Veterans History Project
1714 items
- Notes:
- Thadius Burzynski was born in Michigan on April 18, 1916. Ted was married in 1940 and expected to be drafted after Pearl Harbor was attacked. Ted was deferred from service many times because of his work in a factory. Ted was drafted in 1943 and then traveled to France for his time in the service. He was in Germany on VE Day.
- Date Created:
- 2007-06-18T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Tony Ten Harmsel was born in Iowa in 1919 and grew up in Michigan. He was working at General Motors when Pearl Harbor happened, and was drafted into the Army in 1942. Having grown up on a farm and being experienced with trucks, he was pulled out of basic training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, to drive a truck for a general on the base, and stayed at Fort Sill until the spring of 1944, when he was shipped to England and assigned to a battalion of the 18th Artillery. His unit landed on Utah Beach on or shortly after D-Day, and went into action right away. His unit fought in Normandy, in northern France, in the Hurtgen Forest, the Battle of the Bulge, and the invasion of Germany. They went through a concentration camp and ferried Russian POWs back to the Soviet lines at the end of the war.
- Date Created:
- 2011-11-08T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Vernon Kayser was born April 23, 1933 in Caledonia, Michigan. He was drafted and served in the 10th Engineering Battalion. He was sent to Fort Pickett, Virginia for sixteen weeks of basic training and then spent eight weeks of leadership training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. His battalion built bridges, pontoon bridges, and went on maneuvers during the Korean War. He served from 1953-1955.
- Date Created:
- 2012-05-23T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Dwight Becker was born in Grandville, Michigan on March 25, 1924. He received his draft notice in January 1943 and reported for service in March 1943. He went to Camp Grant, Illinois and was assigned to Camp Butner, North Carolina for basic training and medical training. He was assigned to the Medical Corps in the 310th Infantry Regiment of the 78th Infantry Division. He trained at Camp Butner until October 1944 when the 78th went to Camp Pickett, Virginia then Camp Kilmer, New Jersey where they boarded the USAT George Washington and sailed for the European Theatre. They arrived in England on October 26, 1944 and trained there until they went to France on November 22, 1944. He was attached to D Company and they took up positions on the Siegfried Line in early December 1944. He treated wounded soldiers and wounded prisoners of war during the Battle of the Bulge, the crossing of the Rhine River, and the advance into Germany. On April 11, 1945 he was wounded and after being stabilized in Europe he returned to the United States in June 1945. He recovered at Percy Jones Hospital in Fort Custer, Michigan and was discharged from the Army at Fort Custer on September 26, 1945.
- Date Created:
- 2015-08-17T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Handwritten letter and envelope with transcript by Joe Olexa to Agnes Van Der Weide, dated February 10, 1944. The envelope is sent from Co. L, 26th Infantry A.P.O.-1, c/o Postmaster New York, New York, dated February 15, 1944. In the letter, Joe writes to Agnes from England sharing how he recently saw the film "The Sea Wolf" for the second time and asking her to be his Valentine in anticipation for St. Valentine's Day. Joe also opens up to her about his experience overseas losing friends and how his faith has gotten him through many hard times.
- Date Created:
- 1944-02-10T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Handwritten V-Mail letter and envelope with transcript by Joe Olexa to Agnes Van Der Weide, dated July 4, 1944. The envelope is sent from Det. of Patients, 4187 U.S. Hospital Plant, A.P.O.-152, c/o Postmaster New York, New York, dated July 13, 1944. In the V-Mail letter, Joe writes a brief message to Agnes on the Fourth of July, a day that holds additional significance as the last day they were together before their two years apart. He also writes with the news that he has been awarded the "Purple Heart" medal for being wounded in action and will be sending it home to his family for safekeeping.
- Date Created:
- 1944-07-04T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Paul Bush, born January 21st 1931, was drafted into the U.S. Army shortly after completing college in 1953. Paul completed his basic at Fort Knox Kentucky. Upon its competition, Paul was then sent to Southern France. Here he was made a chaplain's aide, and served with the chaplain on several bases in France and Germany. Paul returned to the states to receive a teaching degree. When he finished he worked through a military program to return to Europe and teach in schools on military bases in Germany and Italy.
- Date Created:
- 2012-05-27T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Albert Engel, son of U.S. congressman Albert J. Engel, served in the U.S. Army from February 1943 to April 1946 in the European Theater during World War II. During basic training, Albert applied for OCS school, but due to his young age did poorly, but did receive his commission. Before being sent to England, Albert was assigned as commander of the 80th Bomb Disposal Squad. However, shortly after arriving in France Albert was transferred to the HQ for the 19th tactical air command. Here he was assigned to represent defendants in court martial cases. Albert than applied to be the commander of the 86th Bomb Disposal Squad. He stayed commander of this squad until his discharge in 1946.
- Date Created:
- 2012-02-14T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Anthony Kuna was born in 1923 in Shepherd, Michigan. He was drafted into the Army when he was 18 years old and was sent to Camp Carson, Colorado, where he trained as an artillerist. After maneuvers in California and further training at Fort Benning, Georgia, his unit, the 71st Division, was shipped to France. He served as a machine gunner assigned to a battery of 155 mm guns. His unit fought through the Siegfried Line in January, 1945, and moved across southern Germany, ending the war in Austria, where his unit liberated a concentration camp.
- Date Created:
- 2007-01-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Raymond Corrigan was born in Newaygo, Michigan on June 15, 1924. He enlisted in the Navy when he was 17 years old (sometime in 1942). He received basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois and was assigned to the USS Cincinnati (CL-6), a light cruiser. During his time aboard the Cincinnati he received training on the ship and stateside on how to aim and operate the ship's guns as well as went on patrols around the Caribbean Sea and near South America. In 1944 they escorted convoys to Belfast, Ireland in preparation for the Normandy Invasion. In late 1944 he was reassigned to a ship in the Pacific Theater, and in January 1945 they set sail. He was aboard that ship and participated in the pre-invasion bombardment of an island and assembled at Okinawa in preparation for the invasion of Japan. After the atomic bombing and subsequent surrender of Japan the ship pulled into Nagasaki where Raymond saw firsthand the destructive capability of the atom bomb. In late September 1945 he returned to Okinawa and by late October 1945 was back at Great Lakes Naval Station where he was discharged from the Navy.
- Date Created:
- 2015-09-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
