Oral Histories 1857 items

Wide-ranging oral histories from Grand Valley, Capital Area District Library, and Michigan State that capture the perspective of citizens and veterans across the state.

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1451. Pacino, Anthony (Interview outline and video), 2012

Notes:: Tony Pacino served in the U.S. Navy as a medical corpsman assigned to the Marine Corps from approximately 1992-1994. During his service, Tony served in Somalia in the early 1990s at the Port of Mogadishu. After his service, Tony was able to use his military training in his career as a nurse.
Date Created:: 2012-02-21T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1452. Darling, Ed (Interview outline and video), 2009

Notes:: Ed Darling is a World War II veteran who served in the U.S. Army from September 1944 to December 1946. In this account, Darling discusses his pre-enlistment, enlistment and training in the U.S., and his active duty in Japan during the military occupation of their country. Darling takes a depth look of what occupational life in Japan was like for an Army soldier and mentions a number of social encounters with former Japanese soldiers. He briefly describes what his duties consisted of and what the attitude of the Japanese people was like towards the U.S. occupational forces.
Date Created:: 2009-05-21T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1453. Tarbuck, Robert (Interview outline and video), 2012

Notes:: Bob Tarbuck was born in East Liverpool, Ohio, in 1949 and was working there when he was drafted into the Army in 1969. He trained at Fort Campbell, Kentucky and at Fort Dix, New Jersey, before being sent to Vietnam, where he was assigned to C Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment in the 101st Airborne Division, which was operating in the A Shau valley. Toward the end of the year, they moved to Camp Evans and operated in that area until April, when they went into the hills north of the A Shau Valley and set up Fire Support Base Ripcord. He patrolled the Ripcord area for the next two months, and survived the enemy attack on their position on Hill 902 in early July. Not long afterward, he was sent to the rear with bronchitis, and then rotated back home. He served the remainder of his enlistment in Germany and left the service in 1971.
Date Created:: 2012-10-05T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1454. Toms, Alan (Interview outline and video, 2 of 2), 2011

Notes:: After completing his tour in Vietnam with the Air Cavalry, Alan Toms returned to the United States, where he completed drill sergeant training before going to Fort Campbell, Kentucky. From Fort Campbell, Toms deployed for a second time to Germany, where he met a girl from Hamburg who he eventually married. Toms returned to the United States in 1970 with his wife and her son and went to Fort Knox, Kentucky to give more basic training. Eventually, the Army sent Toms back to Western Michigan University, where he finished his degree before deploying for a third time to Germany, to join the Berlin Brigade. Finally, when Toms returned to the United States, he went to the Virginia Military Institute's ROTC program before finally retiring from the military.
Date Created:: 2011-03-10T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1455. Ulrich, George (Interview outline), 2012

Notes:: George Ulrich took his Army basic training at Fort McClellan. He was sent to Korea in 1954 as an electrician. He returned to the U.S. in 1955 and reenlisted in the military.
Date Created:: 2012-05-28T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1456. Wells, John (Interview outline and video), 2014

Notes:: John Wells was born in Omaha, Nebraska in 1930 and his family moved to Michigan in 1931, graduating from high school in 1949 in Grand Rapids. He then attended Grand Rapids Community College and served in the Michigan Army National Guard. After hearing rumors that his National Guard unit would be deployed to fight in the Korean War he decided to transfer to the Air Force in February 1951. He received training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas; University of Southern California School of Aeronautics, Santa Maria, California; and Chanute Field, Illinois. He was first stationed at George Air Force Base, California with the 4th Tow Target Squadron and then sent to Ashiya Air Force Base in Kyushu, Japan where he served with the 816th "Packet Rats" Troop Carrier Squadron flying supply and repair missions to Korea. From May to July of 1953 he served in Vietnam as an engine technician aiding the French air force at the time when they were building the base at Dien Bien Phu. He returned to Japan after his short stint in Vietnam, served a year at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, and left the Air Force in January 1955.
Date Created:: 2014-04-03T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1457. Harkema, Seymour (Interview outline and video), 2015

Notes:: Seymour Harkema was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1930. In December 1950, he enlisted in the Air Force and received his basic training at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas. Upon completion of basic training he went to Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, for electronics training then went to Lowry Air Force Base, Colorado. At Lowry, he learned about and became an instructor for radar-guided weapons sights on the F-84 and F-86 fighter jets. Once he left Lowry he joined a mobile training unit based out of Chanute Field, Illinois, and he served as an instructor at various bases in Michigan with the National Guard. He spent a total of nine months in Japan on Kyushu and Okinawa working with fighter pilots flying during the Korean War, and went to South Korea once a month during the war. After Japan, he returned Chanute Field, and for his final assignment he was stationed at Hickam Field, Hawaii, for three months until his enlistment ended in 1954.
Date Created:: 2015-03-28T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1458. Robert "Moose" Moss interview (video and transcript, 11 of 11), 1991

Notes:: Interview of Robert "Moose" Moss by filmmaker Frank Boring for the documentary, Fei Hu: The Story of the Flying Tigers. Moss was a Flight Leader for the American Volunteer Group (AVG) 2nd Squadron "Panda Bears." In this tape, Moss discusses the accomplishments of the American Volunteer Group during their brief year of service and what their work meant to the Chinese people. He also discusses his personal accomplishments and how his time as a Flying Tiger had a profound effect on the rest of his life.
Date Created:: 1991-06-09T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries

1459. Abbott, Marvin (Interview outline and video), 2010

Notes:: Marvin Abbott was born in June 1938 in Decatur, Michigan and after graduating from high school, attending Michigan State University. While at Michigan State, Abbott went through the ROTC program, which included a six-week basic training course at Fort Riley, Kansas. After graduating from Michigan State, Abbott received an officer commission and went to Fort Bliss, Texas for air defense artillery training. Once he completed the training at Fort Bliss, Abbott went to Fort Knox, Kentucky and served as part of the training units there. Following his active-duty service at Fort Knox, the Army transferred Abbott to an Army Reserve transportation unit using B.A.R.C.s (Barge Amphibious Re-supply Cargo). Abbott stayed with the Reserve unit for another five years, until 1968, when he received his discharge.
Date Created:: 2010-03-30T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

1460. Beukema, John T. (Interview outline and video), 2008

Notes:: John Beukema was born in Chicago, Illinois on August 15th, 1924. He volunteered for the Army Air Corps during World War II, and was accepted as a pilot. After flight school, he was sent to be an instructor back at Basic flight school in Gardner Field, California for one year. He volunteered to be a B-17 pilot, but the war in Europe ended. He signed up to be a B-29 pilot, but the war in the Pacific ended, as well.
Date Created:: 2008-07-19T00:00:00Z
Data Provider:: Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
Collection:: Veterans History Project (U.S.)

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