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- 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:
- 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:
- 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.)
- Notes:
- Charles Swendsen served on the USS Silversides and the USS Haddock during World War II. In this interview, he gives a guided tour of the Silversides, which serves as a museum in Muskegon, Michigan.
- Date Created:
- 2009-06-04T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Raymond Breen was born on February 4, 1925 in Zeeland, Michigan. When he was eighteen he registered for the draft, and six weeks after registering he was drafted in March 1943 and went to Camp Butner, North Carolina for basic training. He participated in maneuvers in Tennessee and was eventually promoted to the rank of staff sergeant and placed in charge of a mortar squad of eight men. In fall 1944 he left the United States with the 310th Infantry Regiment of the 78th Infantry Division and arrived in England on October 26, 1944. He stayed in England for further training before sailing to France, arriving at Le Havre on November 22, 1944. He fought in the Hurtgen Forest, crossed the Rhine River at Remagen, and helped clear the Ruhr Pocket. Near the end of the war he helped save four wounded Americans and was awarded a Bronze Star for valor. After Germany's surrender in May 1945 he was part of the occupation force in the Ruhr Pocket and stayed in Europe until January 1946 when he was sent home and dishcarged from the Army.
- Date Created:
- 2015-09-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- William Dudas was born in Sawyer, MI, just outside of Benton Harbor, in 1924. Dudas enlisted in the Army on July 29, 1943, shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He was selected for scout training and trained at Camp Walters in Texas. Dudas spent six months training in Cardiff, Wales, preparing for the D-Day invasion and landed on Omaha beach a day or two after the first wave, joining his unit on its way to Trevieres, France. Dudas' unit participated in the Battle at Hill 192 and advanced in a rapid push to Brest where he injured his leg during the advance and was sidelined for four weeks before rejoining his unit in Paris. His unit also participated in combat in the Hurtgen Forest, Battle of the Bulge, acrossing the Rhine River, and advancing into Czechoslovakia. After the war, he left the service and attended Western Michigan University to became a high school teacher.
- Date Created:
- 2015-11-05T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Mary Louise Crowell shares what life was like at home prior to, during, and after WW II. With the US involvement in WW II, Mary explains what it meant to take an active role in the war at home like saving lard, oil, tin cans, and using ration books. During the war, Mary worked for the Civil Service at Fort Custer as a clerk typist and attended many of the USO events. When WW II ended, Mary married her soldier, Jim Crowell, and together they raised two children.
- Date Created:
- 2007-05-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Darwin "Gabby" Stafford served in the United States Army during WW II in the Mechanized Calvary from January 1945 to June 1946 in Kansas and California. In this interview, Gabby discusses life on a farm during the Depression and the first time Social Security was introduced. He shares stories of his time in the Army including one about being treated to dinner at a chicken farm as a reward for returning a wallet, and being "volunteered" for kitchen duty while on the train to Fort Riles, Kansas. Gabby was a Mason for over 50 years.
- Date Created:
- 2007-05-15T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Theodore Grevers served in the Merchant Marine between World War II and the Korean War. Theodore grew up in the Netherlands, and moved to the United States right before Hitler invaded. He worked on an oil tanker in the Merchant Marines, which made runs between Colombia and Philadelphia. After his service, he founded a detective agency, which assisted in attempts at freeing US POWs during the Vietnam War.
- Date Created:
- 2009-05-30T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Everett Thompson served in the Army Signal Corps in World War II. He was drafted in March 1943. After doing basic training in Florida, he was sent to the University of Illinois where he took classes to prepare him to take care of large diesel engines. He was shipped out to New Guinea, and operated large diesel engine generators for radio stations until June of 1945. He spent a few weeks in Manila, waiting to be sent into Japan as part of a large convoy. Once there he witnessed the men boarding the USS Missouri to sign the armistice. After a few days he was able to leave the ships and see Japan. He helped build and operate a large radio tower in Tokyo and saw the devastation of the bombing within 100 miles of that city. He came home in January 1946 and entered Michigan State University, becoming a civil engineer. Photographs and correspsondence from Thompson's service are appended to this interview outline.
- Date Created:
- 2007-05-24T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Robert Timmerman was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 1943 he got drafted at 29 years old. Robert was assigned to the 78th Division and was a Squad Leader. Robert landed in England and made his way through France and Belgium into Germany. He fought at the Hurtgen Forest and in some small towns in Germany, where he received a Purple Heart. His unit was one of the first across the Remagen Bridge.
- Date Created:
- 2008-04-28T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Milton was born in Wyoming, Michigan and worked at General Motors until he was drafted. Albert was from Caledonia, Michigan and he worked on a farm. Andrew grew up in Kellogsville and he too was a farm hand for many years. Like Milton and Albert, he was drafted on April 16, 1941. All three men served with the 32nd Division and were sent to New Guinea and participated in the Buna campaign.
- Date Created:
- 2004-10-04T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Gerard Platte was born on December 30, 1921 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. With the United States dragged into the Second World War he enlisted in the Marine Corps on January 8, 1942 and was officially sworn in on January 20, 1942 at San Diego. He received basic training in San Diego along with rifle training at Camp San Luis Obispo. He was stationed at Naval Ammunition Depot Bremerton, Washington and Naval Ammunition Depot Indian Island, Washington before being sent to join B Company in the 21st Marine Regiment of the 3rd Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, California. He was stationed on New Zealand and Guadalcanal before taking part in the invasion of Bougainville (first wave), then Guam (first wave), and finally Iwo Jima where he was wounded while carrying a wounded fellow Marine. He was eventually evacuated back to the United States where he recovered in California and Chicago before being discharged from the Marines on January 20, 1946.
- Date Created:
- 2015-01-13T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Joy Lillie, born in Coopersville Michigan, served in the 51st Field Hospital in the Army Nurse Corps from 1942 to 1945 during the Second World War. During her service she spent 9 months in Oran, Algeria, and went to Normandy shortly after D-Day and worked in France, Belgium and Germany.
- Date Created:
- 2011-09-20T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Cornelius Ringnalda and Richard Herrema were interviewed jointly. Ringnalda was born in Grand Rapids in the early twenties and drafted into the military after high school. He served with the 383rd Infantry Regiment and fought on Okinawa in the early stages of the campaign, and was wounded after about two weeks of combat. Herrema was born in Michigan in the early twenties and was also drafted after high school. He joined the Air Force Cadet program and was assigned to a B-29 crew with the 13th Air Force, and flew 21 missions from bases in New Guinea and the Philippines.
- Date Created:
- 2008-07-09T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Donnally Palmer was born in 1918 in South Dakota. Growing up he moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota and Grand Rapids, Michigan. He graduated from high school in 1936 and was drafted into the Army in mid-1941. He received basic training and intelligence gathering training at Camp Roberts, California. At the end of his training Pearl Harbor was bombed and he was sent to Camp Haan, California and was transferred to the Army Signal Corps. He was placed in the unit that would eventually become the 582nd Signal Aircraft Warning Battalion. His initial duty was to oversee supplies, but that duty was changed overseas to guide ships and aircraft that were damaged, as well as keep track of Allied and enemy aircraft, and targets. He sailed overseas aboard the Queen Mary and saw the sinking of the HMS Curacao. He took part in the invasion of North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and Southern France. In fall 1944 he was sent back to the United States for Stateside duty and was discharged from the Army in September 1945.
- Date Created:
- 2015-03-31T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- Will Holton was born in Crockett County, Tennessee, on January 19, 1919, and was likely drafted in either late 1942 or early 1943. After Basic Training and advanced training, Holton was then sent to Camp Barkeley, Texas, for trucker training, and was then sent to Louisiana for 155mm artillery training before winding up at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, with the 1010th Engineer Company. Holton was then assigned to the 2nd Platoon, A Company, 1697th Engineer Combat Battalion and was deployed to Europe, supporting the ground troops during the Battle of the Bulge in late 1944-45. He guarded the other engineers while they cleared mines, opened supply routes, and built temporary bridges, continuing this construction work in France after the war. Holton later returned home and was discharged in 1946.
- Date Created:
- 2017-02-02T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)
- Notes:
- William Johnson served in a regimental communications center in the 79th Division in Europe during World War II. He landed on Utah Beach with an advance party shortly after D-Day, and participated in the campaigns in Normandy, France and Germany.
- Date Created:
- 2005-02-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Grand Valley State University. University Libraries
- Collection:
- Veterans History Project (U.S.)