Jager, George (Interview outline, video, and papers), 2009
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
United States. Army
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Video recordings
George Jager grew up in Michigan and was drafted in 1943 and trained in Florida to be a replacement infantryman. In April of 1944 he went to England on a converted troop ship. George received chemical warfare training and then landed on Omaha Beach 10 days after D-day. He was a machine gunner and fought in battles at Normandy, Mortain, and the Hurtgen Forest. George was injured once at Mortain by a bullet and again at the Hurtganen Forest by a bomb. He was sent to a field hospital and then a back the US because of his swamp foot. He served for a short time after arriving home and then was discharged. After he was discharged he went to college and became a teacher. A map and magazine article are appended to interview outline.
Jager, George
Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
Byron Area Historic Museum (Byron Center, Mich.)
In Copyright
Jakubczak, Richard (Interview transcript and video), 2011
United States. Marine Corps
United States. Navy
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
Richard Jakubczak is from Grand Rapids Michigan and was born in May of 1946. After high school he worked at Lowell Engineering and as a farmer. He briefly attended Kendall School of Design, but dropped out in 1966 and he and his brother joined the Navy and volunteered for training as medical corpsmen. He completed his basic training and medical training at Great Lakes, Illinois, and then went to Camp LeJeune, North Carolina, for field training. He then worked at Great Lakes Naval Hospital for ten months, and went to Vietnam in February, 1968. He was assigned to the First Shore Party, which provided logistical support to Marine combat units in the field, and was regularly attached to combat units when on operations. He was based near Da Nang, and supported Marine units involved in Operations Allen Brook and Mameluke Thrust. He left Vietnam in February, 1969, and completed his enlistment at Great Lakes.
Jakubczak, Richard
Jalving, Marvin (Interview outline, video, and papers), 2008
United States. Army. Air Corps
Marvin Jalving enlisted in the Army Air Corps in July of 1943 and was discharged in October of 1945. He went to England late in 1944 and flew 23 missions in B-17s, most of which were in Germany taking out train yards and gasoline refineries. After flying missions in Europe, George had been sent to California and scheduled to leave for the Pacific. He was relieved when he found that he had enough points to be discharged before he was sent to the Pacific. Personal narrative appended to interview outline.
Jalving, Marvin
Spring Lake District Library (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Michael Gaylord James video interview and transcript
Young Lords (Organization)
Puerto Ricans--United States
Civil Rights--United States--History
Lincoln Park (Chicago, Ill.)
Personal narratives
Social justice
Community activists--Illinois--Chicago
A resident of Chicago’s Roger’s Park neighborhood, Mike James was the first leader of Rising Up Angry, a white, working-class group formed in the late 1960s and early 1970s that sought to organize residents of Lakeview/Uptown and offer a range of free or low cost services to the community including a free legal clinic, free health service, a women’s discussion group, occasional free pet-care clinic, and a variety of community events. The group also published a newspaper, the only underground newspaper aimed specifically at white, blue-collar greaser youth in Chicago at that time. The paper presented a combination of international news with news from local Chicago neighborhoods. Rising Up Angry members were also known for their distinctive way of dressing – dark banlon shirts, leather jackets, baggy pants, and pointed toe shoes.
James, Michael
Jamieson, Jimmy (Interview transcript and video), 2025
United States—History, Military
Vietnam War, 1961-1975—Personal narratives, American
Jimmy Jamieson was born in Newport News, Virginia in 1946. He graduated high school in 1965 and began college classes. He was drafted in the Army in February of 1966 but was allowed to finish the semester before being sent to Fort Knox, Kentucky in July. Shortly after, he was moved to Fort Campbell, Kentucky for basic training, where he was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division. After basic, he was sent to Fort Sill, Oklahoma for artillery training and ranger training. He then had 30 days of leave before flying out of Travis Air Force Base to Vietnam. The plane stopped in Guam for a couple hours to refuel, and then landed in Pleiku, Vietnam. Originally assigned to field artillery for the 75th Ranger Battalion, he was instead flown to Camp Alpha near Saigon and assigned to the 8th Battalion, 6th Artillery in Vietnam, 1st Infantry Division. Nearly every night he had fire missions known as harassment and interdiction, where they fired at suspected Viet Cong or North Vietnamese Army at random times. After he joined the unit, they moved to Quan Loi Base Camp. There, his main job was to keep the supply line on track, but he also provided the Special Forces with gun support. Being close to the Cambodian border, Jamieson’s unit would sometimes cross into Cambodia. While on deployment, Jamieson visited Hawaii for a week for R&R. In late 1967, he finished his deployment and was processed at Dĩ An, the division’s main base camp, before being flown back to the U.S., stopping in Okinawa to refuel. He arrived in San Bernardino and took another flight to Travis Air Force Base, then another flight to Grand Rapids. After 30 days of leave, he went to Fort Meade, Maryland. Originally assigned to gun battery for the 6th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Jamieson took a shooting test and landed a spot on the 1st Army National Rifle Pistol Team. During the Vietnam protests, his unit patrolled the area surrounding the White House and Capitol. At the end of his service, he decided not to enlist. Instead, he got married and worked several odd jobs before becoming an engineer. He also worked as a training development manager and an air pressure manager. After he retired, he took up volunteer work for LZ Michigan and his son’s high school as well as teaching gun safety for the DNR.
Jamieson, Jimmy
Grand Valley State University Libraries, Special Collections & University Archives, 1 Campus Drive, Allendale, MI, 49401.
Jamison, Dwight Carson (Interview outline and video), 2015
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
Dwight Jamison was born in Big Rapids, Michigan on February 15, 1928. He served in the Michigan National Guard as a teenager and enlisted in the Army in 1946. He received his basic training at Camp Polk, Louisiana and after that was deployed to Japan. He served at a hospital in Japan during the Korean War, helping with supplies and bringing wounded soldiers from a nearby airstrip to the hospital for treatment. He was also sent to an area near Pusan, Korea to help establish a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital. In 1951 he returned to the United States after four and a half years in Japan and served at Camp Stoneman, California.
Jamison, Dwight Carson
Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)
Jamros, Edwin Francis (Interview outline and video), 2009
United States. Coast Guard
Edwin Jamros joined the US Coast Guard in 1940 because he knew the United States was going to war. After going to Ellis Island for basic training, he was assigned to the USS Joseph Dickman as an electrician's apprentice. While on the Dickman, he traveled to Africa, Australia, Italy and Scotland. His ship participated in the invasions of North Africa and Sicily. Edwin was discharged as an Electrician's Mate, First Class on May 22nd, 1945.
Jamros, Edwin Francis
Jandernoa, Donald (Interview transcript and video), 2006
Donald Jandernoa served in the Army Air Corps from 1943 to 1945. He trained as a B-24 pilot and flew missions for the 15th Air Force, based in Italy, in the later stages of the war. He describes the training process and his combat experiences in detail, including a mission on which he and his crew had to bail out along the Yugoslav coast and were rescued by local villagers. He also discusses the role of the Tuskegee airmen in protecting his unit.
Jandernoa, Donald
Janicki, Steve (Interview transcript and video), 2007
Steve Janicki served in the 126th Infantry Regiment, 32nd (Red Arrow) Division, during WW II. His history includes some colorful accounts of his joining the guard and going through basic training (he was 16 at the time, and not even shaving yet). He covers the trip to Australia by ocean liner, additional training in Australia, and the difficulties of fighting in the jungle. Illness took him out of action at Buna in New Guinea, but he rejoined his unit for some of the later battles, and tells of seeing MacArthur on Leyte in the Philippines. His history was featured in the documentary Nightmare in New Guinea.
Janicki, Steve
Jann's Guesthouse pamphlet and rates of stay
Michigan
Saugatuck (Mich.)
Allegan County (Mich.)
Bed and breakfast accommodations
Advertising fliers
Notecard advertisement for Jann's Guesthouse Bed and Breakfast featuring their rates of stay, origin in 1879, and location adjacent to 'Round the Corner Ice Cream Shoppe. In the bottom right hand corner of the advertisement are the names "Bill and Joyce Jann" and in the lefthand side there is the address of the location: 132 Mason Street Saugatuck, Michigan 49453. Phone (616) 857-8851. The pamphlet has the rates of stay listed on the interior and at the bottom there is a message describing the establishment.
Jann, Bill and Joyce
Digital file contributed by Jerri Walsh as part of the Stories of Summer project.
Copyright Undetermined
Jansen, Donald J (Interview outline and video), 2016
Donald Jansen was born in Holland, Michigan, on May 6, 1937. He graduated from Western Theological Seminary in June 1967, was ordained in September, and went on active duty at Fort Hamilton, New York, in October 1967. He was sent to Fort Bliss, Texas, to serve as the chaplain for a basic training brigade and did that until he was deployed to Vietnam in the fall of 1968. He served with the 184th Ordnance Battalion and operated out of Qui Nhon. He ministered to soldiers in his unit as well as troops in a maintenance battalion and the 84th Combat Engineers. Despite being a chaplain, he experienced ambushes on convoys, rocket and mortar attacks on the base, and sapper attacks. After Vietnam, he was sent to West Germany for three years, then returned to the United States for service at Fort McPherson, Georgia. He also served at Fort Wadsworth, New York, and in South Korea for two years. Donald served at Brooke Army Medical Center then at the main post chapel in Fort Sam Houston, Texas, before doing a final tour in West Germany with the 207th Military Intelligence Brigade. He retired in 1987.
Jansen, Donald J.
Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
Janssen, John (Interview outline and video), 2008
John Janssen was born on April 30, 1922 in Wisconsin and moved to Michigan in 1928. He graduated from high school in 1940 and joined the Marine Corps on October 29, 1941. John went through basic training in South Carolina, where they spent a lot of time marching through swamps. John then began working on an aircraft carrier as an anti-aircraft gunner and served in a series of battles in the Pacific, concluding with Okinawa. After Japan was bombed, John worked there breaking down an arsenal and taking weapons away from Japanese soldiers.
Janssen, John
Janssen, Raymond (Interview outline and video), 2008
Ray Janssen was born in Wisconsin in 1923 and then grew up on a farm in Michigan. He graduated from high school in 1942 and was drafted shortly after in 1943. Ray trained in terribly hot weather in Alabama for eight months and then trained in California for about three weeks before leaving for Australia. Ray worked with Australian civilians in supply warehouses for one year before traveling to Leyte, where he was wounded in a kamikaze attack on his ship. He recuperated on New Guinea and returned to duty in the Philippines at the end of the war, where he helped to destroy leftover supplies and munitions.
Janssen, Raymond
Jarocki, Charles (Interview outline and video), 2007
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
United States. Air Force
Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American
Charles Jarocki joined the United States Air Force in 1986 and was stationed in many different parts of the United States and Europe for eleven years. While in the Air Force, Charles received his Bachelors degree and his Masters degree in computer programming. He never experienced hands on combat because he had been called out over seas just as the Persian Gulf War was ending. Charles still works in the computer programming and engineering field and believes that the Air Force was a great experience for him.
Jarocki, Charles
Schiller-Jarocki, Elizabeth (Interviewer)
Jedlowski, Ray (Interview transcript and video), 2018
Korean War, 1950-1953—Personal narratives, American
Ray Jedlowski was born in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1942 before his family moved to Michigan where he graduated high school in Dearborn in 1962. Jedlowski’s father was in the Navy during the Second World War and gave his son plenty of exposure to military life in port even though he was not fond of the seas. Since he could not find steady work after high school, he went down to the recruitment office and decided to enlist into the Air Force. He was then sent to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, for Basic Training before graduating onto Amarillo Air Force Base for technical school and administrative training. Jedlowski was then stationed at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland as a Civil Engineer. He recalled how the base went into lockdown following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. In 1965, he was deployed to Vietnam and was stationed at Pleiku Air Base near Saigon. Shortly after his arrival, the base experienced a small skirmish, but the new arrivals were not overly concerned for their safety. Jedlowski’s unit was tasked with constructing billets and lodging for the First Cavalry Division after its arrival near Pleiku. At the end of his tour, Jedlowski was relieved to go home and was flown to Hawaii and then back to Andrews Air Force Base where he was formally discharged in 1966. Back home, Jedlowski described the ‘chip’ effect where he was physically at home, but his mind was still as paranoid, wired, and irritable as he was in Vietnam. Disappointed with how the war was escalating and how some Americans looked to dodge the draft, he refused to watch the news, but was still proud of his contribution to the war effort. He was disappointed that presidents Nixon and Ford abandoned the war so quickly and that, combined with the intensified anti-war protests at home, the U.S. war effort fell apart. He was also conflicted by the construction of the Vietnam “Wall” Veterans Memorial in 1982 in Washington D.C. since he thought the sincerity of the project was mixed. After the end of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, Jedlowski thought the U.S. military and government did a far better job of handling the war effort than during Vietnam. However, Jedlowski is grateful that the general, domestic attitude toward veterans of the Vietnam War has changed for the better.
Jedlowski, Ray
Jefferson, James (Interview outline and video), 2008
Merchant mariner
Merchant marine--United States
James Jefferson was born in New Jersey on July 13, 1924 and grew up in an integrated community. After high school James joined the Merchant Marines and was trained on Hoffman Island in New York Harbor. He enjoyed the training and did not feel discriminated against there, despite being the only black man in his class. When he signed aboard his first ship, however, he had to deal with a racist chief engineer who tried and failed to keep him off the ship. He describes some of his experiences in sailing around the world during and after World War II.
Jefferson, James
Jelsema, Harry (Interview outline and video), 2008
Harry Jelsema was born to a farmer in Allegan, Michigan and served in the Army during World War II. He was drafted in 1944, and sent to basic training and after that to Europe, where he was a bazooka man. He fought in Northern France, Belgium, and Northern Germany, eventually meeting the Soviets. He was then shipped back to the US and was supposed to go to Japan, but the war ended before this could happen. He worked a desk job at Fort Carson, Colorado until he was discharged in 1946.
Jelsema, Harry
Jeltema, Richard (Interview outline and video), 2009
Richard Jeltema was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in December 1927. He enlisted in the Navy during high school. Richard chose to go into the submarine service and was stationed in New London, Connecticut. He was assigned to a submarine in Pearl Harbor and went to places like Guam, Okinawa, Australia, China and Russia between 1947and 1948. While working on the sub Richard was a mechanic in the auxiliary systems room. The sub mostly patrolled, but on one occasion searched for mines off the coast of Russia.
Jeltema, Richard
COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020
Epidemics
Grand Valley State University
College students
Journal of GVSU student Jodilyn Jenkins of her experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jenkins, Jodilyn
University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project
Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives.
Jenkins, Marilyn M. (Interview transcript and video), 2008
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League--Personal narratives
Baseball for women--United States
Baseball
Sports for women
World War, 1939-1945
Baseball players--Michigan
Women
Marilyn Jenkins was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1934. She grew up in Grand Rapids and played baseball with family and friends, and played softball with the neighborhood kids. When the Grand Rapids Chicks arrived in 1945, she talked her way into a job with the team and quickly became their batgirl, a job she held through the 1951 season. She played as a batgirl from 1945 thru 1951. Upon graduating high school in 1952, she became eligible to play in the All American Girls Professional Baseball League and went on to play with the Grand Rapids Chicks from 1952 to 1954 as a catcher.
Jenkins, Marilyn
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Collection, (RHC-55)
Jennings, Stuart (Interview outline and video), 2007
Stuart Jennings was born during the beginning of the Depression in Michigan. He said that growing up through that taught him to share, to do things on his own and to treat people well. After graduation Stuart became a cadet in the Army Air Corps in Texas and eventually a Barracks Corporal in the Air Corps. Stuart never experienced combat or went overseas. His job was to fly wounded men back and forth from hospitals in the United States. After his time in the service, Stuart got involved in the post-war house building boom after the war. The business allowed him to make a good living and travel.
Jennings, Stuart
Vitae sanctorum patrum, Sive Vitas patrum [folium 145]
Incunabula
Printing 1450-1500
One leaf from Vitae sanctorum patrum, Sive Vitas patrum by Hieronymus. Printed in Strassburg by the Printer of the “Antichristus” (Heinrich Eggestein) circa 1482. [GW M50968; ISTC ih00222000]
Jerome, Saint, d. 419 or 20
Seidman Rare Books Collection
Strassburg: Printer of the “Antichristus” (Heinrich Eggestein)
No Copyright - United States
Vitae sanctorum patrum, sive Vitas partum. [Italian] Vite de sancti padri [folium 185]
One leaf from Vitae sanctorum patrum, sive Vitas partum [Italian] Vite de sancti padri, by Hieronymous. Printed in Venice by Gabriele di Pietro not after 1474. Illustrated with red and blue rubricated initials. [GW M50938; ISTC ih00228300]
Jerzyk, Benjamin (Interview outline and video), 2014
Ben Jerzyk born in 1945 in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. He was the oldest of eight other children and his father was a World War Two veteran. He attended college and trained as a physical therapist and was drafted into the Army in June 1967. He trained as a medic at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. He was deployed to Vietnam in mid-December of 1967 and was stationed at Cat Lai with the 133rd Medical Detachment Company. He spent eleven months in Vietnam during which time he lived through the Tet Offensive in early 1968. After returning home from Vietnam he completed his service at Fort Carson, Colorado in early 1969.
Jerzyk, Benjamin