Zheutlin, Bertam (Interview outline and video), 2007
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
Bertam Zheutlin served in the medical corps during WW II. Still in medical school when the war broke out, Zheutlin recounts what it was like to be a civilian waiting to go to war, as well as his experiences as a doctor during the war and the training he underwent. Zheutlin also talks about the psychological after effects of war and of a relative who had escaped a concentration camp in Poland and become a guerilla.
Zheutlin, Bertam
Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
Forest Hills Eastern High School (Ada, Mich.)
In Copyright
Ziebart, Kenneth (Interview transcript and video), 2017
United States—History, Military
World War, 1939-1945—Personal narratives, American
Kenneth Ziebart was born on May 23, 1928 in St. Joseph, Michigan. Ziebart’s family owned a farm and his father lost his job as a butcher during the Great Depression. He recalled hearing about the attack on Pearl Harbor over the radio when a newscast interrupted the football broadcast he was listening to. Since they owned a farm, Ziebart’s family received larger quantities of gas through wartime rationing. After missing the final draft for the Second World War, Ziebart was drafted for service during the Korean War in November of 1950. He attended Basic Training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, where he was instructed by personnel that were younger than the recruits in training. After basic training, Ziebart was sent to Beale Air Force Base in California where he received basic instruction on machinery and light engineer work before being shipped to Busan, Korea in November of 1951. In Korea, he was stationed at an airbase as a crane oiler and was later sent to another base outside Seoul where he worked in mechanized excavation. He recalled how, one night, an enemy aircraft flew over the base and dropped small bombs near the airfield, forcing Ziebart and the engineers to fill in the holes in the runway for American planes to land safely. Nonetheless, both bases saw little combat action, theft, or sabotage during his tour in Korea. He also recalled supervising a group of Korean laborers who he described as incredibly hard-working. There were approximately 85% African American personnel in the engineering units Ziebart worked with, which surprised him. He also visited Japan while on leave for a week during which the Japanese were exceptionally nice to their American guests. Toward the end of his enlistment, Ziebart was shipped back to the United States and was officially discharged at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin. When he returned home, he acquired a job for a photographing company. Reflecting upon his time in the service, Ziebart believed he received a quality technical education as well as a greater appreciation for life in the United States.
Ziebart, Kenneth
Grand Valley State University Libraries, Special Collections & University Archives, 1 Campus Drive, Allendale, MI, 49401.
Zietlow, Myrtle (Interview outline and video), 2009
United States. Army Air Corps
Women
Myrtle Zietlow was born outside of Chicago in 1921. She attended the University of Illinois, and after graduating she went to work for Pratt and Whitney in Connecticut, where they made aircraft engines. She tells her own story as well as that of her husband, George, who served in the U.S. Army Air Corps from 1943 to 1945.
Zietlow, Myrtle
Caledonia High School (Caledonia, Mich.)
Zimmerman, Leo (Interview outline and video), 2011
Leo Zimmerman of Grand Rapids, Michigan, waited to be drafted before joining the Army in 1943 during World War II. Leo received his training in wheeled vehicle maintenance and repair in Camp Worth, Texas. His first deployment was to Italy in 1944 where he served with a replacement depot until the war ended in May 1945, driving with supply convoys between Naples and the Po Valley and performing other duties. After the war ended in Europe, Leo was transferred to the 109th Ordnance Company and shipped out to the Philippines to start servicing vehicles. He was stationed in the Philippines during the bombing of Hiroshima, and was sent to Japan shortly after to perform maintenance duties and gained further experience in welding. Leo left the military in April 1946.
Zimmerman, Leo
Zipay, Sue (Interview transcript and video), 2017
Sports for women
All-American Girls Professional Baseball League--Personal narratives
Baseball players--Michigan
Baseball for women--United States
Sue Zipay was born in Medford, Massachusetts, in 1934 and grew up in Hingham. In grade school, Zipay recalled the wartime rationing, blackouts, and public celebrations at the end of the Second World War. In high school, she played for a Catholic Youth Organization basketball team, and a softball team as a shortstop, before graduating in 1952. After undergoing a tryout for AAGPBL Rockford Peaches chaperone Dottie Green, Zipay was contracted to play for the team during the 1953 season and attended spring training in South Bend, Indiana. Zipay did not have a set position with the Peaches, so she could be placed into any empty field position while also coaching first and third bases while not on the field. The team was forbidden to wear pants, smoke, swear, or have long hair while in public as to still give off a feminine appearance while not on the field. After acquiring a winter job, Zipay returned to the Rockford Peaches for the 1954 season and eventually learned that the League was being disbanded at the end of the season. Some of her colleagues went on to play for a new traveling team while Zipay got married and started a family. After having three children, she recognized that she could not return to any baseball programs and remained committed to serving her family while also taking up tennis in her spare time. Still interested in athletics, Zipay became a ranked tennis player in New England and attended Vic Braden School in California for a degree in teaching. She then moved to Florida and opened a tennis club, joined the Women's Baseball League Association, and helped organize plans for the construction of a women's baseball museum. Reflecting upon her time with the League, Zipay believed she gained a greater sense of confidence and camaraderie while playing for the Rockford Peaches.
Zipay, Sue
Veterans History Project collection, RHC-27
Renee Zita (Audio interview and transcript) 2018
Michigan
Saugatuck (Mich.)
Allegan County (Mich.)
Beaches
Outdoor recreation
Dance halls
Audio recordings
Renee Zita was born and raised in Chicago. In this interview, she recounts spending several weeks of every summer in the family cottage on Park Street in Saugatuck. As her own family grew, Renee remembers bringing her own children to the family home and ultimately deciding to become a full-time resident of Saugatuck.
Zita, Renee
Stories of Summer project, Kutsche Office of Local History. Grand Valley State University
Stories of Summer (Common Heritage project)
Zulauf, Michael (Interview outline and video), 2011
United States. Air Force
Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American
Michael Zulauf reported for duty to the United States Air Force Academy on July 1st 2004, just a month after graduating from high school in Muskegon, Michigan. In his interview, Zulauf offers a detailed description of his experiences as a student there, as well as in assignments in Alaska, Korea, and at the Coast Guard Academy. Zulauf was permitted medical retirement from the Air Force Academy after graduating in 2008 and is now attending Grand Valley State University pursuing a master's degree in education.
Zulauf, Michael
Zuverink, Gordon (Interview transcript and video), 2011
Gordon Zuverink joined his local National Guard unit in Holland, Michigan, after graduating from high school in 1939. His unit was federalized in 1940 and sent to train in Louisiana. In 1942, his division was sent to Australia and then to New Guinea. Zuverink became one of the "Ghost Mountain Boys" who trekked across the Owen Stanley Mountains as part of the campaign against Buna. During the campaign, he contracted malaria and was sent back to Australia, where he served for the remainder of the war.
Zuverink, Gordon
Zwart, Brian (Interview outline and video), 2013
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
Brian Zwart was born on in 1985 in Grand Haven, Michigan, and grew up in that area. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2002, trained at San Diego and Camp Pendleton, and became a Light Armored Vehicle crewman in the 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion of the 1st Marine Division, and deployed with them to Iraq in 2004. He spent his tour in Anbar Province, primarily trying to guard the frontier against insurgents. He returned for a second tour in 2005, this time providing security for different commanders in Anbar Province, and was discharged in 2007.
Zwart, Brian
Zylstra, David B (Interview outline and video), 2015
David Zylstra was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1924. In August 1943 he received his draft notice. He was processed at Fort Custer, Michigan and accepted into the Army Specialized Training Program. He received basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia and then went to Brooklyn College, New York for the ASTP engineering course. When the ASTP was cancelled he was sent to join the 75th Infantry Division on their maneuvres in Texas and Louisiana in spring 1944. He was assigned to M Company of the 291st Infantry Regiment and received heavy weapons training. The division left the United States in fall 1944 and arrived at Swansea, Wales on November 2, 1944. In December 1944 the 75th went to France and arrived at Le Havre on December 13, 1944. David saw action in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge, in the Netherlands, and in the Ruhr Pocket during the advance into Germany in spring 1945. At the end of the war he was in Westphalia, Germany and Camp New York, France helping with the processing of GIs, German prisoners of war, and the Information and Education Office for the American Universities in England and France. He also attended the American University in Biarritz, France. He returned to the United States after nine months of occupation duty and got discharged on March 10, 1946 at Camp Atterbury, Indiana.
Zylstra, David B.
Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
Zysk, George (Interview outline and video), 2007
George Zysk served in the 126th Infantry Regiment, 32nd (Red Arrow) Infantry Division on New Guinea and in the Philippines during WW II fighter. In the Philippines, he was on board a ship that was hit by a kamikaze. He speaks critically of Gen. MacArthur but highly of the men he served with.
Zysk, George
Indians of North America -- Michigan -- Periodicals
Indians of North America
Michigan -- Grand Rapids
All Indian Pow-Wow flyer, Northport MI, June 25-27, 1971, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Authentic Indian Ceremonial, September ????
Authentic Indian Ceremonial flyer, Petoskey MI, September 4-5, ????, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Circle Pines Anishnawbe Pow Wow, October 1986
Circle Pines Anishnawbe Pow Wow flyer, Gun Lake MI, October 9-12, 1986, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Dance Prize List, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Frontier City Indian Pow Wow, August ????
Frontier City Indian Pow Wow flyer, Frontier City MI, August 17-18, ????, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Annual Headland Pow-Wow flyer, Mackinaw City MI, July 7, 1979, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Annual Traditional Pow-Wow flyer, July 26, ???? collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Honor the Sacred Fire Keweenaw Bay Spiritual Conferences, July 1988
Honor the Sacred Fire Keweenaw Bay Spiritual Conferences flyer, July 21, 1988, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Saginaw Chippewa Tribe Ceremonial Honoring Little Elk, August 1984
Saginaw Chippewa Tribe Ceremonial Honoring Little Elk flyer, Mt. Pleasant MI, August 3-5, 1984, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Michigan Indian Community Celebration, March 1985
Michigan Indian Community Celebration flyer, Warren MI, March 15, 1985, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Annual Lansing Pow Wow Traditional flyer, Dewitt MI, June 20-21, 1992, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Leelanau Indian Pow-Wow flyer, Peshawbestown MI, August 28-29, 1976, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.
Annual Little Elk Retreat Pow-Wow, August 1987
Annual Little Elk Retreat Pow-Wow program, August 8-9, 1987, collected by Edward Gillis included as part of his Native American publication collection.