Vasquez, Fidencio (audio interview and transcript)
Oceana County (Mich.)
Hart (Mich.)
Farms
Fruit growers
Agricultural exhibitions
Grocery trade
Audio recordings
Oral history interview with Fidencio Vasquez, Jr., the second. Interviewed by Norma Gonzalez Buenrostro on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Fidencio Vasquez, Jr., the second, was born in Edinburg, Texas in 1955. The son of two Mexican immigrants, Fidencio and his family moved to Hart, Michigan when Fidencio was ten days old. Throughout his life, Fidencio worked for many different businesses throughout Michigan, including the local Hart fair, many fruit farms, grocery stores, and labor services.
Vasquez, Fidencio
Growing Community (NEH Common Heritage)
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
Gonzalez Buenrostro, Norma (interviewer)
In Copyright
VanSickle, Larry (audio interview and transcript)
Farmers
Dairy farmers
Pennsylvania Dutch
Michigan State University
Oral history interview with Lawrence (Larry) VanSickle. Interviewed by Walter Urick on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Larry VanSickle was born in Hart, Michigan in 1943 and grew up on a one hundred and twenty acre farm located on East Polk Road, which he later purchased from his father upon getting married in 1965. His family is of Pennsylvania Dutch heritage and each of the generations were involved with agriculture. Larry graduated from Hart High School in 1961 and then attended Michigan State University. After marrying his wife in 1965, he became a full-time farmer by taking over his father’s farm, and later focused on farming his one hundred and twenty-five acres of asparagus that will one day be taken over by his son.
VanSickle, Larry
Spencer, Jerry (audio interview and transcript)
Agricultural engineering
Agricultural mechanics
Oral history interview with Jerry Spencer. Interviewed by Walter Urick on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Jerry Spencer was born in Hart, Michigan in 1932, as the only child of a farming family in Oceana County. He grew up on a thirty-six acre dairy and fruit farm that was passed down the generations from his grandfather. He graduated from Hart High School in 1950, studied Agricultural Engineering and Agricultural Mechanics at Michigan State University, and later married and worked at FMC Corporation before serving as a County Commissioner for Oceana County.
Spencer, Jerry
Riley, John and Wilma (audio interview and transcript)
Oral history interview with John and Wilma Riley. Interviewed by Alan Moul on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. John Riley was born in Hart, Michigan in 1928, as the grandson of two Canadian immigrants. He grew up on their family farm and was a lifetime fruit grower in Oceana County. He graduated from Hart High School in 1946 and went straight into the U.S. Army Service after school, before marrying his wife of 67 years, Wilma Riley.
Riley, John
Riley, Wilma
Moul, Esther (audio interview and transcript)
Nursing
Oak Park (Ill.)
Wheaton College (Ill.)
Butterworth Hospital (Grand Rapids, Mich.)
Oral history interview with Esther M. Moul. Interviewed by her son, Alan Moul, on May 27 and 29, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Esther May Gilliland Moul was born in 1931 into a farming family located in Hart, Michigan. Her great-great-grandfather was the first Gilliland in Oceana County dating back to 1873 and the Gilliland family farm became a centennial farm in Hart, Michigan. She holds many memories of her life growing up on the farm: how they received their fruit trees from Hawley Nursery, stories of Dr. Munger who was known as the “Cherry King,” and life during World War Two. Esther graduated from high school in 1948 and went on to pursue nursing in Oak Park, Illinois at the West Suburban Hospital School of Nursing which was affiliated with Wheaton College. She married Leonard Moul in 1952 and worked at Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids while starting a family there. They later relocated their family to the fruit farm across the street from her parents in Hart, Michigan and were able to raise their sons with the same agricultural traditions that were a part of their family’s heritage.
Moul, Esther
Luevano, Estevan (audio interview and transcript)
Migrant agricultural laborers
Oral history interview with Estevan Luevano. Interviewed by Andrew Schlewitz on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English and Spanish language. Estevan Luevano was born in San Juan, Texas in 1967 as the son of two Mexican parents who migrated to Michigan for work each year. Throughout his life, he and his family were a part of the agricultural heritage of both places, and they settled in Michigan in 1981 and decided to stay. Estevan graduated from Walkerville High School in 1986 and studied diesel engines at the vocational center, which later helped him as he started his career as a semi-truck driver for his family’s business and later working as a mechanic. He ended up moving to Hesperia, Michigan in 1992 where he bought his first home and later started a family.
Luevano, Estevan
Hawley, Edward and Gretchen (audio interview and transcript)
Nursery growers
Chicago Theological Seminary
University of Chicago
Oral history interview with Edward A. Hawley and Gretchen Hawley. Interviewed by Nora Salas and Paul Kutsche on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Edward Adair Hawley was born in Hart Township, Michigan in 1923. He graduated from Hart High School in 1941, followed by Michigan State University in 1944, and a joint degree from Chicago Theological Seminary and the University of Chicago in 1949. Edward married his wife, Gretchen Hahn Hawley, in 1958 and was a part of the family business known as Hawley Nursery, which played an important role in the agricultural heritage of Oceana County and was responsible for producing a high percentage of all the fruit trees in the county and the west shore of Lake Michigan.
Hawley, Edward
Hawley, Gretchen
Fuehring, Carl (audio interview and transcript)
Christmas tree growing
Oral history interview with Carl Fuehring. Interviewed by Alan Moul on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Carl Fuehring was born into a fruit and Christmas tree growing family in the Crystal Lake area of Hart, Michigan. He spent his youth helping around the farm and later went on to study Administration Teaching and School Administration at Michigan State University.
Fuehring, Carl
Dold, Ralph (audio interview and transcript)
Detroit (Mich.)
Future Farmers of America
Oral history interview with Ralph Dold. Interviewed by Kimberly McKee on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Ralph Dold was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1931 as the son of first and second generation German immigrants. His childhood was spent in Detroit during the Great Depression before moving to Milford, Michigan for high school. Ralph later attended Michigan State University and majored in “Crops & Soils” after being a member of the Future Farmers of America while in high school. After graduating from college and serving in the army, he relocated to Hart, Michigan in 1957 where he served as the 4-H Agent and later worked for Farm Bureau Services.
Dold, Ralph
Byl, Larry (audio interview and transcript)
Shelby (Mich.)
Hope College
Oral history interview with Lawrence (Larry) Byl. Interviewed by Walter Urick on June 18, 2016 in Hart, Michigan. English language. Larry Byl was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1957 as the son of two Dutch immigrants. Larry and his family moved to western Oceana County in 1966 and created a life for their family on their eighty-acre fruit farm, which over the years grew to become a three-hundred-acre farm. He attended Shelby High School where he took Future Farmers of America classes, and later graduated from Hope College in Holland, Michigan before finding his life’s work in real estate. Larry also served many years as County Commissioner and Village President for his community of Shelby, Michigan.
Byl, Larry
Urick, Walter (audio interview and summary)
Oceana Historical Society
First generation
Belarus
Chicago
President Roosevelt
World War
Hart
Dairy farm
Dry cleaning
Cherries
Pickles
Hart Cherry Packers
Church
Debate
Law school
Vietnam
Prosecutor
Family court judge
Law
Real estate
Teacher
Self-recorded interview by Walter Urick, May 26, 2016. English language recording. Summary in English and Spanish. Walter was born on June 3, 1939. He is a first generation American, as his father grew up in Belarus and his mother in Poland. Walter has two sisters, Mary and Lola, and one brother, John. His family moved to Hart in 1940, and after World War II his father started Urick Dry Cleaners in Hart. For a number of years, Walter picked strawberries, cherries, and pickles at farms in the area. When he was 16 years old, he got his first formal job working for Hart Cherry Packers. In high school, Walter was involved in sports, drama, and the debate program, and he graduated in 1957. He went on to Albion College and then to law school at the University of Michigan, graduating in 1964. On January 1, 1965 Walter became the Oceana County Prosecuting Attorney and held that role for six years. He met his wife, Karen, and they were married on August 26, 1967. They have had three children together. During that time, Walter was recruiting young lawyers and eventually became partners with Tony Monton. He then was the family court judge for Oceana County for 18 years. Overall, Walter had a 42-year career practicing law. Now that he is retired, he is active in his tennis club, rotary club, church, the Oceana Singers, and is president of the Oceana Historical Society.
Urick, Walter
Robbins, Russell (audio interview and summary)
Dr. Munger
Cherry farming operations
Automotive
Juniper Beach
Discrimination
Cherry shaker program
Tourist business
Agribusiness
Oral history interview with Russell Robbins. Interviewed by Walter Urick. February 19, 2016. English language recording. Summary in English and Spanish. Russell Robbins was born in September of 1941 in Hart, Michigan. He is the son of Mason and Dorothy Robbins. During the summers from 1950 to 1960, he worked with his dad in Doctor Munger’s cherry farming. Russell was highly involved in the cherry operations in various capacities, such as trimming trees, selling snacks to field workers, beginning the cherry shaker program, and more. He took over a gas station in 1960, and then from 1965 to 1972 he ran a Dodge car dealership. In 1971 he started teaching part-time at West Shore Community College as an automotive instructor. Later, he had an independent shop until 2003. He then got involved in the Hart Historic District as a volunteer, enjoying a very rewarding experience there.
Robbins, Russell
Reyes, America (audio interview and summary)
El Realito
Tamaulipas
Mexico
San Antonio
Texas
Factory
Asparagus
Marriage
Farming
Winter
Michigan Freeze Pack
Insurance
Season
Oral history interview with America Reyes. Interviewed by Penny Burillo. Spanish language recording. Summary in English and Spanish. February 11, 2016. América Reyes was born in El Realito, Tamaulipas, Mexico. She lived in Mexico for all of her childhood. She came to the United States when she was 22 years old and lived in Dallas, Texas. She married there and had two sons and one daughter. In 1997, América and her mother and brothers came to Walkerville, Michigan. They began working as migrants, picking vegetables in the fields. América now works at Michigan Freeze Pack. She wants to stay in Michigan in the future.
Reyes, America
Ortega, German (audio interview, Spanish transcript, and English translation)
Migrant
Agriculture
Hispanic
Puerta de Mangos
Grand Rapids (Mich.)
Peaches
Naturalization
Oral history interview with German Ortega. Interviewed by Penny Burillo. Hart, Michigan. Spanish language. June 18, 2016.
Ortega, German
Gonzalez, Norma Buenostro (audio interview and summary)
Holland (Mich.)
Deported
La Probadita
Mexican store
Migrants
Hart Main Street Program
Oceana Hispanic Center
Immigrant
Self-recorded interview by Norma Buenrostro Gonzalez, May 18, 2016. Norma’s parents are originally from Michoacán, Mexico. Her family came to the United States in 1999, and she grew up in Holland, Michigan. Later, Norma and her older sister moved to Oceana County to live with their aunt and uncle, who own a Mexican store named La Probadita in downtown Hart. As Norma’s family never worked as migrants or pickers while she grew up, she was astonished by how big the agricultural business was in Hart. Norma has spent time volunteering with the Hart Main Street Program, the Oceana Hispanic Center, and her church. She hopes to see more positive relationships built between farmers and workers in the future.
Gonzalez, Norma Buenostro
Giles, Diana (audio interview and summary)
English
Settled
Oral history interview with Diana Giles. Interviewed by Norma Gonzalez Buenrostro. English language recording. Summary in English and Spanish. May 17, 2016. Diana grew up in Hart, Michigan. Her family moved to Oceana County in 2002 when she was five years old. Her parents were migrant workers who were recruited to work in Oceana’s agriculture business. Diana and her family were the first Hispanics that settled in the area. Her parents had agricultural and factory jobs there. When Diana was 9 years old, she began working along with her parents, experiencing what it was like to do labor work. Diana is currently a community health worker at a migrant clinic. She is studying to be a nurse and a respiratory care therapist.
Giles, Diana
Brandel, Jerry (audio interview and summary)
Fruit farm
Christmas trees
Milk cows
Cherry orchard
Interest rate
Acres
Non-Hispanic
African American
Farming challenges
Housing
Oral history interview with Jerry Brandel, Hart, Michigan. Interviewed by Walter Urick. English language recording. Summary in English and Spanish. February 12, 2016. Jerry Brandel was born on February 28, 1945 in Muskegon, Michigan. That year, his family moved to Hart, Michigan, and bought a fruit farm. He graduated from Hart High School in 1963 and then went on to Michigan State University to take a two-year agricultural course. After his schooling, he went into partnership for ten years with his father and brother, where they farmed cherries, apples, peaches, and Christmas trees. In 1975, Jerry decided to begin farming on his own, and he started growing pickles in Oceana and Mexico. Years later, he entered into the broker business, selling pickle crops for other farmers across the country. Jerry has two sons and one daughter, and he has now lived in the Oceana County area for 70 years.
Brandel, Jerry
Walsworth, Richard (audio interview, English transcription and Spanish translation)
Immigration Policy
Industry
North American Free Trade Agreement (1992 December 17)
Oral history interview with Richard Walsworth. Interviewed by Phil Carter. Hart, Michigan. English language. June 18, 2016. Dick Walsworth is a local farmer from Oceana County. His life story highlights the challenges of maintaining his agricultural business, largely the asparagus industry, viable and competitive with the challenge of emerging global market forces. In this interview, Walsworth shares his testimony of the social, cultural, technologic, and industrial changes that have occurred in the Oceana area since his youth. This rich historical account from the perspective of a local farmer with a lifetime of experience in the agricultural world depicts the challenges ahead in the future to keep our farms and vegetables production alive. To this Walsworth declares that the future depends on migrant labor which is becoming increasingly short on supply since "the next generations are at least getting a high school education [...] they're not going to do field work." Walsworth also shares his deep concern with immigration policy, or lack of governmental policy, that makes it harder on local businesses to keep their labor flow steady and consistent compared to the needs of the industry in a state and national level.
Walsworth, Richard
Grand Valley State University. Kutsche Office of Local History
Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
"Growing Community" (NEH Common Heritage)
Correspondence
Letter written by S. O. Field describing his visit to Norway, where he was born. Published in the local newspaper, Shelby, Michigan.
Field, S. O.
Peterson, Marjorie (Field)
No Copyright - United States
Growing Community (NEH Common Heritage Project)
"Success Without a Mortgage: A Thrifty Norwegian's Way," circa 1900
Article published in the local Shelby newspaper discussing S. O. Field's (great grandfather of Marge Peterson) success at financing their farm. Article accompanies Peterson_Marge-006.jpg
Letter from S.O. Field published in the local Shelby, Michigan paper describing why he decided to leave Michigan and move back to Norway, the country of his birth.
"Prepare for Invasion by Pest Enemies: M.C. Field and Area Associates have Real Defense Against Enemy Horde"
Article published in local Shelby, Michigan newspaper highlighting where to purchase pesticides in the area, including M.C. Field Company.
Unknown
"Save Your Crop With Insecticides and Fungicides!"
Advertisement in Shelby, Michigan newspaper for insecticides sold by M.C. Field. S.O. Field, Marge's great grandfather owned a share of that company, as did her grandparents Anton and Abba Field. Company was located in downtown Shelby.
Business Card for Red Arrow Orchards, owned by Anton and Abba Field. "Growers and shippers of all kinds."
Red Arrow Orchards