Jews--United States
Muskegon (Mich.)
Detroit free press
Centennial celebrations, etc.
Newspaper clipping from the Detroit Free Press of an article about Temple B'nai Israel's centennial celebration.
Detroit Free Press
Digital file contributed by the B'nai Israel Temple as part of the L'dor V'dor project.
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
In Copyright
Raymond Foster (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Michigan
Saugatuck (Mich.)
Douglas (Mich.)
Holland (Mich.)
Allegan County (Mich.)
Outdoor recreation
Beaches
Music festivals
Motorcycle gangs
Oral history
Audio recordings
Ray Foster grew up on a family farm near Douglas, Michigan. In this interivew, Foster remembers the motorcycle gangs driving through town during summer holiday weekends, the rock music festival in 1968, and the Saugatuck Jazz Festival.
Foster, Raymond Edward
Stories of Summer project, Kutsche Office of Local History. Grand Valley State University
Stories of Summer (Common Heritage project)
Jane Underwood (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Sailing
Jane Underwood's grandparents and father came to Saugatuck during the summertime. They stayed in a hotel in Macatawa before buying property in Saugatuck. In this interview, Jane reflects on her own experiences summering and sailing in the area and then moving to Saugatuck during her retirement.
Underwood, Jane
Dawn Schumann (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Religious camps
Ferries
Gay men
Sexual minorities
Historic preservation
In this interview, Dawn Schumann reflects on the changes in Saugatuck-Douglas from when her parents and grandparents arrived to the area through her time working with the Historical Society.
Schumann, Dawn Schwartz Follett Goshorn
Mark Randal (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Sand dunes
Mark Randall grew up in Orland Park, near Chicago, in the 1950s. In this interview, Randall recalls visiting Saugatuck in his youth and living there as an adult.
Randall, Mark
Karen Morgan (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Karen Morgan moved to the Saugatuck area after she graduated from high school and began waitressing at the new West Point restaurant in the 1960s. In this interview, Karen reminisces about her young adulthood in Saugatuck.
Morgan, Karen
Paola Doyle (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Paola Doyle was raised in Oak Park and Oakbrook, Illinois and spent her childhood summers in Saugatuck. In this interview, Paola remembers visiting her grandparents' cottage near Mt. Baldhead during the summers as a child, and bringing her own children to Saugatuck during the summers as an adult.
Doyle, Paola
Ray Diffenderfer (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Ray Diffenderfer's grandparents were among the first to own land near Mt. Baldhead, where they built a cottage in the early 1920s. In this article, Ray reminisces about spending summers of his youth at the cottage and swimming at the beach in the 1950s and 1960s.
Diffenderfer, Ray
Neil Atherton (Audio interview and transcript), 2018
Neil Atherton grew up in Illinois near Milwaukee and came to Saugatuck in the early 1980s. He and his partner Jim Yarro operated the gift shop Hoopdee Scootee from 1982 to 2016. In this interview, Atherton reminisces about Hoopdee Scootee, creative advertising, the art community, and being openly gay in a small town.
Atherton, Neil D.
Collins, Frank M (Interview outline), 2015
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
United States. Air Force
Frank Collins was born in Manistee, Michigan on July 4, 1933. After his mother died and his father moved to California he enlisted in the Air Force in 1952. He received basic training and went to Personnel School. During the Korean War he was deployed to Korea and worked in records. He processed North Korean prisoners of war and also spent a month monitoring the train and aircraft movements of the North Koreans. He stayed in the Air Force until 1963 then went on to serve in the Air National Guard.
Collins, Frank M.
Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)
Grand Valley State University Libraries. Allendale, Michigan
Katona, David Ferenc (Interview outline), 2015
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
David Katona was born in 1989. When he was 17 years old he enlisted in the Marines and when he turned 18 he reported for basic training. He did a tour in Afghanistan from 2008 to 2009 and was stationed in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan at a base 30 miles from the Pakistani border. During his time in Afghanistan he carried out patrols and engaged enemy forces in the area. After the tour in Afghanistan he returned to the United States at North Carolina and was discharged sometime after that and before U.S. involvement in Afghanistan ended in 2014.
Katona, David Ferenc
Jousma, Darin Richard (Interview outline), 2015
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
Darin Jousma enlisted in the Army in the summer of 1997 after graduating from high school. He served in Bosnia in 1998 as part of a peacekeeping force helping with the confiscation of weapons and stopping Serbian forces from moving weaponry and ordnance around the country. He was stationed in Kuwait in 2004. He spent a few years at Fort Riley, Kansas with the 2nd Battalion, 78th Armored Regimant and worked as a commander's driver. As of the time of the interview he is in the Michigan National Guard with the rank of 2nd lieutenant and expects to be promoted to 1st lieutenant.
Jousma, Darin Richard
Kooy, Wayne John (Interview outline), 2015
Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American
Wayne Kooy was born in Lansing, Illinois on April 26th, 1932. He was drafted in March of 1955 and had basic training in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. In the Army he used his electrical engineering skills to craft and maintain meteorological devices in White Sands, New Mexico. With his time in the military he achieved the rank of E2 at his highest ranking.
Kooy, Wayne John
Saunder, Richard George (Interview outline), 2015
Richard Saunders was born on January 25, 1930 in Plymouth, England. He attended school until he began to work for the railroad at age fifteen. Richard was eventually drafted into the British Army and worked in the army postal service. His particular duties required him to frequently travel between Germany and Holland. After leaving the military in 1951, Richard returned to work on the railroad. In 1969, Richard moved to the United States where he worked for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway until his retirement in 1992.
Saunders, Richard George
Floyd "Bud" Hall enlisted in the United States Navy at age 16. After a short time in air-sea rescue, Floyd decided to join the paratroopers. He describes the paratrooper training process and the numerous practice jumps that were required. Floyd was eventually sent to Korea in 1952 and served as a tank commander until the end of the conflict in 1953.
Hall, Floyd
Knott, Andrew Thomas (Interview outline), 2015
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
Andrew Knott was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on September 5th, 1940. In July of 1961 he was drafted in the period just before the Vietnam War. Entering the Army, he was sent to Fort Knox, Kentucky for basic training and Fort Carson, Colorado for artillery training. In the 5th Infantry Division he was a cook. In his time in the military he went on several maneuvers and experienced the threat of the Cuban Missile Crisis. In July 1963 he was discharged and left the military.
Knott, Andrew Thomas
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
United States. Navy
Ray Pell was born in Fremont, Michigan on March 20, 1927. He grew up there and completed high school when he was seventeen and enlisted in the Navy prior to graduating. He received training at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois and amphibious training in San Bruno, California. When the war ended due to the atomic bombs being dropped, he was assigned to a hospital ship. He went on two cruises aboard the hospital ship, the first one to Guam and the Philippines and the second just to Guam.
Pell, Ray
Farano, Rocco J. (Interview audio and outline), 2007
Rocco J. Farano (Rocky), of Troy, NY served in the 36th Infantry Division during the WW II from 1943-1946. He saw action in Sicily, Italy, and later served in France, Belgium and Germany. Most of the interview focuses on combat in Italy, where he led a patrol that captured a German platoon, and was later wounded. Upon recovery, he was transferred to the Army Air Corps and completed his service with them.
Farano, Rocco J.
Forest Hills Eastern High School (Ada, Mich.)
Benjamin, Edward Claire (Interview outline and audio), 2013
Edward Benjamin was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in December in either the late 1910s or early 1920s. He grew up in Grand Rapids and in spring 1942 he enlisted in the Army to serve as a dentist. He reported to Chicago on May 2, 1942 and was assigned to Fort Custer, Michigan for basic training. From December 1, 1942 to November 1944 he served at Fort Sheridan, Illinois then Camp Myles Standish, Massachusetts then Fort Custer again. In December 1944 he boarded a ship in Virginia and was deployed to the European Theater. He was stationed in Marseille, France for a while then in early 1945 he moved to Caserta, Italy then in early spring 1945 moved to Florence, Italy where he worked in a dental clinic. In mid-April 1945 the Spring 1945 Offensive in Italy began and he advanced into northern Italy. After Germany's surrender in Italy on May 2, 1945 he served in Verona, Italy then after Germany's surrender on May 8, 1945 he moved to Montecatini, Italy and served as the head of the dental clinic of the 94th Evacuation Hospital. In August 1945 he left Italy and returned to the United States, and after visiting his wife and daughter, completed his service at Camp Chaffee, Arkansas. He was discharged in December 1945 and returned to Grand Rapids.
Benjamin, Edward Claire
Young woman standing on a road leading to Lake Michigan
Women
Michigan, Lake
Photograph of a solitary woman standing on a road with Lake Michigan in the distance. The photograph is in black and white and she is holding a purse while wearing her summer attire.
Walsh, Jerri
Digital file contributed by Jerri Walsh as part of the Stories of Summer project.
Copyright Undetermined
Photograph of a group of young people gathered next to the Saugatuck sign. They are leaning on a rope fence with bicycles waiting nearby.
Woman standing in front of a white house
Photograph of a solitary woman standing in front of the camera and smiling at the photographer. A white house and trees frame her from the background.
Black and white photograph of a group of five women standing with their arms around one another and smiling at the camera. with houses and trees in the background.
Lake Michigan
Boats
Memorial Day
Photograph of a young couple out on a speedboat on Lake Michigan. The young man is driving the boat and turning back smiling while the woman on the right side of the picture is lighting a cigarette. Through the rear-view mirror you can see additonal passengers on the boat. The handwriting on the picture says: "Mem. Day. May '68."