Interviewer
Suzanne M. Vernon
Files
Description
Bob Van Gieson and Helen Van Gieson describe their life together in Swan Valley, Montana, where they moved after marrying in 1944 on a New Mexico Air Force base. Bob discusses how he served in World War Two, then went on to pursue a career in forestry and was appointed the district ranger of Condon, Montana, in 1955. He recalls the details of his work with the U.S. Forest Service, such as building roads, logging, maintaining fire lookouts, and performing search and rescue operations. Bob reminisces about how this work connected him to a variety of interesting people in Swan Valley. He tells numerous stories about prominent residents of the area, such as the Stroms and Shorty Koessler. Bob and Helen both offer insight into the operations of the Forest Service in Swan Valley, from its general role to its day-to-day workings.
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Document Type
Oral History
Subjects
Swan Valley, Montana; Condon, Montana; Forest rangers, Montana; U.S. Forest Service; World War, 1939-1945; Strom family, Montana; Shorty Koessler, Montana; Fire lookouts; Road building; Logging, Montana
Original Date
6-11-2007
Time Period
Twentieth century
Geographic Coverage
Montana
Language
eng
Original Collection
Upper Swan Valley Oral History Project, OH 422, Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula
Digital Publisher
University of Montana--Missoula. Mansfield Library
Rights
Copyright to this collection is held by the interview participants and by the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula. Permission may be required for use. For further information please contact Archives and Special Collections: (406) 243-2053 / library.archives@umontana.edu
Oral History Number
OH 422-197, 198
Media Type
Sound; Text
Original Format
2 sound cassettes (02:00:00 min.) analog + 1 transcript (31 p.: 28 cm.)
Digital Format
audio/mp3; application/pdf
Run Time
02:03:27 minutes
Local Filename
OH_422_197_198.mp3; OH_422_197_198.pdf
Citation
Van Gieson, Bob and Van Gieson, Helen, "Bob Van Gieson and Helen Van Gieson Interview, June 11, 2007" (2007). Upper Swan Valley Oral History Project. 46.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/upperswanvalley_oralhistory/46