Name/Title
Harvey Busscher interviewEntry/Object ID
2024.41.202Scope and Content
Harvey Busscher (pronounced "Bus-ker")
Lake Park Mobile Home Community Founder and Area Builder
Oral History Synopsis
6-25-09
Vic Bella and Jim Schmeichen organized this interview at Harvey Busscher’s home in Ganges Township on the Lake Michigan shore. Harvey, 84, lost his wife, Joyce, about a year ago and is currently being looked after by his daughter and daughter-in-law. Born 12-28-1924, he grew up on a farm in South Graafschap and attended Holland elementary and high schools.
A large man in height, girth and personality “Harv” is gifted with a deep and clear memory of people and places in the Saugatuck-Douglas area. His knowledge spans 80 years in the area minus the two he spent in France immediately post D-Day with the US Army as an interpreter. He walks with a cane due to a replaced bullet-shattered knee that earned him a Purple Heart and medical discharge.
Harv’s father worked in construction and drew his son into the trade after his return from the service. Since then he has had a hand in the construction or renovation of many local buildings, many with an attached humorous anecdote. With some training in architecture from Western Michigan University, he was able to design or redesign buildings ranging from numerous homes, the Douglas Post Office to many of the commercial and manufacturing firms that came and went through the years. He appears to have been a construction dilettante, but masonry was his apparent specialty via his father.
In 1949 Harv met his wife Joyce at the Soda Bar on Butler and in 1958 they purchased the gravel pit property by the shore that he shortly developed into the current trailer park. Through the years, Harv rubbed shoulders with area notables and seasonal park members of significant repute. His stories about these contacts are boundless and filled with touches of irony and humor. He’s clearly an unforgettable character.
This video provides information about a great many people and places in the area spanning over 80 years.
John ShackCataloged By
Winthers, SallyAcquisition
Accession
2024.41Acquisition Method
Found in CollectionCredit Line
To view this recording, scroll down to the bottom of this entry and click the blue web link.
This video was created by Saugatuck-Douglas History Center volunteers or was donated to the Center in a good faith effort to preserve local history. If you feel this content should not be available to the public — or have additional information that will add context to this interview — please contact the SDHC Archives at archives@mysdhistory.org.Oral History Details
Interviewee
Busscher, Harvey "Harv" Junior 1924-2012Interviewer
Bella, Victor "Vic", Schmiechen, James A., Sheridan, John "Jack" O. 1938-Interview Date
Jun 25, 2009Length of Interview
65Oral History Notes
Harvey Busscher is a local builder and the son of a local builder. Harvey worked on Old Dug Road.Dimensions
Dimension Description
DVD versionHeight
5 inWidth
5 inCreate Date
November 9, 2024Update Date
May 2, 2025
