Gerrit Swier b. 24 Jul 1915 Lebanon, Sioux County, Iowa d. 23 Jun 1943 Island 35, Tipton County, Tennessee: Latour-Zeutenhorst Family History

1915 - 1943 (27 years)

Name	Gerrit Swier [1]
Born	24 Jul 1915	Lebanon, Sioux County, Iowa [1, 2, 3]
Gender	Male
Milit-Beg	20 Mar 1942	Grand Rapids, Kent County, Michigan [4]
	Private, U.S. Army Air Force
Milit-End	23 Jun 1943	Island 35, Tipton County, Tennessee [5]
	Died in line of duty, non-combat Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army Air Force
Died	23 Jun 1943	Island 35, Tipton County, Tennessee [5, 6, 7, 8, 9]
	Island 35 is located in the Mississippi River, north of Memphis
Buried	Spring Lake Cemetery, Spring Lake, Ottawa County, Michigan [10]
	gravemarker
Person ID	I8529	LaZeut
Last Modified	4 Mar 2020

Father	Willem (William/Bill) Swier, b. 29 Dec 1882, Bovenkarspel, Noord-Holland, Nederland , d. 18 Jun 1960, Grand Haven, Ottawa County, Michigan (Age 77 years)
Mother	Betje (Elizabeth/Lizzie) Van Duyn, b. 17 Jan 1891, Fountain Prairie Township, Pipestone, Minnesota , d. 14 Jun 1973, Grand Haven, Ottawa County, Michigan (Age 82 years)
Married	27 Feb 1908	Lebanon, Sioux County, Iowa [1, 11, 12, 13, 14]
Family ID	F568	Group Sheet \| Family Chart

Family Pauline May Page, b. 31 May 1917, Spring Lake, Ottawa County, Michigan , d. 14 Mar 2012, Big Rapids, Mecosta County, Michigan (Age 94 years)

Married 16 Feb 1940 Grand Haven, Ottawa County, Michigan [2, 15]

Children

+	1. G.A. Swier

Last Modified 4 Mar 2020

Family ID F4146 Group Sheet | Family Chart

Sources

[S155] U.S. Census, 1930, (Ancestry: National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.).
[S2121] Michigan Marriage Records, 1867-1952, (Ancestry: State of Michigan Department of Community Health, Lansing, Michigan), Ottawa County Certificates, 1930-1943, marriage license and certificate of marriage.
[S310] Descendants of William Swier (1908-1939), Debra Marcusse, compiler, (unpublished, 2011).
[S211] U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946, (Ancestry: National Archives, College Park, Maryland).
[S1834] Tennessee Death Records, 1908-1958, (Ancestry: Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville, Tennessee), certificate of death.

Died of tramautic disintegration due to plane crash
[S1805] Tennessee, Deaths and Burials Index, 1874-1955, (Ancestry: FamilySearch).
[S5148] Death Notice: Swier, Gerrit, (Detroit Free Press. Detroit, Michigan, 25 Jun 1943, p. 27: accessed 3 March 2020).

Dyersburg, Tenn. June 24—Second Lieut. Gerrit Swier, 27 years old, whose wife lives as Spring Lake, Mich., was one of five crewmen killed when a Flying Fortress crashed on a Mississippi island Wednesday, the training base here announce Thursday.
[S5149] Death Notice: Swier, Gerrit, (Jackson Sun. Jackson, Tennessee, 27 June 1943, p. 6: accessed 3 March 2020).

An official Board of Inquiry was continuing its investigation into the crash of a four-motored heavy bomber [B-17 Flying Fortress] from the [Dyersburg] Army Air Base here on Island 35 early Wednesday morning with the loss of five lives….The plane was on a routine bombing mission over the base’s bombing range when it struck a tall tree then burst into flames. Only the tail, which broke off, was not burned. The plane normally carried a crew of 10, but five gunners did not make the fatal flight because of the nature of the mission
[S310] Descendants of William Swier (1908-1939), Debra Marcusse, compiler, (unpublished, 2011).

d. Covington, Tennessee
[S302] Find A Grave, Memorial# 48787935.
[S2028] Iowa Marriage Records, 1880-1951, (Ancestry: State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines, Iowa).
[S5113] Michigan Obituaries, 1820-2006, (FamilySearch: Grand Rapids Public Library, Michigan), Obituary: Mrs. Elizabeth Swier, Grand Rapids Tribune, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 16 July 1973.
[S310] Descendants of William Swier (1908-1939), Debra Marcusse, compiler, (unpublished, 2011), p. 1.

m. 27 Feb 1907 [sic]
[S39] The Swier Family History, Gertrude Swier Korver, compiler, (Thomasville, Pennsylvania: self-published, 1989), pp. 12, 193.
[S1321] Obituary: Hirdes, Pauline Swier, (Klaassen Family Funeral Home. Grand Haven, Michigan: accessed 31 July 2012).