Jack Dixon and his flight crew in Prestwick, Scotland on Jan. 24, 1944. (Photo courtesy of the Marquette Regional History Center)

Every summer, usually in late July or early August, the History Center’s Programming Committee starts brainstorming ideas for the following year’s program series. Consisting of board members, staff, and volunteers, the committee evaluates the proposed programs for community interest, relevance to local history, sources of information, availability of a presenter, etc.

Once a short list has been compiled, we start to fill in the calendar. Some events are long-standing, including our famous Jack Deo and Jim Koski fundraisers at Kaufman Auditorium every January. Others, like the upcoming A Community Under the Stars: 60 Years of Shiras Planetarium on Wednesday, April 23, recognizes a specific anniversary in the community.

2025 marks our 20th annual cemetery walk and this year we’ve decided to recognize the 80th anniversary of V.E. Day (Victory in Europe) and World War II. Once we picked our theme, we started looking for potential individuals to include. One who immediately came to mind was Jack Dixon.

In June 2018, the Longyear Library received a research inquiry from a man, who located a Word War II Army dog tag in a field that had been part of former US airfield in a place called Ardboe, Northern Ireland. During the war the airfield was used to train bomber crews before sending them into active duty over Europe. That dog tag belonged to Lt. Col. Jack J. Dixon of Marquette.

In 1994, both Jack Dixon and his wife, Pat, recorded oral history interviews with the MRHC’s Kaye Hiebel as part of the remembrances for the 50th anniversary of the war. Lt. Col. Dixon served with the U.S. Army Air Forces, 387th Bomb Group in England as a heavy bomber pilot and aircraft commander in the European Theater. On April 8, 1944, Jack’s wife, Pat, was informed by the War Department that her husband was missing in action. He had been shot down in his B24 Liberator bomber over occupied Europe.

Jack was reported as prisoner of the Germans on May 20th of that year. In May 1945, the Russians liberated the POWs from Stalag Luft 1 at Barth on the Baltic Sea, according to telegrams sent to the family from the Red Cross. Jack had been a prisoner for just over a year.

He served in the US Air Force for 38 years (active and reserve duty). Following the war, he operated a Buick car dealership in Marquette from 1945-1960 and from 1960-1980 he was an elementary school teacher. His wife, Pat, was also a teacher. Jack died September 19, 1998, and Pat died January 29, 2016.

To learn more about the Longyear Library and how we develop our programs- including the reason why we won’t be visiting Jack and Pat Dixon’s graves at Park Cemetery this year, join us for National Library Week: 100 Years of the J.M. Longyear Research Library on Wednesday, April 9th at 1:30 p.m.

This Senior Support Series event features our centennial library! Meet the librarians and hear about some unusual collections and surprising research discoveries over the last century. We will get a window into the research processes used to create our May 2025 cemetery tour, featuring WWII veterans. This is a free program, and we invite the community of all ages to join us. There will be door prizes and serving complimentary Dead River Coffee.

Then, once you’ve learned how we make it happen, join us for the cemetery walk itself! Our 20th Annual Cemetery Walk: V.E. Day 80 Years On is Thursday, May 8, at Park Cemetery, Victory in Europe Day happened on this day 80 years ago! Honor our local WWII heroes as we recognize several who are buried at Park Cemetery, both military and civilian. We are featuring two tours: at 1:00, enjoy a self-guided tour with a map provided; and at 6:00, there will be guided tour groups, or a seated version (bring your lawn chair). Rain date: May 15th, same format and times. Meet near the main gate off Seventh Street. $5 suggested donation. For more information, visit marquettehistory.org or call 906-226-3571.