William and Madge Gygi oral history transcript

Collection

Identifier: ACCN 1989

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The William and Madge Gygi oral history transcript (1988) focuses on the couple's experiences during and just after World War II. The interviewer was Kay Cannon.

William discusses growing up in Salt Lake City to immigrant parents, who moved to the United States as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He mentions his mother working as a maid in both the homes of George Q. Cannon and Wilford Woodruff. He duscusses his miliatry career which began when he was drafted a year before the attack on Peal Harbor. He became a mess sergeant which, after the war, led him to a career at the Hotel Utah as a chef. He also discusses segregation in the military

Madge discusses growing up on a farm in Idaho. She then mentions graduating high school and moving to Salt Lake City to attend business school. She then met William at a church activity. They married early during William's military career.

Together they discuss their experiences during World War II such as black-outs, resource shortages, and food rationing. They also discuss William's career at Hotel Utah and famous people staying at the hotel.

This interview was created by Cannon for a class project at the University of Utah.

Dates

Creation: 1993

Creator

Gygi, William Frederick, 1913- (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

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Conditions Governing Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Biographical Sketch

The Gygis are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and have Swiss, German, and English ancestral roots. William Gygi (1913-) served the the U.S. Army in several capacities during World War II. He was serving on the Northwest coast of the United States when it was shelled by a Japanese submarine. He was a mess sergeant in the army and later, a cook at Hotel Utah for thirty years. Madge Gygi (1922-) married William before the start of World War II.