Van Coevering, Jack, 1900-

Detroit Free Press outdoor writer and later faculty member in the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources.

From the description of Jack Van Coevering papers, 1928-1978. (University of Michigan). WorldCat record id: 78113555

Jack Van Coevering worked for 35 years as an outdoor writer for the Detroit Free Press. During that time he became noted as an authority on Michigan hunting, fishing, conservation, and other outdoor topics. After his retirement, he taught at the University of Michigan.

John Adrian Van Coevering was born in Grand Haven, Michigan, in 1900. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1926, and went to work for the Grand Rapids Herald as an outdoor writer. In 1931 Van Coevering moved to Detroit as outdoor writer for the Detroit Free Press. (He was sometimes referred to as the newspaper's outdoor editor.)

Van Coevering worked for the Free Press until he retired in 1965. At the same time he also worked in other media. In 1933 he was editor of a periodical, the Michigan Sportsman. From 1949 to 1953 he hosted a Detroit television program devoted to hunting and fishing in Michigan.

Early in his career, Van Coevering wrote almost exclusively about hunting and fishing, but by the late 1940s he had extended his field of concern to include water pollution. The 1950s saw him writing about pesticides and other environmental concerns, and by the time of his retirement he was interested broadly in environmental problems and the role of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources in combatting them.

In the 1967/1968 school year, Van Coevering joined the staff of the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources, first as a research assistant and later as an adjunct professor, teaching outdoor or environmental writing. He worked at the university until late 1974, when he retired and moved to Mesa, Arizona. Van Coevering died in Mesa on May 24, 1978.

From the guide to the Jack Van Coevering Papers, 1928-1978, (Bentley Historical Library University of Michigan)