Wisconsin Veterans Museum

Wisconsin Veterans Museum The Wisconsin Veterans Museum invites you to learn the stories of our veterans. Feel free to post comments, links, pictures, video, etc.
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New to the collection, this U.S. Army Element, United States Forces - Afghanistan patch was worn by La Crosse, Wisconsin...
06/17/2026

New to the collection, this U.S. Army Element, United States Forces - Afghanistan patch was worn by La Crosse, Wisconsin native Erika W. Stoltz. She wore it during her second deployment, from April 2014 to February 2015, while executing route clearance missions with the 305th Engineer Company. Stoltz was authorized to wear this combat patch because all route clearance engineer assets in West Afghanistan fell under Train Advise Assist Command – West (TAAC – West) in Herat.

Stoltz is a veteran of both the US Army/Army Reserve (1981-1984, 1997-2019) and Marine Corps/Marine Corps Reserve (1985-1988, 1990-1996), and served two tours in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Shortly after her second deployment to Afghanistan, Stoltz came out as transgender and began her transition to live authentically. To ensure the history of transgender service members is preserved in Wisconsin and across the country, Stoltz shared her experiences with the Wisconsin Veterans Museum Oral History Program, which you can listen to directly on our website or through the link below.

https://wisvetsmuseum.com/erika-stoltz-on-being-a-transgender-soldier/

06/16/2026

In celebration of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum's 125th Anniversary, we will be posting a series of videos featuring our staff and one item in our collection that resonates with them.

We have posted a video every week through June, and now we finish it out with our librarian, Beverly Philips. Happy 125th!

This illustration was created over 126 years ago, before our museum even existed, and long before "Flag Day" was an offi...
06/15/2026

This illustration was created over 126 years ago, before our museum even existed, and long before "Flag Day" was an official holiday.

Still, this graphic, named "Flag Day - 1900" depicts Uncle Sam carrying an oversized American flag, looked on by a small crowd of Europeans, showing that the holiday of Flag Day long predates the acts that made it official.

Commemorating the adoption of the flag of the United States on June 14th, 1777, Flag Day is a common day to share patriotic feelings about the nation, including, as seen here, the decline of European influence and expansion of U.S. authority.

Today, the U.S. Army turns 251 years old. From the revolutionary war to its current operations in Iran, Africa, and West...
06/14/2026

Today, the U.S. Army turns 251 years old.

From the revolutionary war to its current operations in Iran, Africa, and Western Asia, the United States Army has been involved in hundreds of military conflicts throughout recent history and onward.

On this day, 55 years ago, whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg leaked the "Pentagon Papers" to the New York Times. U.S. Army ...
06/13/2026

On this day, 55 years ago, whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg leaked the "Pentagon Papers" to the New York Times.

U.S. Army soldier Willie B. Williams, of Dane County, spoke candidly in his oral history with us:

"When Daniel Ellsberg ... started releasing the Pentagon Papers and I started finding out more is when I really started doubting whether my service was honorable or not because of the reasons that we were there."

These Pentagon Papers revealed implications that, among other things, the executive branch of the U.S. Government had secretly expanded military involvement in Vietnam without Congressional approval; deliberately misled the public, soldiers, and Congress; and escalated a knowingly unwinnable war in Vietnam to avoid political embarassment.

"When I found out about the Tonkin Gulf incident, it just reinforced those beliefs that I was building up."

The Gulf of Tonkin incident is an infamous military engagement in which officials told congress that North Vietnamese forces laucnched two unprovoked attacks on American navy ships in the gulf, a story which was used to award the Johnson Administration advanced military powers over Congress. The official story, however, ignored the fact that the first attack from the North Vietnamese was, in fact, provoked by U.S. secretly supporting South Vietnamese commando raids along the coast, and that the second attack did not occur at all.

These revelations came at a time in which the Vietnam War was already deeply controversial within the American public, and only increased these tensions.

"I think a lot of 'Nam veterans are still seeking glory. I think many of them feel that we lost the war in Vietnam. And I think it's many who can't face the facts that the realities it was that we were duped into going to Vietnam. ... And I think many probably feel that it's a patriotic thing to do because they are not aware of the history of the wars in this country and why we've gone to war."

Images show Willie B. Williams in his oral history interview, and Daniel Ellsberg speaking at a press conference regarding the Pentagon Papers in New York City.

To hear Willie Williams's full oral history, you can find that on our website, here: https://wisvetsmuseum.com/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=OH_00688.xml

Happy Women Veterans Day!On this day in 1948 the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act was signed into law which allow...
06/12/2026

Happy Women Veterans Day!
On this day in 1948 the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act was signed into law which allowed women the right to serve permanently in the regular armed forces.
Between the Revolutionary War and World War II women served in our armed forces filling roles as soldiers, nurses, test and training pilots, spies, cryptologists, and numerous support roles among others. Prior to the signing, only women nurses could serve in the regular and reserve forces during peacetime. All other women were sent home after each conflict. Women’s Armed Services Integration Act deemed women essential to the war efforts, and allowed them to serve in the regular armed forces full-time.
One of the many impressive stories of service is that of Jeannette Kaupus of Milwaukee. Kapus served with the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) during World War II as an engineering test pilot on repaired aircraft of all types. She also co-piloted the B-17 on supply runs to pick up parts and maintenance materials.
After deactivation, she returned to Milwaukee and worked as a secretary for the Wisconsin Intelligence Agency in Milwaukee. She gave flying lessons at night and on weekends at what is now Timmerman Field.
When the Army Air Force became the United States Air Force, Jan accepted a commission as a 2nd Lt. and became active in the Reserves. In 1952 she applied for active duty and served as personnel officer for 20 years, retiring on August 31, 1972 as a Lt. Colonel. Her overseas assignments took her to Scotland, France, and West Pakistan. Images presented here are from her scrapbook preserved at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum.
Thanks to the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act, Kapus and thousands of women have honorably served our communities and nation and are eligible for benefits afforded to veterans.
To hear more stories of Wisconsin women veterans, visit our website. https://wisvetsmuseum.com/learning-research/oral-history/featured-interviews/i-am-not-invisible/

Happy to be at the Rock County Veterans Resource Fair at the Elks Club in Janesville today. Stop in and say hello. We ha...
06/10/2026

Happy to be at the Rock County Veterans Resource Fair at the Elks Club in Janesville today. Stop in and say hello. We have the best swag.

06/09/2026

In celebration of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum's 125th Anniversary, we will be posting a series of videos featuring our staff and one item in our collection that resonates with them.

Expect a new video every week through June. Happy 125th!

June is National Dairy Month, and a collection of letters at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum reminds us that you might tak...
06/07/2026

June is National Dairy Month, and a collection of letters at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum reminds us that you might take a young man off of a dairy farm, but it’s much more difficult to take the dairy farm out of a young man.

Wilbur Berget grew up on his family’s farm in Wiota, Wisconsin, helping to raise cows and other livestock. He was drafted into the US Army in February 1941 and initially served in the 11th Cavalry in California. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he transferred to the 92nd Armored Reconnaissance Battalion and spent time training at several camps in the South. In the letters he wrote to his family, this farm boy regularly described the different methods of farming he encountered and the types of crops and livestock kept.

With an eye toward his life after the war, he also continued to read and learn about farming as much as he could, often using a Wisconsin-based dairy farming publication. In a letter to his parents written in January 1943, Berget wrote “How are the cattle coming along… I’ve been reading Hoard’s Dairyman once in a while…” A month later he was describing recreational activities to his parents and wrote, “Anyway, I’m content to relax and read the Hoard’s Dairyman anytime I have a chance.”

Thank you to Wisconsin’s dairy farmers and happy National Dairy Month!

On this day in 1944 Operation Overlord commenced on the coast of Normandy, France. The operation included forces from th...
06/06/2026

On this day in 1944 Operation Overlord commenced on the coast of Normandy, France. The operation included forces from the United States, Great Britain, and Canada that invaded the coast by air, land, and sea. It was a pivotal battle which turned the course of World War II in favor of the Allies. The operation is known commonly as D-Day.
Wisconsin was there with thousands of men and women in the European Theater. Forty-six Wisconsinites were killed in action on D-Day. Many more lived to tell their stories to the Wisconsin Veterans Museum. You can explore their experiences on our website.

https://wisvetsmuseum.com/exhibits/virtual-exhibits/d-day/

This image, from the scrapbook of George L. Rambo of Baraboo, shows his landing on a Normandy beach in August of 1944, two months post D-day. Rambo enlisted with the Army Air Corps and served from 1942-1945 with 474th Fighter Group Association. He was an engineering machinist on P-38 fighter aircraft and was responsible for developing film taken from the planes.

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30 W Mifflin Street
Madison, WI
53703

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Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
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