A video interview with Brigadier General Robert Andrew Cocroft
Written by Oral Historian Luke D. Sprague Robert A. Cocroft graduated from North Division High School, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1965. While attending and playing football at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, the United States Army drafted him on October 24, 1966. At Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, Cocroft passed the qualification tests
Wisconsin Was There: Desert Storm Commemorating the 30th Anniversary of Persian Gulf War, Part II
After over a month of the air campaign, with a final ultimatum for Iraqi forces to evacuate Kuwait expired, the ground campaign began. In Saudi Arabia, along the border with Iraq and Kuwait, the coalition forces rolled forward along the over 330 mile front. Helen Gurkow of the 13th Evac Hospital, remembered the opening phase of
Wisconsin Was There: Desert Storm Commemorating the 30th Anniversary of Persian Gulf War, Part I
On 24 February 1991, after 40 consecutive days of around-the-clock aerial campaign, the ground offensive phase of Operation Desert Storm (code named Operation Desert Sabre) began at 4am Saudi time. Over the last six months this final, and perhaps inevitable, assault loomed on the horizon for the nearly one million
February 2021 Virtual! Drink & Draw
Welcome to the Wisconsin Veterans Museum’s February 2021 Drink & Draw. We always enjoy sharing Valentines Day with all of you, and even though we cannot be together in person, we can still remember our loved ones in a special and unique way. This February, we will focus on drawing a
Stories of a M.A.S.H. Dr. in the Buna Campaign
This blog post from Gregory Krueger our curator of exhibits, is based on a written account by Lieutenant Colonel Stanley Hollenbeck. Lieutenant Colonel Hollenbeck served with one of the first mobile army surgical hospitals, the 14th Portable Surgical Hospital, within the Buna Campaign, from October 1942 to March 1943. Graduating from
Wisconsin’s veterans remember 9/11
Written by Luke D. Sprague, Oral Historian Those of us who are old enough remember where we were on the morning of September 11, 2001, when we learnt of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon, and in the sky over Pennsylvania. That historical moment would
January 2021 Virtual! Drink & Draw
DAZZLE CAMOUFLAGE There’s nothing better than starting the new year with a little dazzle. Join us for January’s Virtual Drink & Draw where we will have fun experimenting with the shapes and colors of Dazzle Camouflage inspired by a crazy, but genius attempt to protect ships from deadly submarine warfare
Lieutenant John D. Winner
While May 8, 1945 marked the end of World War II in Europe, it also marked the beginning of an extensive period of reconstruction across the war-torn continent. The period immediately following Germany’s surrender was fittingly dubbed “Stunde Null” —Zero Hour— by those whose decimated homeland faced total political and
DECEMBER 2020 VIRTUAL! DRINK & DRAW
Holiday Greetings It looks like we will all be staying home this year for the Holiday Season so what better way to share festive tidings of cheer than to create some homemade greetings? Join us for a special Holiday Drink & Draw where we will sip eggnog and make things
World War WHERE?
By Russell Horton Reference Archivist When Janesville native Louis Wayne Tyler was drafted into the U.S. Army during World War II, he probably imagined he would eventually deploy to the European or Pacific Theaters. He might have considered the possibility of going to North Africa or the China-Burma-India Theater. He