Poetry and Proverbs
By Russell Horton, Reference Archivist “If I die a prisoner of war, I would like to have this diary sent to my Father, A. Ingersoll, Waupun, Wis.” -Frank J. Ingersoll, Diary Entry, ca. September 1864 In the first two years of the Civil War, soldiers from either side of the
Vietnam Veterans Day
On March 29, 1973, the last US combat troops were withdrawn from Vietnam, and the last prisoners of war held in North Vietnam returned to American soil. Since then, Vietnam Veterans Day has been established to welcome home Vietnam veterans, acknowledge their service and remember the men and women who died during the Vietnam
Holiday Greetings from the Field by Mary Kate Kwasnik
A wise man once crooned that this is the most wonderful time of the year. As the winter holidays roll in, cheer seems to surround us. Coffee shops break out their festive red cups , the radio croons out classic holiday songs and the city is suddenly frosted in tiny,
In Recognition of Aviation Month – The Story of Robert Balliet
By Jeff Javid, Wisconsin Veterans Museum Archives Assistant Robert Balliet of Appleton, Wisconsin served with the 776th Squadron, 464th Bomb Group, Fifteenth Air Force, United States Army Air Force in the European theatre during World War II. An employee of Wisconsin Bell Telephone Company, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in
The Life and Letters of World War I Aerial Observer Lt. Mortimer M. Lawrence – November 1917
Tuesday Nov. 27, 1917 Dear Mother:- Yesterday’s letter was intended to take the place of the one I didn’t have a chance to write Sunday. Jack Bainbridge’s brother, wife and family are mighty fine people and were certainly nice to me. The brother is about forty-one or so and
William Stark and the Church Pennant
While serving aboard a landing craft (USS LCI (L)-23) in the Solomon Islands during World War II, William Stark of Waukesha was saved by what he must have believed was partly “divine intervention.” In 1943, when his landing craft beached to unload, Motor Machinist’s Mate Second Class William Stark was
USS Cole Bombing: The Road to 9/11
On the morning of October 12, 2000, the USS Cole was attacked in Yemen’s Aden harbor by two suicide bombers piloting a small boat loaded with an estimated 700 pounds of explosives. The subsequent blast tore a 40-by-60-foot gash in the side of the guided-missile destroyer, claimed the lives of
Wisconsin Veterans and September 11, 2001
It has been sixteen years since the events of September 11, 2001. That fateful day prompted the nation into action, and within two years the United States was involved in two conflicts in the Middle East, participating in what has been termed “the Global War on Terrorism.” With the
The Life and Letters of World War I Aerial Observer Lt. Mortimer M. Lawrence – September 1917
Fort Sill, Sept. 23rd Dear Folks:- Well the suit case arrived yesterday noon and everything was O.K. Thank you for all the trouble you took in packing it, also for the chocolate papers, etc. The cookies also came and were very welcome. We all enjoyed them. Thank you and come
Above and Beyond the Call of Duty by Emily Irwin
On July 11, 1944, Gerald L. Endl made the ultimate sacrifice while in service to his country. “For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty,” Endl was awarded the Medal of Honor, America’s highest military honor. Today, 70 years later, we recognize