Courtesy Photo | Workers construct the frame of a building in the cantonment area in September 1942 at...... read more read more
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Fort McCoy, Wis., was established in 1909. Here is a look back at some installation history from September 2020 and back.
75 Years Ago — September 1945
Seeing his son for the first time in 11 months was a great thrill for Staff Sgt. E. M. Shaw of Medford, Wis., who had been stationed at Camp McCoy since 1942. His son, Pfc. James Shaw, was sent to Camp McCoy for redeployment after serving in Germany.
Two other members of the Shaw family were in service, as well: Lt. Grace Shaw with a hospital in Chicago and Tech Sgt. Jack Shaw, stationed in France.
75 Years Ago — Sept. 9, 1945
A 100 percent boost in the rate of discharges from the Camp McCoy Separation center was reported the week of Sept. 9, 1945, by Maj. Thomas B. Hammond, separation center commanding officer.
Where previously the average daily discharge load was about 250, that week’s daily totals topped the 500 mark, Hammond said. He said the center was aiming for a 1,200-a-day rate of discharge goal and would probably hit a peak of somewhere between 1,600 and 2,000 after the first of the year.
75 Years Ago — Sept. 14, 1945
A member of the famed 100th Infantry battalion, made up of Americans of Japanese descent from Hawaii, returned to become a civilian employee the week of Sept. 14, 1945, at Camp McCoy, where he had trained with the unit for more than six months about 2 1/2 years before.
Kenneth Koji was working as a mail clerk at the camp post office. “It’s good to work at Camp McCoy,” Koji said. “Wisconsin weather is different than Hawaii’s, but I like it very much here.”
Most of the remaining original 100th Infantry members had already been discharged, according Koji said. Their combat record, which has been cited as one of the most outstanding of any unit’s in the European Theater of Operations, included nearly two years of fighting from North Africa, the length of Italy, through France from the south, and back for the victory push in Italy.
With headquarters company of the 100th Infantry, Koji earned six campaign stars and the distinguished unit citation with which the unit was honored.
64 Years Ago — September 1951
September 1951 marked the first anniversary of the reactivation of Camp McCoy.
Looking back over the year, old timers remember the first alert — the frenzied preparations that followed immediately as personnel readied the camp for the arrival of the first troops in early September 1950.
Appropriately enough, the first soldiers were Wisconsin men, members of the 887th FA Bn. from Green Bay, Appleton, Neenah, Menasha,and Manitowoc.
Coming to Camp McCoy for regular training throughout the first year of reactivationwere many nondivisional combat units. In the summer,the camp's training program stretched to include thousands of men in ROTC, Organized Reserve Corps, and National Guard units.
35 Years Ago
— September 1985
When the nearly 300 members of the 4th Battalion, 38th Field Artillery of Bay City, Mich., converged on Fort McCoy for annual training in September 1985, they had a dual mission to accomplish.
The goals were to maintain the proficiency level reached after a rigorous Army Readiness Training Evaluation Program (ARTEP) the previous year and set the stage for another stringent ARTEP during the next year's AT, said Maj. Ron Sharp, battalion operations officer.
"I think that we had a very good training period," Sharp said. "It's been 12 months since the external ARTEP and we have maintained the proficiency attained last year despite the fact we were not being tested externally.”
The first week of training was spent in preparation for the internal ARTEP, which was given to each of the battalion's firing batteries, Sharp said.
30 Years Ago — September 1990
If success is measured by results, Fort McCoy's Training Area Recovery Plan (TARP) was a very successful program. More than 4,000 acres of land were returned to general usage in September 1990 after two years in TARP.
This innovative land management program was approved by the Fort McCoy garrison commander in May 1988 and was implemented in October of the same year.
Directorate of Plans, Training, Mobilization and Security Director Lt. Col. Peter Taylor said he was extremely pleased with the results after the first full two-year cycle of the program.
"It's fantastic," Taylor said. "Recovery in the three training areas has been remarkable — much better than we initially anticipated.”
20 Years Ago — September 2000
Heather French, then the reigning Miss America, visited Fort McCoy on Sept. 6, 2000.
French spoke with veterans at the Veterans Assistance Center, spoke to local journalists, and visited cadets at the Wisconsin Challenge Academy.
The purpose of her visit was to focus attention on the plight of homeless veterans.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
| Date Taken: | 09.22.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 09.22.2020 09:56 |
| Story ID: | 378348 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 49 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, This Month in Fort McCoy History: September 2020, by Scott Sturkol, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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