Photo By Scott Sturkol | Participants in a special visit for sponsors held by the Fort McCoy Directorate of...... read more read more
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The Fort McCoy Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (DFMWR) with support from other Fort McCoy organizations and personnel held a special visit Oct. 17 for DFMWR sponsors on post.
DFMWR Director Patric McGuane said the visit included a bus tour, lunch, and a stop at the Fort McCoy Commemorative Area, a stop at the installation simulations training complex, and more.
“So today is that special day a year, where we come out and thank all of our sponsors who supported our events serving MWR and the Fort McCoy community throughout the year,” McGuane said during the visit. “Without all of these great people who work for local businesses … without their generous support … we wouldn’t be able to run the events that we run throughout the year for Fort McCoy.
“From the mud run to the tree lighting to the Army birthday (celebration) — all of those events could not be possible without the great support of these Americans who are here today,” McGuane said. “What we’re doing today is saying thank you. We’re going to take them to lunch. We’re showing the history of Fort McCoy. We're going to get out to the simulators … and just show them what the military is all about and why being partners with Fort McCoy MWR is important.”
During their stop at the Fort McCoy Commemorative Area, fall colors around Equipment Park, Veterans Memorial Plaza, and the entire area was at near peak. The group of nearly 30 visitors saw the park, the plaza, and the Fort McCoy History Center where they were led by Fort McCoy Public Affairs Officer Tonya Townsell.
The 900 block of Fort McCoy and the 11-acre area surrounding it are the hub of the fort’s history-preservation efforts that make up the Commemorative Area. Through every major operation, and everything else supported, that history is remembered in the Fort McCoy History Center. In 2015, former Fort McCoy Public Affairs Officer Linda Fournier described how the History Center was improved after several months of work to renovate the interior and exterior of the facility. Fournier said then those interior renovations provided for expanded exhibit floor space, improved lighting, and installation of energy efficient heating and air-conditioning systems. Exterior improvements included new steps and a ramp to improve access for visitors.
During its reopening in 2015 on Sept. 11, visitors experienced the results of those improvements firsthand, especially the increased floor space, which allowed for the display of more of the installation’s historical collection.
The History Center features exhibits as well as displays of artifacts, photographs, and memorabilia that tell the story of Fort McCoy since its founding in 1909. The center first was opened in 1999 in building 902 when the Fort McCoy observed its 90th anniversary.
Whether it’s Maj. Gen. Robert B. McCoy’s World War I gas mask, horseshoes from the early
camp stables, World War II-era uniforms, or items from the 1980 Cuban Refugee Resettlement mission, the History Center offers exhibits spanning from Fort McCoy’s earliest beginnings to the installation’s involvement in the war on terrorism.
In 2022, the center also received two new additions as well. In July 2022, Alan McCoy, grandson of Maj. Gen. Robert Bruce McCoy for whom Fort McCoy is named after had visited the installation with his family members, and with him he brought a century-old artifact he’d received in the form of a wood crate that included the words stamped on it: “CAMP EMERY UPTON” and “CAMP ROBINSON.”
Visitors also toured the many historical buildings in the area. The area consists of five World War II-era buildings set aside to help tell Fort McCoy’s unique story, Townsell said, who opened the area for the group. These facilities are representative of the types found in the cantonment area when it was constructed in 1942.
Three of the buildings — an administrative facility, a dining facility, and a barracks — are set up to depict Soldier life during the 1940s. Display items include a World War II chapel, bunk beds, footlockers, mannequins, and potbelly stoves. Another building highlights four different modern military training venues, and a separate facility shows various training aids.
Some also took a change to tour Equipment Park. The Equipment Park is an outdoor display of historic and present-day equipment representative of the types used on the installation. The design of the park allows for display of 70 pieces of equipment, ranging from helicopters and howitzers to trucks and trailers.
Visitors also checked out Veterans Memorial Plaza. Construction on Veterans Memorial Plaza began in 2006, as did the work to create the five Soldier statues on the memorial representative of each of the major conflicts that Fort McCoy had been involved with to that point in time: i.e., World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the war on terrorism, Fournier also said in a past news article.
The formal dedication of Veterans Memorial Plaza was June 13, 2009 — the date of Fort McCoy’s 100th anniversary. Several descendants of the installation’s founder, Maj. Gen. Robert B. McCoy, attended this dedication. The dedication was the key event in a series of activities held during Fort McCoy’s yearlong centennial observance.
Ever since its dedication, the Veterans Memorial Plaza has been the center of more than a dozen annual Armed Forces Day Open House events, dozens of official events, dozens of tours, and met by thousands of people throughout the years.
McGuane said many were “first-timers” going to the Commemorative Area.
“They’re absolutely amazed with what’s going on here,” McGuane said. “This gives them a flavor for the history of Fort McCoy. We’ve been around since 1909. Most people don’t know that, but this gets to show of how involved we’ve been in every major war that’s happened in the United States, and the role that Fort McCoy plays in that.”
Overall, the visit was successful, McGuane said, and he looks forward to continuing to working with the sponsors on future events and initiatives at the installation.
For more information about the Commemorative Area, contact the Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office at 608-388-2407, by email at usarmy.mccoy.imcom-central.list.pao-admin@mail.mil, or go online to see the Commemorative Area section in the Fort McCoy Guide at https://www.dvidshub.net/publication/issues/66725.
Learn more about Fort McCoy DFMWR by visiting https://mccoy.armymwr.com.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on the Defense Visual Information Distribution System at https://www.dvidshub.net/fmpao, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”
| Date Taken: | 10.24.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 10.24.2023 16:05 |
| Story ID: | 456447 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 523 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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