Photo By Melissa Dubois | Vietnam veteran and Cashton, Wis., native John Kast and others visit the Equipment...... read more read more
Subscribe
Vietnam veteran and Cashton, Wis., native John Kast received a special tour of the Fort McCoy Commemorative Area on June 18 thanks to support from staff at the Tomah VA Medical Center and at Fort McCoy.
Kast, a disabled veteran, was accompanied by Tomah VA Recreation Therapist Heather Sangl and others. Kast visited the Fort McCoy History Center as well as the many Army tanks Fort McCoy has on display in Equipment Park at the Commemorative Area.
Command Sgt. Maj. James Riddle, command sergeant major for U.S. Army Garrison-Fort McCoy, also participated in the visit by Kast.
Kast is an Army veteran who drove tanks during his service in the Vietnam era. He had desired to see artifacts that were connected to his military history.
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. In visiting the History Center, Kast was able to see how the history of every major operation, and everything else supported, is remembered in the Fort McCoy History Center.
Ten years ago, the History Center was improved after several months of work to renovate the interior and exterior of the facility, Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office officials said. 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.
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 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.”
And more recently, other items have been added to the History Center collection. In January, a small, wooden keepsake box adorned with carvings and the inscription, “Gefangenschaft Amerika 1944,” was donated to the Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office for inclusion in the Fort McCoy History Center.
Rosanna Laude, who operates the Upscale Rummage store in Libertyville, Ill., came across the artifact made by a German prisoner of war (POW) from World War II in donations to the shop. In lieu of selling it, because she knew what she had, she contacted the Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office and offered to donate it to the post — which it was.
After further inspection and research with staff and archaeologists at Fort McCoy, it was determined the inscription reads, “Imprisonment America 1944.” The lingering question after that was did the German POW make the box at then-Camp McCoy or elsewhere?
Ryan J. Howell, staff archaeologist and cultural resource manager with the Fort McCoy Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division Natural Resources Branch, said German POWs were not only located at Camp McCoy during World War II, but they were also in areas all throughout Wisconsin and northern Illinois, including near Libertyville.
“There were a series of small canning and farm camps scattered across southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois,” Howell said. “That might be a more likely provenance for Libertyville as those camps ran out of Camp Sheridan and Camp Joliet in northern Chicago, not Camp McCoy. But there were a lot of transfers of prisoners back and forth between the two.”
In the Equipment Park, Kast was able to see a variety of tanks as well as other equipment there.
Tanks in the park include the M4A3 Combat Tank (Sherman), Medium, full tracked, with a 76 mm gun. First built in 1942 by Ford Motor Company, the M4A3 provided firepower, mobility and crew protection for offensive combat, according to the Equipment Park guide. It was the principal U.S. combat tank in all combat zones for most of World War II, in service for 1943-44, and was used by the U.S. Army and National Guard and foreign countries for years after World War II.
The park also has an M60A3 Combat Tank, fully tracked, with a 105 mm gun. First produced in 1960 by the Detroit Tank Arsenal and Chrysler Corporation, the M60A3 evolved from the M-48 Patton Tank. It was used extensively in the 1970s and 1980s as the main assault vehicle of an armored/mechanized infantry/infantry division. The M60 is the first U.S. vehicle to be equipped with laser range finders and thermal sights, giving it the capability of being employed at night and under conditions of limited visibility.
And from the Vietnam era (1960s-70s), the park also has a UH-1H “Huey” Helicopter on display. The “Huey,” first produced in the 1950s, is considered the longest-serving aircraft in the U.S. Army. The Army’s workhorse, the “Huey” served as a troop transporter, armed helicopter, ambulance and utility aircraft in support of Soldiers in combat operations, according to the Equipment Park guide.
In discussing the visit, Sangl said in a related email that she appreciated everyone who supported it.
“Your help is so much appreciated for a gentleman so deserving,” Sangl wrote.
Riddle also presented Kast with a Vietnam War Commemorative Veteran Pin during the visit.
For more information about the Commemorative Area, contact the Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office at 502-898-2407, 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://d34w7g4gy10iej.cloudfront.net/pubs/pdf_73364.pdf.
Fort McCoy’s motto is to be “The Total Force Training Center.”
The post supports Army Reserve, National Guard, active duty, and other service members from all services.
Located in the heart of the upper Midwest, Fort McCoy is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin.
The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984.
Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.” See more at https://home.army.mil/imcom.
| Date Taken: | 06.27.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.27.2025 01:26 |
| Story ID: | 501652 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 18 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Vietnam veteran visits Fort McCoy’s Commemorative Area; revisits personal history, by Scott Sturkol, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
