Archaeologists and cultural resource specialists at Fort McCoy helped showcase thousands of years of regional history during the installation’s 2026 Armed Forces Day Open House on May 16 at the post’s historic Commemorative Area.
Members of the Fort McCoy archaeology team welcomed dozens of visitors throughout the day with an educational booth highlighting the installation’s long-running archaeology and cultural resources program. The team also offered a hands-on activity area where visitors could practice throwing an atlatl, an ancient spear-throwing tool used by Native Americans centuries ago.
The display gave visitors a closer look at one of the Army’s most extensive archaeology programs in the Upper Midwest. Fort McCoy’s Cultural Resources Management Program oversees hundreds of archaeological sites spread across the installation’s 60,000-plus acres in Wisconsin’s Driftless Area. Archaeologists have documented evidence of human activity on the installation dating back more than 10,000 years.
Fort McCoy archaeologists and partner organizations have identified more than 580 registered archaeological sites and recovered hundreds of thousands of artifacts over decades of work. Discoveries have included Paleo-Indian projectile points, Woodland-era pottery and tools, remnants of 19th-century farmsteads, and artifacts connected to the installation’s early military history.
Archaeologist Tyler Olsen and Miranda Alexander with the Colorado State University Center for Environmental Management of Military Lands (CEMML) spoke with visitors during the event about the history of the program and the importance of preserving archaeological resources while supporting Fort McCoy’s military training mission.
The archaeology team explained how the installation’s protected training lands have helped preserve important historical and prehistoric sites that might otherwise have been lost to development or modern agriculture. Many of the artifacts and records recovered through Fort McCoy archaeology projects are curated through partnerships with organizations such as the Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center at the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse.
The Armed Forces Day event allowed visitors to learn how Fort McCoy archaeologists conduct surveys, catalog artifacts, map sites, and work with tribal representatives and preservation agencies to protect culturally significant areas across the installation.
The atlatl demonstration proved especially popular with families and younger visitors, offering a hands-on connection to ancient hunting technologies once used throughout the region.
Fort McCoy officials said the archaeology exhibit was designed not only to educate the public about the installation’s history, but also to highlight the ongoing stewardship work that has helped preserve a unique archaeological record spanning thousands of years.
Fort McCoy’s motto beginning in 2026 is “Training the Total Force and Shaping the Future since 1909.”
The installation’s mission: “Fort McCoy strengthens Total Force Readiness by serving as a training center, Mobilization Force Generation Installation, and Strategic Support Area enabling warfighter lethality to deploy, fight, and win our nation’s wars.”
And Fort McCoy’s vision is, “To be the premier training center supporting the most capable, combat-ready, and lethal armed forces.”
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,” on Flickr at https://www.flickr.com/photos/fortmccoywi, and on X (formerly Twitter) by searching “usagmccoy.” Also try downloading the My Army Post 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.”