Two galleries inside the Wisconsin Veterans Museum on Capitol Square in Madison await you. This institution is dedicated to telling the stories of the veterans of the state of Wisconsin. Inside, two galleries chronicle the history of Wisconsin citizens who served in the U.S. military from the American Civil War to the present day.
The museum is an educational activity of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. Its origins reach back to 1901, when it was established as the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall in the Wisconsin State Capitol. That first museum and its collections were destroyed in the Capitol fire of 1904, though the G.A.R. Memorial Hall retained a place in the rebuilt Capitol until the collection moved to its current location in 1993 and was renamed the Wisconsin Veterans Museum.
The 19th-century gallery showcases Wisconsin's involvement in the Civil War and includes a large diorama depicting the Battle of Antietam. The 20th-century gallery covers the Mexican Border campaign, the First and Second World Wars, and also the Korean, Vietnam, Persian Gulf War and recent conflicts, and the museum features three full-scale aircraft. Picture two galleries inside spanning the Civil War to the present, plus three full-scale aircraft.