Wisconsin Veterans Museum

It's National Dairy Month!

This early 1940s K-Ration is from the collection of Russell K. Sesto, a Racine, Wisconsin native who served in the Wisconsin National Guard from the 1930s through the 1970s. The K-Ration aimed to be more portable as well as offer more variety and better nutritional roundness than its predecessors.

During testing, reviews of the two dairy-derived options that were included wound up on opposite ends of the spectrum; while the processed cheese was considered a favorite, the malted milk-dextrose tablets were particularly disliked.

It was suggested by reviewers that they be replaced by Horlick’s Malted Milk tablets, a popular supplement that was made right in Sesto’s hometown of Racine. Instead, the Dinner Unit eventually featured caramels as a replacement.

This month in 1943, several Wisconsinites participated "Operation Landcrab," a mission to overtake Attu Island from Imperial Japan.

Bordering the Bering Sea, Attu Island lays much farther north than other well-known battles in the Pacific Theater of WWII, and remains the westernmost point of any of the 50 U.S. states.

A number of men in our oral history collection have shared their insight and experiences in this operation. Hear about it in their own words in our most recent blog post! It's currently live on our website.

Operation Landcrab: Landings on Attu On May 11, 1943, combined forces of the Army and Navy were brought to bear on Attu Island, a United States Territory of the Aleutian Chain in the Bering Sea. The 7th Infantry Division and Naval Task…

Today, we will be keeping our post simple.

Today is Memorial Day, a day of reflection and mourning for all of those who have died while serving the U.S. Armed Forces. We remember them and their sacrifice.