The “WWI–Midwest Experience in the Great War” exhibition will be at The Highground Museum from February 6-March 29, 2021. This exhibit will focus on how the Midwest U.S. was involved and affected by WWI, “The Great War”. There will be several special exhibits focusing on local personal stories; the banner exhibit “WWI – Beyond the Trenches” on loan from the Wisconsin Veterans Museum in Madison; the involvement of women during this time; how the Spanish Influenza epidemic was spread and the public response to this great disease during WWI; and many more interesting aspects of how this war changed people’s everyday lives. In addition, there will be a notable exhibit on loan from the American Medical Women’s Association titled “American Women Physicians in WWI”.
The advent of Victory Gardens was in WWI. This Museum exhibit will also have information and items available to help supporters plan their own Victory Garden in 2021.
The public is invited to help build the WWI exhibit by creating “WWI Shoebox Dioramas” for the display. This is a great opportunity for creative history buffs, students and parents to work on a fun project that will be featured in the Museum and shared virtually. There are many available resources online to learn the basics of how to make a shoebox diorama, including this step-by-step pictorial of a World War I trench and this trenches project idea on Pinterest (a Pinterest account is needed to view it).
This is a great way for artists of all skill levels and ages to do a fun, winter project and learn a bit more about the conditions in which our WWI troops served. Many tutorials, craft items and plastic toy military figures can be found online, including on Amazon (those shopping on Amazon are invited to select The Highground/”Wisconsin Vietnam Veterans Memorial Project Inc” as their charity on Amazon Smile!). The dioramas can be of any aspect of WWI and can portray choices of U.S., British and/or German troops, etc. scenes.
The poster exhibition is made possible by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the National Museum of American History, in cooperation with the U.S. World War I Centennial Commission. It is funded in part by the Smithsonian Women’s Committee.
The Highground Museum, located at W7031 Ridge Rd in Neillsville Wisconsin, is open daily from 10am–4pm. All exhibits and activities are accessible and appropriate for all ages. For more information about the Museum, contact Theresa at 715-743-4224 or by email to museum@thehighground.us. Event updates and more are available on The Highground website at thehighground.us.