There were no battles fought in Wisconsin but almost every family was affected by the Civil War. Between 1861-1865, more than 91,000 young men left Wisconsin to fight in the South and 12,000 brave souls never returned. Wisconsinites participated in every major battle of the Civil War. Training centers for the soldiers were located in Milwaukee, Fond du Lac, Racine, and Madison. Camp Randall, where the Wisconsin Badgers play football, was used to house Confederate prisoners of war.
Wisconsin’s most famous Civil War unit was the Iron Brigade. It was composed of the 2nd, 6th, and 7th Wisconsin Infantry regiments, the 19th Indiana Infantry, 24th Michigan Infantry, and Battery B of the 4th U.S. Light Artillery. Made up primarily of Wisconsin men, they saw action at Bull Run, Virginia, Antietam, Maryland, Gettysburg, Virigina, and other key battles. Almerion Mead, grandfather of Crandon residents, served in this brigade. To learn the names of all the men from Forest County that fought in the Civil War and to view weapons from that time period visit the display case at the front of the Crandon Public Library. To see the gravestones of these brave men join us for a cemetery tour on August 25th at 6:00 pm at the Lakeside Cemetery in Crandon, Wisconsin.
