Wisconsin Veterans Museum
Wisconsin Veterans Museum
4.6
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
Closed
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
Closed
About
See, hear, and honor the stories of Wisconsin veterans from the Civil War era to present day. Learn where Wisconsinites served and why their sacrifice still matters today.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.6
246 reviews
Excellent
167
Very good
68
Average
10
Poor
1
Terrible
0
Eisme77
Janesville, WI2,194 contributions
Mar 2023 • Couples
This attraction with free admission is definitely worth the visit. Not huge but very well done with great attention to detail. We spent roughly an hour viewing the exhibits, but if military history is a deep interest of yours, you might spend more time. Exhibits were very impressive for a museum of this size and told the history with its connection to Wisconsin-ites. Highly recommend.
Written January 13, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Madeline K
Wisconsin27 contributions
Jun 2023 • Couples
This is not a large museum so you don’t need a ton of time to go through it. Everything is extremely well organized chronologically making it easy to understand how things change over time. There are a lot of really interesting artifacts and it is neat to see how Wisconsin fits into National or global events! I was also pleasantly surprised that there was no admission cost!
Written June 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AndrewFromMadison
Madison, WI5,905 contributions
Oct 2019
This museum, along with The State Historical Museum and Chazen Museum of Art, are the must-see trio in Madison. Beautifully reconstructed dioramas, as well as plentiful historical firearms, are at the core of this museum. The story line goes from war to war in chronological order, and covers some little-knnown conflicts as well as major wars that everyone is aware of. My only grudge here is they don't allow flash photos, so it's hard to make good photos while visiting (hence four stars instead of five in ratings)
Written January 15, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Betty
3,079 contributions
Oct 2021
This museum is very well put together and a great educational experience for all ages. The exhibits go through the different wars. There were videos that showed the experiences of the veterans. Lots of interactive displays - check out the periscope and view the Capital.
Definitely a must see. The museum is free and you can leave a donation.
Definitely a must see. The museum is free and you can leave a donation.
Written November 10, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Charles H
Lincoln, NE140 contributions
Nov 2017 • Solo
I was a Madison resident for 22 years. I had seen two earlier iterations of this museum but somehow never made it to this "new" site. I moved away but was back for a visit and determined to get over here. Wow! It's hard to believe the curators have managed to pack so much into so little space, including tanks and aircraft. Its emphasis is on Wisconsin vets but it covers all bases from the Civil War on. One of the most impressive things to me is the quality of the mannequins: they are all portraits and look as if they are ready to speak. I don't know if they are portraits of real people but there seems not to be a single duplicate in the whole museum. Every one is different and very lifelike without being at all "creepy," like a wax museum. One of my favorite tableaus is of the young American nurse with two wounded men in a rear area somewhere in France in WW1 (picture attached). The doughboys are laughing and joking and talking and singing with the young woman as she plays the piano. It's heartwarming just to see it. You can almost hear them. GO to this museum. It's suited to all ages, beautifully curated and maintained, and tells the story of American arms.
Written November 30, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SEMkap
Waukesha, WI39 contributions
Aug 2017 • Couples
Amazing museum with great exhibits for FREE! Would visit every day. Only downside is the cost of parking. Also, can something be done about the homeless people on the side of the building? I was very uncomfortable walking by and one of them tried to sell me urine scented soap.
Written August 28, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Johnl3d
Milwaukee, WI31 contributions
Apr 2019 • Couples
Looked over the exhibits on wars where americans were involved. Interesting some done better than others but allwere good
Written April 10, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tim D
Canton, SD8 contributions
Jan 2019 • Friends
If you would like to learn about Wisconsin Veterans of our Nations Conflicts this is the place to go. If your goal is to teach your children about their ancestors who fought in these conflicts this is also the place to go. If your interest is in Military History you will not be disappointed. One of my relatives fought in the Civil War and Homesteaded in Dunn County Wisconsin. I make sure I visit anytime I am in town and this trip made a pilgrimage to bring my father and brother to see our Great Grandfathers name on the Civil War Roll Call that they have here. As a lover of history, I typically stop at any museum like this. I have never seen such a tribute in traveling through, (So Far) 46 of our United States. The staff is helpful to the extreme and I can only thank the citizens of the state of Wisconsin for this wonderful asset. I am astounded that it is open to everyone for free! I always make a donation but never have I been asked or felt pressure to do so. Thank you for this jewel in this incredible city!
Written January 23, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Diane P
Irma, WI50 contributions
Sep 2018 • Couples
We got there just as guided tour was finishing. Next time we will have a guide. Lots information from the guide. This place has displays that are very realistic. It has things from the Civil War up to the War on Terror. If there is room it would be nice to recognize some of the other smaller operations. My son Army Ranger (A/2/75) John Mark Price was killed in Operation Just Cause, December 20, 1989. He was the only one from Wisconsin that was a KIA.
Written September 12, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Charles B
Montreal, Canada33 contributions
Nov 2017 • Business
This is a small, 2-room museum in an unremarkable building across the street from the Capitol and the Wisconsin Historical Museum (also recommended) in the middle of downtown Madison. In those 2 rooms, however, is an excellent review of the military history of Wisconsin and, by extension, of the larger conflicts in which Wisconsin military personnel have been involved, from the Civil War to the most recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The biggest emphases, quite naturally, are the Civil War and the two World Wars, but all of the conflicts are portrayed with both artifacts (weapons, uniforms, etc.) and life-sized and highly realistic dioramas, with succinct and well-written text to accompany them. The slightly larger room featuring the more recent conflicts is dominated by actual aircraft suspended from the ceiling, a tank in one diorama, and, appropriately, a beautiful model of the battleship USS Wisconsin. The military history buff could spend several hours here, but the casually interested will cover it in about 30-45 minutes; in any case, admission is free, so you don't have to worry about value for money. The gift shop has a nice selection of books,DVDs, toys, t-shirts and other souvenirs.
Written November 6, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Are there any handicap parking spots near, NOT in a ramp???
Written December 17, 2019
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