WWII Reenactment in West-Central Wisconsin: Context of History and Memory from the Last World War

Abstract

In 1978 the first official World War II historical reenactment took place in St. Louis, Missouri. The handful of pioneering men who dressed up in full WWII uniform, and armed with WWII era weaponry, began a hobby that would eventually rival the numbers of those who had been participating in Civil War reenactments since the mid 1960s. This paper traces the history of reenactment in general to set the historical time-line for WWII reenactment. History and memory plays an important role in understanding why reenactors choose to reenact WWII. The types of historical memory are described and WWII reenactment is fit into the context of how history is remembered. In addition, issues regarding the ownership and right to interpretation of history are also examined. The links are then drawn to show how WWII reenactment is a form of history and memory and how WWII benefits those who choose to remember our past.