With the unemployment rate currently at 8.3 percent nationally, different demographics of Americans are searching for work. One group, military veterans, reported a 7.5 percent unemployment rate by a Bureau of Labor Statistics report from earlier this month, are starting to receive help in their job search. The Society of Human Resource Management’s Metro Milwaukee chapter held a seminar last Tuesday at the Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board located at 2338 N. 27th St.

Did you know that Henry C. Koch was the Milwaukee architect for almost all the major projects undertaken at the Northwestern Branch in the 1880s and 1890s? He was also the architect of Milwaukee’s City Hall, the Pfister Hotel and Turner Hall. Learn more at the WSSAS’ National Soldier’s Home website.

Did you know, the historic Surgeon’s and Adjutant’s Quarters residence was remediated and restored in 2005, becoming the City of Milwaukee’s first single-room-occupancy homeless facility sponsored by the Department of Housing and Urban Development? Learn more at the WSSAS’ National Soldier’s Home Historic District website. Surgeon's Quarters, 1905 Souvenir Book

John Hunt didn’t have much time to write; his unit – Co. D, 7th Wisconsin Infantry – was camped outside a small town in Pennsylvania. So Hunt closed the letter to his wife, Mary, by writing: “I have to stop. We just got an order to march.” The 7th Wisconsin moved out. They turned toward Gettysburg. Shortly after he mailed the letter back to his wife on their Stoughton area farm, Hunt was captured at the battle that would become the bloodiest in the Civil War. Within months, h

In September, a Programmatic Agreement (PA) was signed between the Milwaukee VA, who owns the Milwaukee Soldiers Home, and a number of consulting parties including the National Park Service and the Wisconsin State Historic Preservation Office. As part of the programmatic agreement, the VA committed to begin stabilization of the two most threatened buildings – Old Main and the Ward Memorial Theater. The agreement also sets a standard for continued rehabilitation of and compreh

In addition to the honor of becoming a nationally recognized treasure, National Historic Landmark properties have access to special support from the Department of the Interior including information on financial and technical assistance, higher visibility for the District and stronger federal preservation project review. Additionally, funding preferences are often shown to National Historic Landmarks. This article was featured in our February 2012 newsletter, click here to see

Reclaiming Our Heritage, the veteran tribute and living history event on the grounds of the Milwaukee Soldiers Home Historic District, will be back for at least one more year, June 2-3, 2012. Veterans, visitors and volunteers overwhelmingly persuaded the event committee to reconsider its decision to bring the event to a close in 2011. With the support of the VA Medical Center, the committee announced its revised plans to accommodate VA construction plans and patient needs. Th

Following the momentum from the National Trusts 11 Most Endangered Historic Places Designation, a consortium of parties interested in the District, including the Milwaukee Preservation Alliance, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Soldiers Home Foundation convened a broad group of veterans, neighbors, preservationists, civic, community and business leaders to form a Community Advisory Council for the Milwaukee VA Soldiers Home (CAC). The CAC has come together

The West Side Soldiers Aid Society (WSSAS) has launched a new website dedicated to Milwaukee’s National Soldier’s Home Historic District. The site is a service to the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center and is managed and funded by the WSSAS. The site offers a comprehensive, in-depth look into the history of Milwaukee’s Soldiers Home. Click here to visit the site and be sure to check back often for updates and new information. This article was featured in our February 2012

Did you know that over the course of the Civil War, close to 31,000 soldiers were served by the first Soldiers’ Home in Wisconsin? Many soldiers were from outside Wisconsin, including a number of Confederate prisoners from Camp Douglas who took the Oath of Allegiance to the Union. Learn more at the WSSAS’ National Soldier’s Home Historic District website.