Fort McCoy is an active United States Army Base that is located between Sparta and Tomah in Wisconsin. It is used primarily as a military training center. Troops from all over Wisconsin and other states go there for training.
Fort McCoy is now located on 60,000 acres. It was created back in 1909 when it became the “Sparta Maneuver Tract” that was located on only 14,000 acres. The tract consisted of 2 different camps, Camp Emory Upton and Camp Robinson. A railroad track separated the 2 camps from each other.
Then in 1910, the army decided to rename the tract to “Camp Bruce E. McCoy.” Robert Bruce McCoy was a retired army general and the son of a Civil War Captain. He was one of the first people to say the area should be used as training grounds. He always dreamed about having a large training area in Wisconsin. He also was the person that purchased the majority of the property. They then shorten the name to just Camp McCoy in 1926. That is also the same year that Major General Robert Bruce McCoy passed away.
Expansion of the Camp started to take place in 1938. They added an addition of 45,000 acres to the post. The construction of a lot of different structures for the troops also started taking place. They began to barracks for the troops, so that they would have a place to sleep at throughout their training drills. The cost of the project estimated out to around 30 million dollars.
When World War 2 was going on, the Camp was used as a training area for units all over the United States. This was one of the steps in preparing and training them for combat. It was also a Prisoner of War camp during the conflict. Shortly after the War the camp was not used for awhile again. Until the Korean War hit in 1950, then it became used again for training purposes.
Then after that War they used the camp for training the National Guards and Job Core soldiers. They also used it to research state and national projects. Then in 1973 it became a permanent training center.
In 1974 it was officially designated as Fort McCoy. It still serves as a Total Force Training Center. They estimate around 100,000 military people are trained there every year! That is a lot of traffic going through there.
When Operations Desert Shield Storm took place, soldiers from over 70 different units were deployed and redeployed there. And since September 11, 2001 more than 55,000 military personal from over 1,000 units have mobilized or demobilized from Fort McCoy.
The Fort is like a city within a city. They have basically everything you need there. They have their own police force that drives around the base and checks IDs at the front gate. They also have a PX which is a large shopping center where you can buy movies, magazines, food, clothes, army equipment, furniture, electronics, and so much more. And the prices are a little bit cheaper then normal. They also have there own bar area called McCoy’s. In here they have 2 small restaurants, a bowling alley, a big arcade, a banquet hall, and a large bar. In the middle of the bar they have a boxing ring that is used for the dance floor. Hanging above the ring is a hexagon of giant TV screens and each has a different station on them. They also have a great sound system for music and a DJ that will play whatever you are looking for. It really is a fun and great atmosphere bar.
They also have a hotel where friends and family of the solider can stay at discounted prices. That is nice to have if you are dropping or picking your soldier up from training and it is late and you have a long drive. This way you don’t have to worry about being tired and falling asleep at the wheel.
Fort McCoy employs over 1,000 civilians, about 600 military and about 1,000 are contracted. The contracted ones are construction workers, computer guys etc… They do offer tours there. So if you get a chance check out the base. It is a really interesting base to see and is full of a lot of history. Then stop at McCoy’s and check out that cool place for a drrink!
