Ft. Atkinson Timeline Event 2017

On Saturday, September 2, the World War 2 Guys took part in our 3rd Annual Ft. Atkinson Timeline Event.  In attendance were Will representing a 2nd ID soldier during stateside training, Jeff representing a 2nd ID soldier from 1944, Jon representing a 507th paratrooper, and Eric representing a 7th Cavalry trooper from 1965.  We started the day meeting-up near the Council House on the north end of the fort.  We set-up our shelters and displays and then joined some of the fort's living historians for a nice hot cup of coffee.  After scouting out some of the other displays around the fort, we decided to move our entire display down near the fort's main entrance so we packed it all up and made it happen.  Our group got lots of foot traffic throughout the day and really enjoyed interacting with curious visitors.  Jon and Will had a little time for a game of catch and we were treated to a delicious hot lunch cooked up by one of the Jeep owners.  In the afternoon we took part in a firepower demonstration that saw 1820s muskets and rifles fired alongside a BAR, Jeff's Thompson, Will's 1903 Springfield, Jon's M1 Garand, and Eric's M16A1, although I couldn't get it to cycle any blanks once again.  We were welcome to take part in the daily liquor ration at the end of our stay and then ended up taking a few more great individual photos.  There's nothing better than watching Will charge across an open field screaming at the top of his lungs with a fixed bayonet.  Simply priceless!  This was once again one of my favorite events of the year and we'll hopefully all be back in 2018 for an even bigger and better show.