portage wwii history museum

I visited the Portage WWII Museum on Feb. 8th, 2015 with my children. My 11 year old son and I were amazed at the amount of articles/items and displays in this museum. As another critique stated, don't be fooled by the store front. I am not a veteran, but I can just imagine how touching this gem of a museum would mean to someone who has served our country. Bret did an amazing job and I was also told that you should take a minimum of 2 1/2 hours for the tour. That is certainly true, we were there for 3 hours and I can't wait to get back to hear more and learn more about what our great men and women did for our country. Amazing museum and right here in our backyard.

The Portage WWII History Museum is a privately owned collection of artifacts from WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War, and Desert Storm. The curators Bret and Bonnie Esse give a two and a half hour tour explaining various items in the collection. One item in particular is the original transcript of the Nurnberg trails. There is a holocaust room with very graphic photos to remind us of just how bad things were in Germany during Hitler’s reign. They allow people to hold and touch some items, which give you a feeling of the reality of it all. Many veterans of our military are in awe of the comprehensive collection. Some remember using some of the items themselves. They reveal many secrets about the war. You will learn that the war was as much physcological as it was guns and bullets.

If you are at all interested in Military History, this tour is a must !! I spent close to five hours with Bret during the tour and was blown away by the amount of unique items and stories he had regarding WWII ! I thought I was knowledgeable on WWII history but quickly learned many new facets of the war effort that I was completely unaware of ! You will not be disappointed in this tour and will no doubt want to return with other friends with similar interests in the near future !!

Excellent tour from Bret! At the beginning, we were told it would take about 2.5 hours to make it through the tour, but we ended up staying over 5 hours because the stories and articles on display were super interesting. I have visited quite a few museums and this one ranks as one of the best. It's kind of hard to believe something like this is in Portage. Even if you don't think you are interested in history, go see it, you won't be disappointed!

I visited the Portage World War II History Museum in January 2015 while I was visiting friends in the area. I must admit that I wondered what kind of World War II museum would be in such a small town, but my assumptions were completely wrong. This museum, mostly due to the wonderful curated tour delivered by the museum's owner, ranks among the best military history education opportunities out there. You'll see one-of-a-kind pieces one right after another; I must place a special emphasis on the Holocaust and Nazi Party items--some really intriguing items are available for viewing. I have been to numerous Civil War battlefields, Smithsonian museums, and the World War II Museum in New Orleans--it is not an exaggeration that the combination of the collection and curated tour makes the Portage World War II History Museum rank among those establishments. Set aside a few hours for your tour--you won't regret it!