All wars may be terrible, but World War I was particularly horrific. Mechanized warfare that emerged from the American Civil War became more lethally refined, while soldiers on the ground were forced to cling to outdated combat tactics. Over 35 million soldiers lost their lives, many simply from the deplorable conditions they endured living in trenches. The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum in Staunton has just opened a new, interactive exhibit which realistically recreates a World War I trench. It's called “World War I, the Doughboys War.”
You step down into the museum basement, into the trench, into the the sights and sounds of World War I combat. The descent below ground level to enter an actual trench is dramatic. The trench is deep. It has a firing line. And it has audio and lighting effects that helps visitor feel that they are standing in the middle of a battle. The exhibit is also a step into a new kind of presentation at the museum, one that attracts a broader range of visitors.
“It's part of a new trend that we are going to do throughout the museum,” says Dr. Don W. Wilson. “Much more interactive, technology-based. It's what the young people expect today. And we need to produce it.”
The museum at the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library, which is located in the historic downtown Staunton district, is part of a group of buildings that includes the “Manse,” the home where Woodrow Wilson was born. The Woodrow Wilson Museum building opened in 1990 with galleries that exhibit the phases of Wilson's public life, including his 1913 to 1921 term as the 28th President of the United States. A 1933 boxwood garden, a restoration project of the Garden Club of Virginia,is also part of this National Historic Landmark.
The United States had initially been neutral for much of WWI, which ultimately ground into a stalemate among Germans, French and allied forces, all bogging down in 450 miles of trenches, most of which were in France. Wilson says that the exhibit does not glamorize a war that President Wilson himself very much opposed. By the time it ended, over 22 million allied soldiers alone had lost their lives.
The experience of living and fighting in trenches was so traumatic, many World War I soldiers would not ever talk about their experiences. It's often been called the “forgotten war.” Wilson says he believes that the exhibit will attract a broader audience with an interest in military history and also present an opportunity to teach people about the sacrifices that were made in the early 20th century. He says that World War I had tremendous impact on American life when it thrust the country into the international arena as a new major world power.
The Centennial of World War I begins in 2014 with part of it overlaying the ongoing Civil War Sesquicentennial period. The parallels between these two wars are obvious. The deadly artillery of the Civil War became even more devastating during World War I. Machine guns that had only begun to appear in the 1860s could now fire up to 600 rounds a minute. And in both cases, disease, unsanitary conditions and poor medical treatment took as much of a toll as bullets and bombs.
The exhibit also includes a bunker, command center and triage area. More information is available at www.WoodrowWilson.org. Dr. Wilson is a June 11, 2010 interview guest on the weekly Shenandoah Valley Radio Program.
“It's part of a new trend that we are going to do throughout the museum,” says Dr. Don W. Wilson. “Much more interactive, technology-based. It's what the young people expect today. And we need to produce it.”
The experience of living and fighting in trenches was so traumatic, many World War I soldiers would not ever talk about their experiences. It's often been called the “forgotten war.” Wilson says he believes that the exhibit will attract a broader audience with an interest in military history and also present an opportunity to teach people about the sacrifices that were made in the early 20th century. He says that World War I had tremendous impact on American life when it thrust the country into the international arena as a new major world power.