Title: Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs Board Meeting Records
Inclusive Dates: 1943-2005

Creator:

• Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs

Call Number: WVM Mss 1589

Quantity: 11.2 linear feet (28 archives boxes)

Repository:

Wisconsin Veterans Museum
Have questions? Contact the Reference Archivist

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Veterans Museum (Map)

See the catalog entry for current shelf locations and additions.

Abstract:

Records of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs pertaining to the Veterans Recognition Board, the Board of Veterans Affairs, and various committees and councils. These entities were created to make policies, provide economic assistance, and give benefits to eligible Wisconsin veterans. Included in the collection are administrative and background documents that provide the foundational rules and procedures of the Veterans Recognition Board and the Board of Veterans Affairs. The meeting minutes and agendas of the Veterans Recognition Board and the Board of Veterans Affairs cover attendance, approval of previous minutes, committee reports, statistical and financial reports, and changes to Wisconsin code concerning veterans benefits. The records pertaining to committees and councils include meeting minutes and agendas for various committees and councils.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.wvm-mss01589

 ↑ Bookmark this ↑

 ↑ Bookmark this ↑

The Veterans Recognition Board was created under Chapter 443, Laws of 1943, with responsibilities for rehabilitation and hospitalization of returning Wisconsin World War II veterans through provision of emergency aid. The Veterans Recognition Board worked closely with other veterans organizations in Wisconsin to create services for the veteran population.

The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) was created by Chapter 580, Laws of 1945, consolidating the duties of the Veterans Recognition Board and the Graves Registration Division of the Adjunct General with responsibility for the Wisconsin Veterans Home.

The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs is comprised of several entities including the Secretary and Board of Veterans Affairs. The Secretary of the Department is responsible for carrying out all administrative duties. The Board of Veterans Affairs is the agency that oversees all department activity and creates policy on behalf of the veterans.

The function of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs remains to create policies that give benefits, services, and funds to eligible Wisconsin veterans and their families. This includes economic aid, hospital care, educational grants, and home loans through the management of trust funds. The department also oversees the Wisconsin veterans homes at King and Union Grove, the Wisconsin Veterans Museum in Madison, the Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Union Grove, the Northern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery near Spooner, and the Central Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery at King. All of these functions are documented in the meeting minutes of the Board of Veterans Affairs and the minutes of the subsequent committees and councils. The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs also maintains several publications, such as The Bugle, The Courier, Old Abe the War Eagle, USS Wisconsin, WDVA Update, Wisconsin in the Civil War, and Wisconsin's Warriors.

The records of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs are divided into four series, Administrative/Background Documents, Veterans Recognition Board, Board of Veterans Affairs, and Committees and Councils.

Administrative/Background Documents (1943-1987) provide information about the foundational rules and procedures of the Veterans Recognition Board and the Board of Veterans Affairs.

Veterans Recognition Board (1943-1945) includes the monthly meeting minutes that consist of attendance, approval of minutes, and committee reports. The minutes also include the director's report on statistical and financial information of the board, current policies, and reports about veterans' benefits in the news. This series contains an index to all motions discusses by the Veterans Recognition Board, including policies that both passed and failed.

Board of Veterans Affairs (1945-2005) contains the agendas and minutes. The agendas of the board report discuss topics to be covered at meetings. The monthly meeting minutes include attendance, approval of board minutes, committee reports, and the Secretary's reports cover statistical reports, financial reports, and changes to Wisconsin code concerning veterans' benefits. Legislation about education grants, home loans, and medical problems relating to veterans such as Agent Orange and post traumatic stress disorder are discussed at length by the board.

Several closed session meetings are also included that relate to the hiring of board members. These dates are May 20, 1980, December 11, 1991, June 21, 1996, June 11, 2001, October 10, 2003, October 21, 2003, and August 19, 2005. The minutes of the closed sessions are kept as part of the official record, but are not meant to be reproduced.

Committees and Councils (1945-2005) are arranged into seven subseries: Administrative, Advisory, Financial, King, Legislative, Memorials, and Veterans Programs. Administrative includes committees whose purpose is to create policies and procedures of the board. Advisory includes committees that discuss veterans needs in areas such as agriculture, education, and medicine. Financial includes committees that manage loans, grants, veterans trust funds, and emergency assistance. King includes committees that discuss matters pertaining to veterans home in King, Wisconsin such as employment, memorials, buildings, and financial matters. Legislative includes committees that advocate and create state legislation about veterans benefits. Memorials includes committees that create and dedicate veterans memorials in Wisconsin. Veterans Programs includes several major committees that serve specific groups of veterans. These committees advocate for legislation, give assistance, interact with veterans, and represent veterans organizations in Wisconsin.

All of the subseries include committee meeting minutes and agendas with only some committees providing agendas. Early committees gave verbal summaries of their meeting at Board of Veterans Affairs meetings and these reports are recorded in the board minutes; however, it wasn't until the 1950s that most committees submitted full copies of minutes to be included as exhibits in the board record.

Major committees include the Audit Portfolio Committee and Financial Committee, the Council on Veterans Programs, the County Veterans Service Officers Advisory Council, the Department Commanders and Council of Commanders, the King Committee and Long Term Care Committee, the Legislative Committee and Legislative and Program Review Committee, and the Loan Advisory Committee.

The following committees underwent name changes during the covered time periods: the Audit Portfolio Committee became the Financial Committee in 1987, the Department of Commanders became the Council of Commanders in 1981, the King Committee became the Long Term Care Committee in 1999, and the Legislative Committee became the Legislative and Program Review Committee in 1987.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Transferred by Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. Accession Number: Mss 2011.240

Processing Information

Processed by Leslie Nellis in 2012.

Box   1 Folder   1	Series: Administrative/Background Documents, 1943-1987
	Series: Veterans Recognition Board	⇧
Box   1 Folder   2	Index to Motions, 1943-1945
Box   1 Folder   3-4	Minutes, 1943-1945
	Series: Board of Veterans Affairs	⇧
Box   1 Folder   5-9	Agendas, 1985-2005
	Subseries: Minutes	⇧
Box   1 Folder   10-13	1945-1947
Box   2	1948-1955
Box   3	1956-1961
Box   4	1962-1965
Box   5	1966-1969
Box   6	1969-1973
Box   7	1973-1975
Box   8	1976-1978
Box   9	1978-1981
Box   10	1981-1984
Box   11	1985-1992
Box   12 Folder   1-18	1993-2005
	Series: Committees and Councils	⇧
	Subseries: Administrative
Box   1 Folder   19	Building Subcommittee-Minutes, 1970
Box   1 Folder   20	Educational Grant Policy Committee-Minutes, 1978
Box   1 Folder   21	Gifts and Bequests Fund Policy Committee-Minutes, 1976
Box   1 Folder   22	Policy and Procedures Committee-Minutes, 1953
Box   1 Folder   23	Resume Screening Subcommittee-Minutes, 2003
Box   1 Folder   24	Search and Screen Committee-Minutes, 1977
Box   1 Folder   25	Special Committee for Review of Rules of Procedure-Minutes, 1977
Box   1 Folder   26	Special Committee on Board Commendations-Minutes, 1968
	Special Committee to Review Board Policies and Procedures
Box   1 Folder   27	Agendas, 1986
Box   1 Folder   28	Minutes, 1978-1986
Box   13 Folder   1	Waiver of Bonus Study Committee-Minutes, 1966
Box   13 Folder   2	WDVA Briefing-Minutes, 2005
	Subseries: Advisory	⇧
Box   13 Folder   3	Agricultural Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1945
Box   13 Folder   4	Educational Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1950
Box   13 Folder   5	Medical Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1946-1952
Box   13 Folder   6	Veterans Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1962-1963
Box   13 Folder   7	Women's Advisory Committee-Minutes 1947
	Audit Portfolio Committee
Box   13 Folder   8	Agendas, 1985-1986
Box   13 Folder   9-17	Minutes, 1977-1986
Box   14	Financial Committee
Box   14 Folder   1-2	Agendas, 1987-2005
Box   14 Folder   3-11	Minutes, 1986-2005
	Loan Advisory Committee
	Minutes
Box   14 Folder   12	1945-1951
Box   15	1952-1989
Box   16 Folder   1-4	1960-1982
Box   16 Folder   5	Rehabilitation Loan Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1985
Box   16 Folder   6	Wisvet Users Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1976
	Subseries: King	⇧
Box   16 Folder   7	Committee on Memorials at King-Minutes, 1981
Box   16 Folder   8	Committee on Naming of Facilities at King-Minutes, 1980
Box   16 Folder   9	Joint Meeting of King and Legislative Committees-Minutes, 1953
Box   16 Folder   10	King Building Committee-Minutes, 1966
	King Committee
Box   16 Folder   11-12	Agendas, 1985-1999
	Minutes
Box   16 Folder   13-14	1947-1957
Box   17	1958-1975
Box   18	1976-1984
Box   19	1985-1994
Box   20 Folder   1-4	1995-1999
	Long Term Care Committee
Box   20 Folder   5	Agendas, 1999-2005
Box   20 Folder   6-11	Minutes, 1999-2005
Box   21 Folder   1	Special Committee on Dedication of the Major General Ralph J. Olson Hall-Minutes, 1969
Box   21 Folder   2	Special Committee on Naming of King Buildings-Minutes, 1968-1972
Box   21 Folder   3	Special Committee on Resident Employee Policy-Minutes, 1969-1972
Box   21 Folder   4	Special Committee to Study Facilities at Grand Army Home for Veterans-Minutes, 1962
Box   21 Folder   5	Wisconsin Home Centennial Committee-Minutes, 1984
	Subseries: Legislative	⇧
Box   21 Folder   6	Committee on EAL Needs Guidelines-Minutes, 1976
	Legislative Committee
Box   21 Folder   7	Agendas, 1985-1987
Box   21 Folder   8-9	Minutes, 1954-1987
	Legislative and Program Review Committee
Box   21 Folder   10-11	Agendas, 1988-2005
Box   21 Folder   12-18	Minutes, 1988-2005
Box   22 Folder   1	Meetings of Statutory Advisory Committee and Legislative Committee-Minutes, 1953
Box   22 Folder   2	Statutory Advisory Committee-Minutes, 1947-1961
	Subseries: Memorials	⇧
	Camp Randall Memorial Park Committee
Box   22 Folder   3	Agendas, 1986-1987
Box   22 Folder   4	Minutes, 1986-1987
Box   22 Folder   5	Veterans Memorial Council-Minutes, 1982
Box   22 Folder   6	Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Council-Minutes, 1973
	Subseries: Veterans Programs	⇧
Box   22 Folder   7-9	Council of Commanders-Minutes, 1981-1991
	Council on Veterans Programs
Box   22 Folder   10-12	Agendas, 1987-2005
	Minutes
Box   22 Folder   13-16	1969-1976
Box   23	1977-1990
Box   24 Folder   1-7	1991-2005
	County Veterans Service Officers Advisory Committee
Box   24 Folder   8	Agendas, 1986-2005
	Minutes
Box   24 Folder   24	1950-1955
Box   25	1956-1976
Box   26	1977-1986
Box   27	1987-1996
Box   28 Folder   28	1997-2005
Box   28 Folder   7	Department Commanders-Minutes, 1979-1980
Box   28 Folder   8	Subcommittee on Employment-Minutes, 1977
Box   28 Folder   9-11	Vietnam Veterans Advisory Council-Minutes, 1975-1982