The Second World War claimed the lives of 155 Oshkosh men and one Red Cross nurse. In 1942, Oshkosh ranked ninth nationwide in the effort to convert factories to war production. During the war, the Oshkosh Public Museum worked to record the community's war activities. Our collections are very strong in this area. As an official member in the Library of Congress' Veterans History Project, we are currently collecting oral histories from the World War II generation.

In October 1940 the Wisconsin National Guard of the 32nd Division was called into active service. These men would fight in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II. Men and women from the Lake Winnebago Region would also serve in every branch of military service and every theater of operations.