Vernon County Historical Society

06/06/2026

Last week, Viroqua 3rd graders spent a day at the Foreaker schoolhouse to learn about what life was like in an old-fashioned one-room school. They also visited the museum to tour the exhibits upstairs. It seemed like they had a lot of fun (despite the heat)!

If you're wishing that you also got to go on such a fun field trip, you're in luck! Now that school is out for the summer and the museum is on its summer hours, it's the perfect time to visit. We are now open 11-4 Monday through Friday, and 10-2 on Saturdays. The Foreaker schoolhouse is also open by request, or you can learn more about it here: https://www.vernoncountyhistory.org/schoolhouse/foreaker.php

06/02/2026

05/29/2026

Hope to see you at the Pizza Farm tonight! A portion of the night's proceeds will benefit our historical society. Come eat for a good cause!

05/23/2026

Next Friday we'll be the featured non-profit organization at the pizza farm -- hope to see you there!

05/17/2026

Happy Syttende Mai! Have you been taking part in the festivities this weekend?

Photo: Bicentennial float, Westby Syttende Mai, 1976.

The VCHS has many historic photos like this one in our archives. We even have a whole box for all things Syttende Mai! These resources are available for anyone who's interested to look at, so stop by any time if you'd like to see more.

05/11/2026

Planning a research trip will be the topic of the next genealogy class. On Thursday, May 14, at 9AM, Rebecca Hopman from the Wisconsin Historical Society genealogy library in Madison will present a program about library resources called, “A Visit to WHS: Practical Tips for Planning Your Family History Research Trip”. Rebecca will appear via Zoom. Note the earlier than usual start time for this class. The genealogy class is going to the library in Madison on Thursday, June 11, so this will be a good introduction for that trip.

New students are always welcome to join the genealogy class. Vernon County Historical Society members attend for free, and non-members are asked to pay $5 per class session. Classes are held in the first-floor, wheelchair-accessible conference room at the Vernon County History Center.