Robert Bruce McCoy was a General in the National Guard in the early 20th century. He is most well known for having Fort McCoy, Wisconsin

Fort McCoy, Wisconsin

Fort McCoy is an active United States Army installation. It is located on 60,000 acres between Sparta and Tomah, Wisconsin, in Monroe County...

, formerly Camp McCoy, named after him.

Biography

McCoy was born September 5, 1867 in Kenosha, Wisconsin

Kenosha, Wisconsin

Kenosha is a city and the county seat of Kenosha County in the State of Wisconsin in United States. With a population of 99,218 as of May 2011, Kenosha is the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Kenosha is also the fourth-largest city on the western shore of Lake Michigan, following Chicago,...

 to Bruce Elisha McCoy. Not long after his birth his family moved to the town of Lafayette

Lafayette, Monroe County, Wisconsin

Lafayette is a town in Monroe County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 318 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 35.3 square miles , of which, 35.3 square miles of it is land and 0.04 square miles of it ...

, in Monroe County

Monroe County, Wisconsin

Monroe County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 40,899. Its county seat is Sparta.-Geography:According to the U.S...

, where his father worked in the milling industry. In 1876, the mill property where his father worked was flooded and the family moved to Sparta in order to continue the milling business.

While attending high school Robert McCoy was an athlete, distinguishing himself as a leader in school activities graduating from Sparta High School in 1887. After graduating from high school he entered the University of Wisconsin, and made the varsity baseball team in his first year. In 1890 he left college to play semi-professional baseball at Ashland, Wisconsin

Ashland, Wisconsin

Ashland is a city in Ashland and Bayfield counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The city is a port on Lake Superior, near the head of Chequamegon Bay. The population was 8,695 at the 2010 census....

, later returning to the University of Wisconsin as captain of the varsity baseball team.

Politics

In 1891, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School and was admitted to the bar. In 1897, McCoy was elected Monroe County court judge serving for 16 years. In 1920, he was elected mayor of Sparta; he was nominated for Governor of Wisconsin

Governor of Wisconsin

The Governor of Wisconsin is the highest executive authority in the government of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The position was first filled by Nelson Dewey on June 7, 1848, the year Wisconsin became a state...

, in 1920, but lost.

Death and legacy

McCoy died January 5, 1926 from pernicious anemia. In November of that year the Army National Guard post was renamed to Fort McCoy in his honor.

Army Distinguished Service Medal citation

Citation:

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Army Distinguished Service Medal to Colonel (Infantry) Robert B. McCoy, United States Army, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished services to the Government of the United States, in a duty of great responsibility during World War I. In Command of the 128th Infantry throughout all the major operations in which the 32d Division participated, Colonel McCoy proved himself a leader of sound judgment and exceptional ability. During the Oise-Aisne offensive he skillfully handled the delicate maneuver of straightening and changing the front on the left bank of his brigade during the attack on Terny-Sorny and later during the Meuse-Argonne offensive. In the attack on the Kremhilde-Stellung he performed another tactical operation of high order in a flank movement which resulted in the taking of the town of Romagne.

External links

• Robert Bruce McCoy