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War Comes Home: The Legacy

  • Description
  • Specs
  • Schedule

Description

I’m coming home! I’m looking forward to seeing you again…but I’m in no hurry to see the expressions on your faces when you see me.

Private Al Puntasecca, letter to his family, 1953

For veterans, returning home from war can be both an exhilarating and challenging experience. Through private correspondence from almost every major conflict in U.S. history, War Comes Home offers insight into the thoughts and emotions of veterans and their families upon their homecoming. These intimate perspectives – from the Civil War era through the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq – reveal how war can shape a life, a family, and a community. This exhibition is a partnership with California Humanities and is a part of its War Comes Home initiative, which aims to raise awareness of and promote greater understanding of our veterans and explore the impact of war on our communities.

An African American man wears an army uniform, hat, and glasses in a formal portrait.
US Army Air Corps Portrait of Major Oscar Mitchell, 1944, courtesy Andrew Carroll.
A woman points to a book while holding a baby in her arms in a living room. The woman wears an army uniform.
Portrait of Staff Sergeant Sharon McBride with her child, courtesy Sharon McBride.
A soldier kneels in front of two rifles standing upright. Helmets are perched on the butt of each rifle. Other soldiers stand nearby.
A memorial service, courtesy Kath McConkey

The exhibition is divided into five sections:

  • The War Experience: PERCEPTION VS REALITY
  • Far From Home: WARTIME SEPARATION
  • A New Normal: ADJUSTING TO LIFE AT HOME
  • Enduring Loss: THE COSTS OF WAR
  • Reflections: BEFORE AND AFTER
  • A New Mission: COMING HOME

Within each section, the exhibition pairs an historic letter with a contemporary letter or email to demonstrate the range of experiences military members face as they transition from deployment to home. Showcasing veterans and their families adjusting to civilian life together – or facing the long-term costs of war – these powerful letters explore feelings of grief, joy, doubt, and love, bringing the real experiences of war home to all of us.

The exhibition is based on the collection the Center for American War Letters (CAWL) and curated by Andrew Carroll, the Director of CAWL, and John Benitz, Professor, Chapman University. The freestanding panels provide a flexible layout, easy installation and designed to fit a variety of venue – libraries, museums, community centers, lobbies and government buildings. Three copies of the exhibition will begin touring in January 2015 and will tour for at least 3 years.

This exhibit is also available as an online exhibit! Book the online exhibit as a stand-alone experience, or pair it with the physical exhibit when you host. Visit our online exhibits page to learn more.

War Comes Home: The Legacy is a partnership between California Humanities, the California State Library and Exhibit Envoy. It is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the BayTree Fund, The Whitman Fund, and the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.

Specs

Audience:
General
Rental Fee:
$1,000 + shipping for an 8-week booking
Size:
42′ total linear feet; 13 freestanding banners @ 33” w x 80” h each
Languages:
English, Spanish (via audio tour)
Security:
Limited
Installation Images:
View Here

Exhibit Components:

  • 13 freestanding exhibition panels, divided into five sections
  • Cell audio tour of the letters read in English and Spanish translation of the exhibit panels
  • Video featuring additional veteran interviews
  • Exhibition gallery guide
  • Exhibition press kit with digital images

Schedule and Availability

Past Dates

January 18, 2015 – March 1, 2015
#1 – Mead Valley Library
#2 – San Francisco Public Library
#3 – EP Foster Library, Ventura
March 15, 2015 – April 26, 2015
#1 – Gavilian Collage, Gilroy
#2 – Sacramento Public Library
#3 – County of LA Public Library, Lancaster
May 10, 2015 – June 21, 2015
#1 – Evergreen Valley College, San Jose
#2 – City of Camarillo Public Library
#3 – Chapman University, Orange
July 5, 2015 – August 16, 2015
#1 – Vallejo Naval Museum
#2 – San Diego Public Library
#3 – LA Public Library, Central
August 30, 2015 – October 11, 2015
#1 – College of the Siskiyous Library, Weed
#2 – Tulare Historical Museum
#3 – San Leandro Public Library
October 25, 2015 – December 6, 2015
#1 – San Lorenzo Valley Museum, Bolder Creek
#2 – Santa Rosa Junior College, Petaluma Campus, Mahoney Library
#3 – Pierce College Library, Woodland Hills
December 20, 2015 – February 14, 2016
#1 – Inglewood Public Library
#2 – Oakland Public Library
#3 – Carmen Durazo Cultural Center, Camarena Memorial Library, Calexico
February 28, 2016 – April 24, 2016
#1 – Stanislaus County Library
#2 – Museum on Main, Pleasanton
#3 – Chula Vista Public Library
May 8, 2016 – July 3, 2016
#1 – Sacramento Public Library
#2 – California History Center, Cupertino
#3 – Arkansas Humanities Council
July 17, 2016 – September 11, 2016
#3 – Arkansas Humanities Council
September 25, 2016 – November 20, 2016
#1 – Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, OH
#2 – College of the Desert, Palm Desert
#3 – Arkansas Humanities Council
December 4, 2016 – January 29, 2017
#1 – Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Libraries, Stockton
(Chavez Library; Manteca Library; Tracy Library)
#2 – Ovitt Family Community Library, Ontario
#3 – Arkansas Humanities Council
February 12, 2017 – April 9, 2017
#1 – Kings County Library, Hanford Branch
#2 – Museum of San Ramon Valley, Danville
#3 – Arkansas Humanities Council
April 23, 2017 – June 18, 2017
#1 – Veterans Home of California, Yountville
#2 – Moreno Valley Public Library
#3 – Oceanside Public Library
July 2, 2017 – August 27, 2017
#2 – Upland Public Library
September 10, 2017 – November 5, 2017
#1 – Midland County Public Library, Midland, TX
#2 – San Joaquin County Historical Museum, Lodi
January 28, 2018 – March 25, 2018
#1 – General Tommy Franks Leadership Institute and Museum, Hobart, OK
June 10, 2018 – August 5, 2018
#1 – World War I Memorial Building, Baltimore, MD
#2 – History San Jose, San Jose, CA
August 19, 2018 – October 14, 2018
#2 – History San Jose, San Jose, CA
January 6, 2019 – March 3, 2019
#1 – Mulberry Cultural Center, Mulberry, FL
#2 – Menlo Park Library, Menlo Park
March 17, 2019 – May 12, 2019
#1 – The Highground Veterans Memorial Park, Neillsville, WI
#2 – Menlo Park Library, Menlo Park
August 4, 2019 – September 29, 2019
#1 – Central Lakes College, Brainerd, MN
September 15, 2019 – October 13, 2019
#2 – George Mason University, Fairfax, VA
May 17, 2020 – August 23, 2020
#1 – Spellman Museum of Forney History, Forney, TX
September 6, 2020 – January 24, 2021 (20 weeks)
#1 – Hi-Desert Nature Museum, Yucca Valley
January 17, 2021 – October 3, 2021
#2 – City of Greeley Museums, Greeley, CO
August 29, 2021 – December 30, 2021
#1 – National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, Chattanooga, TN
October 17, 2021 – December 12, 2021
#2 – Siouxland Libraries, Sioux Falls, SD
January 9, 2022 – March 13, 2022
#1 – The Lake Havasu Museum of History, Lake Havasu City, AZ
April 3, 2022 – May 29, 2022
#2 – Churchill County Museum, Fallon, NV
May 22, 2022 – July 17, 2022
#1 – Cecil County Public Libraries, Perryville, MD
October 16, 2022 – December 11, 2022
Mission Viejo Library, Mission Viejo, CA
October 29, 2023 – November 26, 2023
CNY Veterans Parade and Expo and Onondaga Community College, Syracuse, NY
November 24, 2024 – January 19, 2025
AVAILABLE
February 9, 2025 – April 6, 2025
AVAILABLE
April 27, 2025 – June 22, 2025
AVAILABLE
July 13, 2025 – September 7, 2025
AVAILABLE
September 28, 2025 – November 23, 2025
AVAILABLE
December 14, 2025 – February 8, 2026
AVAILABLE
March 1, 2026 – April 26, 2026
Sand Springs Cultural and Historical Museum, Sand Springs, OK
May 17, 2026 – July 12, 2026
AVAILABLE
August 2, 2026 – September 27, 2026
AVAILABLE
October 18, 2026 – December 13, 2026
AVAILABLE

Contact us about purchasing a copy of this beloved exhibit when it ends its tour in 2022 (the first copy will continue to travel indefinitely)!

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