08/30/2026
A Sneak Peek — Major Ernest F. Poff
by Sarah Poff
This is what history looks like before it reaches the museum.
Right now, our home is filled with uniforms, photographs, medals, helmets, documents, and other pieces of the military life of Major Ernest F. Poff.
Soon, some of these items will leave our family’s care for a while and make their way to Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield near Republic, Missouri, where they will become part of a temporary museum display honoring Major Poff and his service.
There is a special connection.
One hundred years after the Battle of Wilson’s Creek, Major Poff was the senior-ranking Army officer involved with the military’s participation in the 1961 Civil War Centennial commemoration at Wilson’s Creek. Now, more than sixty years later, pieces of his story are returning to the battlefield for this special temporary display.
As I sort through everything, I’m discovering that preparing items for a museum is a story all its own. Which uniform should go? Which photograph helps us see the man behind the uniform? What does an old helmet, a medal, a document, or something tucked away in a box tell us that a history book cannot?
I’m going to take you behind the scenes with me.
I’m preparing a video about Major Poff, the stories behind some of these objects, and what it takes to prepare a family’s history for a temporary museum display.
And perhaps that’s the part that means the most to me.
Major Poff’s story belongs to our family, but the idea behind this display belongs to many families. So many of us have a uniform, a photograph, a medal, a letter—or perhaps simply a story—connected to someone who served our country.
Those things matter.
The people who wore the uniforms mattered.
And their stories are worth remembering.
Consider this your sneak peek. There is much more of Major Poff’s story to come.
Soon, some of the things you see in this photograph will be on temporary display at Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, where another generation will have the opportunity to see them, learn the story behind them—and remember.
