jay when I last visited (several years ago now) the land warfare hall was closed due to refurbishment - I think - some what annoying as I wanted to get some pics of the soviet cold war stuff they have got. I shall be going there again shotly though.
HMA Belfast (haven’t been there since the 80’s, must go back some day)
Imperial War Museum
RAF Museum Hendon
Bovington tank Museum
Duxford (that’s the closet one to me, only 45mins drive away)
BBMF, got a guard tour through the hanger and got to climb into the Lanc and C-47.
Not a lot when I think about it.
Impressive list, stik! You’ve got a few on there I would love to visit. I see the McClellan AFB Museum on your list. Is that in Anniston, Alabama?
I remember when that Mustang crashed. Very disheartening, to say the least. Good to hear that the race is still active.
I would definitely LOVE to see the War Museum in Duxford! I’ve been to England three times since 2006, and never got the chance to go up there (they were all business trips).
But, I did get to go to the Farnborough Air Show in July 2006 during my first trip to England. That was a great experience. They had the “official” roll-out of the AIRBUS A-380 at that show, and I got some incredible video of it flying & many, many stills of it on display. The airshow happens once every two years, so if you ever get a chance to go, DO IT! All of the most modern planes from all over the world show up at this event. Just incredible!
I’ve been to the Canadian War Museum, and the Canadian Aviation museum, both in Ottawa. Both AWESOME!
Among other things, both museums contained some fantastic models and dios.
One little thing about the war museum that bugged me a bit: the builders of the models there are not credited. I mean, maybe we model builders are not ‘artists’ per se like Picasso or Rembrandt, but when a modeller gets work displayed in a museum, it should be credited. In my opinion.
The Aviation museum does credit the builders. Here are some (uncredited, lol) snap-shots I took there:
-Blake
I haven’t yet had a chance to go to Farnborough. Best thing is, my last 5 years in the army were just down the road, but I wasn’t able to get off when it was on. Though I remember one year seeing some of the aircraft flying in.
Duxford is defiantly worth a visit.
Devil Dawg, McClellan AFB is near Sacramento, CA. It is where they modified the Doolittle Raider aircraft before they were embarked upon USS Hornet. They had a very good display on that mission and a bit about each individual raider aircraft. Next on my list to hit here are USS Iowa and USS Lane Victory, which are berthed near one another here. There is also the Ft MacArthur museum close by, but I have yet to go in there when it is open. I have been up to the old gun battery mounts many times. Those have been used in a few older movies back in the day.
Several in the States. though not a very extensive list, to include the 82nd museum at Ft. Bragg as well as the Smithsonian.
I had the opportunity to go to Normandy for a week a couple of years ago. Lot’s of various museums. I didn’t see a Tiger tank, but was amazed at how small the armor was up close compared to a lot of modern day stuff. Point Du Hoc, Utah, Omaha, Juno, etc. I was pleasantly surprised to see the B-26 at Utah beach, in the museum there. It looked in perfect condition.
Gotta get to Dayton and to the UK museums one day.
- Motts’ Military Museum (Groveport, OH)
- Patton Museum of Cavalry & Armor (Ft Knox, Ky)
- National Museum of the U.S. Air Force (Wright-Patterson AFB, OH)
- World War II Vehicle Museum & Learning Center (Hubbard, Ohio)
- Historic WACO Airfield Museum (Troy, OH)
- Museum of Science & Industry (Chicago, IL)
- WWII Victory Museum (Auburn, IN)
- Kruse Automotive Horse Power and Carriage Museum (Auburn, IN)
- U.S. Army Ordnance Corps Museum (Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD)
- NASA/Kennedy Space Center (Merritt Island, FL)
- USS Cod (Cleveland, OH)
- Central Ohio Fire Museum & Learning Center (Columbus, OH)
- Fire Museum of Greater Coincinnati (Cincinnati, OH)
U.S. Navy Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, CA
Channel Islands Maritime Museum, Oxnard, CA
Nevada Southern Railway, Boulder City, NV
Commemorative Air Force, Southern California Wing, Camarillo, CA
The next museum I’d like to visit someday:
National Construction Equipment Museum, Bowling Green, OH
American Military Museum (aka Tankland), South El Monte, CA
I used to drive past Fort McClellan in Anniston, AL, quite a bit when I lived in Georgia, so I thought that maybe there was an Air Force base there that I didn’t know about. If I remember correctly, Fort McClellan is where the M1 Abrams tanks are rebuilt & modified. Based on what you just said about McClellan AFB, I need to get out there and see that one.
There are quite a few in your list that I haven’t heard of, pyrman64, which means I need to go see them. I’ve driven past the WWII Victory Museum in Auburn, IN, many times going to and from hospitals (for work) in Michigan, and never had a chance to stop and look around. Now, I live nowhere near the place, so I don’t when I’ll ever get the chance to go back. Probably the only museum I’ve ever passed up.
Dawg, I don’t know what the current status of McClellan AFB is. The base realignment committee hit California hard in the late 90s and it may have been closed. I went there when I was in commo school thru the Guard in 97. The museum collection itself I thought was fantastic. On every USAF bird on display they had a plaque with that aircraft’s individual service history
My wife and I went up to the university last night to see our daughter. She designed, sewed and modeled a gown for a gala fashion show raising money for Red Dress, the Women’s Heart Health organization. A fine time was had by all, and after the show I took them to a really nice restaurant.
Over cocktails I told them about this thread, which I think is a great one. As was said, I am definitely writing down everyone’s contribution. I travel a lot on business, so I hope to be able to see some of these this year.
Daughter is a real museum buff (I wonder why?) tending more towards fine art. She commented that a major reason she likes museums is the buildings they are housed in; often re-purposed historic structures. I thought that was a great point and I’m proud to share it.
Here goes my list
Museum of Science and Industry Chicago
First Division Museum at Cantigny outside Chicago
Museum of the Air Force Dayton
Pima Air and Space Phoenix
Titan Missile Museum outside Tucson
Warner Robbins
Eglin Air Force Base Museum
Wisconsin National Guard Museum at Camp Douglas/Volk Field
John C. Stennis Rocket test center
Cape Canaveral
U.S. Space and Rocket Center Huntsville, AL
Air and Space Smithsonian
Udvar-Hazy Smithsonian
U.S.S. North Carolina
U.S.S. Alabama
U.S.S. Arizona
U.S.S. Missouri
U.S.S. Yorktown
Illinois Train Museum at Union
U.S.S. Constitution
Chanute Air Museum
Science center in St. Louis (McDonnell Douglas exhibit)
U.S. Air Force Academy
Several Revolutionary and Civil War battlefields
I think that’s about all.
John
Great list. DD you’ll need to make a master list at some point.
I have been to the USS Intrepid in NYC, the USS Yorktown in Charleston, SC and the Pampanito in Frisco Bay.
I also visited the USS Olympia in Philly and The Imperial War Museum in England and the HMS Belfast moored on the River Thames. I actually saw a piece of the Bismarck that’s on display there. I have been to the Air and Space Museum in DC. Also visited Week’s Air Museum when he was located at the Tamiami Airport in South Dade County, Florida.
Lessee…
National Air & Space Museum in Washington DC
USS Constitution in Boston - didn’t go aboard due to long lines but did get on a Destroyer that was moored across from him. Can’t remember the name of the ship though
Nautilus Submarine museum in Groton, MA
Salem, MA Loads of different museums including a schooner /clipper ship on display
Pax River Naval Air Station. Lexington Park, MD. I will say this - this is not during an air show nor am I in the armed service or employed by the federal government.
Paxtuxent River Air Museum, Lexington Park, MD
National Museum of the Marine Corps, Quantico, VA
Air and Space Museums in both DC and Dulles.
USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor as well as the Aviation museum there (can’t remember the name)
National DDay Memorial in Bedford, VA (maybe it’s not a museum per say, but lots of information there as well as the memorial)
There’s also a really cool auto museum outside Lurray Caverns, VA if I remember correctly.
That’s all the ones that I can remember, not counting all the Civil War museums in and around Fredericksburg