Four historic military museums that have long had their collections shuttered are set to welcome the public this summer.
The reopening facilities include the Rock Island Arsenal Museum in Illinois, which has been closed for four years for renovation; the U.S. Cavalry and 1st Infantry Division Museums at Fort Riley, Kansas, which have been closed since 2018; and the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida which has been off limits to the general public since a 2019 terrorist attack.
"The museum hasn’t been renovated in more than 80 years and we were looking to re-imagine the interpretation and the story we told to be much more Rock Island Arsenal centric and Army organic industrial based centric to better reflect our audience,” said Patrick Allie, museum director at Rock Island.
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The RIA Museum, which has thousands of historic guns and artillery pieces in its collection, is the second oldest museum in the Army's system and has been part of the arsenal since 1905. The recent $2 million renovation was the institution's first in more than 80 years, going back to when it was reopened after being closed during World War II.
Among its collection for gun nerds is RIA-produced M1903 Springfield Rifle No.1, and M1 Garand No. 2, as well as prototype guns.
RIA's grand reopening is set for June 29.
Fort Riley
Meanwhile, in Kansas, Fort Riley plans to reopen the U.S. Cavalry and 1st Infantry Division Museums with a ribbon cutting on June 13. The Cavalry Museum tells the story of the Army's U.S. Cavalry branch going back to Washington's Dragoons in the Revolutionary War to present-day Cavalry Scouts that ride more mechanized mounts.
Also on base is the 1st Infantry Division Museum, which and tells the story of the famed "Big Red One" from its beginning in 1917 through the division’s campaigns in World Wars I and II, the post-war occupation of Germany, Vietnam, Desert Storm, and the Global War on Terror.
Pensacola
Today's National Naval Aviation Museum has gone by several different names in the past 60 years, but one thing remains the same – it is the Navy's premier aviation museum and is in the cradle of Naval Aviation aboard Pensacola NAS. With more than 4,000 artifacts and an incredible array of hundreds of aircraft and spacecraft on static display – many unique – if you are a fan of "Top Gun," aircraft carriers, or giant flying boats, this place is for you.
A popular spot for aviation and military nerds for generations, Pensacola NAS has been on lockdown to the public since an incident in 2019 involving a Saudi Air Force student, thus putting the museum off-limits to anyone without a military ID. However, this changed when the base's West Gate reopened to the public seven days a week on May 17.
In the case of all these museums, as they are on active duty military bases, there are some restrictions to be met to get on base, so check ahead before showing up. As they are maintained by the military, in general, access is free so long as the facility is open.
