Must See Museums

Being that we are at a WW2 board, let's list some must see military sites/museums-places to see in our travels. Please feel free to add to the list.

Southeast Texas:

Galveston

1) Lone Star Flight Museum. Still not at 100% after Hurricane Ike (2008), this museum houses great planes, like an F4U Corsair, PBY Catalina, and B-25, among others. No mandatory fee, but a donation of 7.00 is expected.

2) Seawolf Park-has the submarine USS Cavalla and a destroyer escort. Also took a direct hit from Ike. Admission is free.

3) The Galveston train museum has a depot and trains, in late 1940’s condition.

4) The USS Texas is near Galveston, berthed at the San Jacinto battleground. Admission is just a few bucks to see both.

Near Tomball Texas is Hooks Airport. You can get a ride on a B-17, B-24 or P-51 Mustang there. They have a great restaurant. While eating there, you might see a squadron of Air Guard helicopters fly in, or you might see a TBF Avenger-privately owned-sometimes taken out, or the world’s only privately owned F-4 Phantom. Call for prices and available dates. On the south end of the airport is Texas Air Aces Inc. They take you out on some World War 2 air trainers and dogfight. There is a fee for this also.

Roswell New Mexico

The War museum at New Mexico Military Institute is free (check for available times), plus the buildings on campus are a sight to behold.

The UFO Museum is all about 1947 UFO Crash there.

 

Cool Idea here! Lets see:

USS Midway in San Diego....gives discounted admission if I remember correctly for military(current/former) as well as fire,police personnel w/I.D. I know its not all WWII but they do have WWII Aircraft with a few being restored.

The Arizona Wing of the CAF located at Falcon Field in Mesa AZ. (this ones a favorite been several times).. can watch as they do maintenance on Sentimental Journey(B17) and others if your there at the right time.

45th Infantry museum in Oklahoma City large collection of artillery pieces and gate guard aircraft display outside from WWII thru vietnam.

MCRD San Diego has a nice museum of course it covers more than just WWII

 

The USS North Carolina is tied up in Wilmington, NC USS North Carolina Battleship

 

While in Dallas. catch the Cavanaugh Flight Museum too

Cavanaugh Flight Museum - Addison Airport, Dallas, Texas

 

In Chicago
Cantigny 1st Division Museum,Weaton,Ill.,Museum of Science and Industry,U-505,Stuka,Spitfire.

 

Blegium

Breendonk : BREENDONK - MEMORIAL
Baugnez : News of the Historical Center Baugnez 44 - Malmedy
La Gleize : December 44 Museum - La Gleize
Thimister : WALLONIE.MUSEUM -
Bastogne : Syndicat d'initiative de Bastogne - Bastogne

 

For WWII aircraft the Smithsonian in Washington DC (Silver Hill) is a must see. For Armor I recommend the Patton Museum in FT Knox, I wouldn't call Aberdeen Proving Ground a "must see" but it has a few unique items, vehicles or other pieces of equipment (V2 with mobile launcher, Railway gun, Jagtiger). If you travel to Europe the German tank museum at Munster is a must see. I would also recommend Dachau, not exactly a terribly pleasurable visit however. West Point has an outstanding Museum and the most of the academy itself is of historical value as well.

 

Chino California; Planes of Fame. Their specialty is WW2 and Korea. Many of the planes are also flown on a monthly basis.

Riverside California; March AFB museum. LOTS of aircraft on static display, covering WW2 through today.

 

The Atomic Museum in Albuquerque, the museum in Los Alamos for the Manhattan project (I can't remember the name of that) and this is a list that will gain my interest---especially the Aircraft of WWII. A good suggestion Dauntless! Something that may have an influence on spring planning.

 

The National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola is a "must see".
National Naval Aviation Museum - Welcome Main Page

 

National Museum of the Air Force, Wright Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio:

National Museum of the USAF - Home

National Museum of the USAF - World War II Gallery















The premier aviation museum in the entire world.


Dave

 

APG has moved most of its collection to Fort Lee, VA.

Sadly, the Fort Knox Armor Collection is moving to Fort Benning to become the National Armor and Cavalry Museum.


Dave

 

A good idea !

Here are my suggested 'must sees' if you're in or reasonably near London : -

The RAF Museum, Hendon : Museums in London, Tourist Attraction London, RAF Museum Hendon

The Imperial War Museum, Duxford : IWM Duxford - Europe's premier aviation museum

The Imperial War Museum : Welcome to the Imperial War Museum

( Yes - to me, Duxford 'stands alone'....)

The Mosquito Museum ( of course ! ) : Mosquito Aircraft Museum - de Havilland Aircraft Heritage Centre

The 100th Bomb Group Memorial Museum : Home page

The Tank Museum, Bovington : Welcome to the Tank Museum - Home of the Tank - Welcome to the Tank Museum - Home of the Tank

These aren't the only ones here, but they are the ones I'd personally recommend as being 'un-missable'.....

 

Camp Mabry here in Austinstownsvillesburgsdorffsky has a slew of Tanks, some American, some commie, a couple were Iraqi, and a few German stuff. Also, vets from the 36th Inf Div have a building of their own with some 36th I.D stuff and you get to rub elbows with a few WWII 36th Vets.

Forgot to mention that Corpus Christi-actually North Beach, is where the USS Lexington Carrier is. Also, just across the water way-is where the Colombus Fleet is-well-two of three. The third is located a few miles down the way-why? I dont know? I guess not enough room where the other two are.

 

Cruising the net tonight, I found that there are two Massive WW2 bird museums in Chino California. You can get warbird rides, or even set up a photoshoot-video shoot with the planes there.

 

They have an annual airshow in May. To go to one of them is be part of an "event". Last year they had 10 Mustangs flying in the air in formation!

I posted some video's of the airshow on youtube. Check them out.
YouTube - syscom3

 

I went to Seawolf Park several years ago and they then charges a nominal fee. $5.00 I think. Sadly most people were going to the sea wall for fishing

 

-Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, Mount Hope, Ontario: Home of the Mynarski Lancaster
-Canadian War Museum, Ottawa
-HMCS Haida, Hamilton, Ontario
-HMCS Sackville, Halifax, Nova Scotia
-Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park (Home of The Sullivans, Croaker, and Little Rock)
-Fort George (Ontario side of the Niagara River) and Fort Niagara (American Side)
-The Pampanito and Jeremiah O' Brien in San Francisco
-The Hornet in Alameda

The fact that your country has a museum dedicated to one aircraft type and its builders is incredible (to me at least).

 

Other de Havilland aircraft are there also ; but the raison d'etre of the Museum is the Mossie and for such a tiny place to have three complete Mosquitoes ( including the original prototype ) on the site where the first examples were designed, built and flown from makes it unique.....

 

I served on the Cavalla (SSN 684) from '95-'98, and was part of the Decom crew for her. The conning tower there at Seawolf Park was cut straight from the '684. Stood quite a few time/bearing plotter stations up in that sucker while on deployment. Her bow/dive plane station was donated to the submarine museum just outside of Pearl Harbor, next to the USS Arizona museum. Seawolf Park hosts an annual USS Cavalla reunion every year, for anyone who served on any version of the Cavalla....I may try to make it down there one of these years....

Dangit, I was gonna mention this one! I still have yet to get over there since they got their most recent addition: Fifi, the ONLY flying B-29 in the world. Every time I've tried to go, she was out at an airshow somewhere.


If anybody's up in the Portland Oregon area, definitely make plans to stop in at the Evergreen Air Museum, about an hour's drive south-ish from Portland. They have a lot of the standard museum aircraft (AT-6, B-17, B-25, Spitfire, Me-109, etc), plus a few I'd never seen at a museum before (granted, my museum visiting has been rather limited) such as the P-38, Vampire, and several of the WW1 era planes. Plus, the piece-de-resistance.....the Spruce Goose. Its worth the drive, even if the museum is closed, to stand outside and press your nose up against the glass and drool. Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum Homepage - Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum