Fort Leonard Wood July 2023

For our July meeting, we headed south to Fort Leonard Wood to visit the museum located on the base. There are two parts of the museum – one side will take you through the United States military history from the Revolutionary War to present day. When you are finished touring the military history side, you can walk directly across the hall to the U.S. Army Engineer Museum which walks you through the development of American Army engineering equipment, topographic engineering, landmine warfare, tactical bridging, and special weapons.  

Through a diverse range of exhibits, artifacts, and displays, visitors can explore the evolution of our armed forces along with their contributions to national defense. Some of the displays are interactive, and all include the history surrounding the display. We were lucky that one of our part-time members met us there and walked the group through, basically serving as our private tour guide.

The museum’s exhibits cover various aspects of military training, engineering, and combat support, as well as the technological advancements that have shaped military operations over the years. There is a vast array of intelligence on display and this was a very educational experience for us.

Although the museum is located on the Army base, it is open to the public. However, visitors are subject to follow base guidelines for base entry. For our group, we met at the visitor center and obtained a day-pass to the base.

Although it was a rather hot day, we all enjoyed our time here, and the people on base were very friendly and accommodating. Whether you’re a history enthusiast, a military buff, or simply curious about the military’s past, the museum offers a compelling and educational experience.