The Oregon Military Museum was established in 1975 to preserve military heritage and artifacts. The museum is the official repository for military documents, weapons and other artifacts. In 2009, the museum moved to the 32,000 sq. ft. old Clackamas Armory at Camp Withycombe which is bigger and more spacious.
The beauty of any museum are its collections of artifacts and that is what stands this museum out. Its collections are quite rare. You definitely haven’t seen a larger collection of guns. What will amaze you is not only the number of guns but their wide variety. They were all used by the military years ago.
You will also get to see some grenades and other weapons. There is another section for prisoner-of-war relics. You must have heard about the dangerous mustard gas used in World Wars I and II – Did you just shrink back into your chair? No, the gas is not in the museum, it is the warning signs used to alert soldiers that have been preserved there.
The numerous military flags therein will also pique your interest. Old military vehicles, some of which were tracked, will also take some of your time. It will interest you that the museum has over 14,000 artifacts that cannot be found anywhere else.
In summary, the museum has 5 grounded military aircraft, 1,300 ribbon-laden military uniforms, 750 weapons, 50 vehicles and 30,000 volumes in the museum library including archives dating back to the 17thcentury. All the artifacts are said to be more than $6 million in value altogether.
Oregon Military Museum hosts a living history day in May every year. What makes the event interesting is that it is open to the public. It gives attendees an opportunity to explore some of the artifacts. You’d definitely love to explore some of the weapons and vehicles therein.
Unfortunately, the facility is temporarily closed to the public for renovation. Hopefully, it should reopen before May.
