Military - Overview
The Museum's superb military collections document the history of the men and women of the armed forces of the United States. The collections include ordnance, firearms, and swords; uniforms and insignia; national and military flags and banners; and many other objects.
The strength of the collections lies in their enormous depth. Some 3,000 military small arms and 2,400 civilian firearms document the mechanical and technological history of the infantryman's weapons from the beginning of the gunpowder era to the present. Among the 4,000 swords and knives in the collection are many spectacular presentation pieces. The collections also include Civil War era telegraph equipment, home front artifacts from both world wars, early computers such as ENIAC, Whirlwind, and Sage, and materials carried at antiwar demonstrations.
"Military - Overview" showing 291 items.
Page 1 of 30
Field Telephone
- Description
- Physical Description
- Model EE-8-A field telephone, leather case.
- General History
- American Electric military field phone, model EE-8-A. The phone is encased in leather. The handset is marked American Electric and there is a magneto crank.
- manufacturer
- American Electric Co., Inc.
- ID Number
- 1985.0335.22
- catalog number
- 1985.0335.22
- accession number
- 1985.0335
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Chaumont HQ Battle Map
- Description
- Gen. John J. Pershing commanded the American Expeditionary Force in World War I. When he arrived in France, he established his headquarters at Chaumont, where his war room included this large situation map. During the course of operations, the map was regularly replaced by another map peeled from a block of identical maps. Identical updated maps were distributed to all subordinate commands, allowing a degree of coordination never before achieved. This map sheet shows troop dispositions on the Western Front the day the war ended, November 11, 1918.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- associated date
- 1918
- user
- Pershing, John J.
- American Expeditionary Force
- ID Number
- AF*35016
- catalog number
- 35016
- accession number
- 182935
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
French Halberd
- Description
- Physical Description
- Forged steel with leather-wrapped wooden handle.
- General History
- The halberd was a versatile pole arm developed as an infantry weapon in the 13th century. It has an ax-like blade and a steel spike mounted on the end of a long shaft. By the time of the Seven Years War it was carried by sergeants as a symbol of rank and authority.
- ID Number
- AF*66750M
- catalog number
- 66750M
- accession number
- 229198
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Doughboy Uniform
- Description
- Physical Description
- Brown wool button-down jacket and brown wool breeches.
- General History
- Enlisted soldier's uniform. The brown, doughy color of the uniform led to these soldiers being referred to as "doughboys," though the exact derivation of the nickname has been debated.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- early 20th century
- associated date
- 1917-1918
- ID Number
- 1977.0082.06
- accession number
- 1977.0082
- catalog number
- 1977.0082.06
- 81199M
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
American Troops Supply Train
- Description
- Gouache and oil on paper. A group of American soldiers and horse-drawn carts laden with supplies are the subject of this busy scene. A large shell torn building is in the background.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1918
- associated date
- 1917-1918
- associated person
- War Department
- artist
- Aylward, William James
- ID Number
- AF*25645
- catalog number
- 25645
- accession number
- 64592
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Billeting Village Near Neufchateau
- Description
- Charcoal, crayon, watercolor, and gouache on heavy white card. The work depicts several buildings on a street in a village near Neufchâteau, France. The buildings are intact and not shell-torn. The painting shows the view down a road which leads through village.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1918
- associated person
- War Department
- artist
- Aylward, William James
- ID Number
- AF*25646
- catalog number
- 25646
- accession number
- 64592
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Billeting Village Near Neufchateau, Farm Building
- Description
- Charcoal, watercolor, and gouache on heavy white card paper. The work depicts a set of buildings on a farm near Neufchâteau, France. The farm buildings are detailed with their bricks, roofs, and chimneys. There is an outline of a road. A building is in the immediate foreground on the left although the entire building is not shown. The sky is partially blue, and there are some trees in the background.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1918
- associated person
- War Department
- artist
- Aylward, William James
- ID Number
- AF*25647
- catalog number
- 25647
- accession number
- 64592
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Billeting Village Near Neufchateau, Farm Building
- Description
- Charcoal, ink wash, and gouache on beige card. The work depicts a farm building in a village near Neufchâteau, France. The farm building is in good condition.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1918
- associated person
- War Department
- artist
- Aylward, William James
- ID Number
- AF*25648
- catalog number
- 25648
- accession number
- 64592
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Billeting Village Near Neufchateau, Farm Building
- Description
- Charcoal, ink wash, and gouache on heavy white card. The drawing depicts a farm building with extensive shell damage to its roof.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1918
- associated person
- War Department
- artist
- Aylward, William James
- ID Number
- AF*25649
- catalog number
- 25649
- accession number
- 64592
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Clearing Out the Road through Mont St. Père
- Description
- Charcoal and gouache on beige textured paper mounted on brown card. The work depicts soldiers clearing rubble off the road that goes through Mont-Saint-Père. The large building that dominates the scene is badly damaged from the war.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1918
- associated person
- War Department
- artist
- Aylward, William James
- ID Number
- AF*25651
- catalog number
- 25651
- accession number
- 64592
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
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