Springfield Armory Museum

OPERATING HOURS

• 9 AM to 5 PM
• Daily from Memorial Day weekend through October 31^st
• Open Wednesday through Sunday the rest of the year
• Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day

Times can always change, so before making travel plans be sure to get the latest schedule on the National Park Service’s official Operating Hours and Seasons web page for Springfield Armory National Historic Site.

MUSEUM EXHIBITS

Upon looking at the three-story Main Arsenal Building at Springfield Armory National Historic Site and knowing that a firearms museum was inside, I was wondering how many days it would take to see the entire display. After all, the building houses the largest collection of United States military firearms in the world. The museum, however, only takes up the ground floor. The second floor is used by the National Park Service for office space and the third floor is used for storing more weapons—only a fifth of the collection is actually on display. Even so, those truly interested in firearms and firearm history can easily spend two hours at the museum.

The first part of the museum is called Industry, and it focuses on gun manufacturing and the technological advancements that were developed at Springfield Armory. Original machines are on display, and a few are accompanied by working models. If you watch the documentary in the Visitor Center auditorium, you will see many of these machines at work.

Industry section of the Springfield Armory Museum

Collection of machines used at the Springfield Armory

The Industry exhibits cover the armory’s use of water power as its source of energy from when it first opened in 1795 up until the 1840s. Steam power took over by mid-century, and electricity was installed in the early 1900s. Other topics include weapons testing, women employees at the armory, at the change from handmade weapons to those mass-produced using machines and assembly lines.

Cutting progression of an M1911 pistol

Most of the firearms can be seen in the aptly named Weapons section of the Springfield Armory Museum. However, this is not simply a collection of guns designed and manufactured at the armory. On display are muskets, rifles, machine guns, and pistols from around the world that were produced from the late 1700s up through 1968 when the armory closed. The reason such guns exist in the museum is because the armory’s collection initially served as a reference for its engineers. Small arms of all types were purchased so the men could study them and keep up with the latest developments.

Collection of German World War II rifles

German pistols

Springfield Armory began manufacturing weapons, mainly small arms, in 1795, with the first being knock-offs of the French Charleville flintlock musket. Springfield engineers would go on to design some of the United States military’s most iconic shoulder weapons such as the Springfield Trapdoor, the Springfield 1903, the M1 Garand, and the M14.

Exhibit on the M1 Rifle

Springfield 1903

The Krag-Jørgensen rifle was also mass produced at the armory, though this was done by licensing the gun from the Norwegian inventors, Ole Krag and Erik Jørgensen. Called a Krag by the soldiers who carried it, this bolt-action repeating rifle was manufactured from 1894 through 1904 and used by the military until being replaced by the Springfield 1903.

Close-up of the repeating bolt-action Krag-Jorgensen

The M14 was the last rifle that was mass produced at Springfield Armory, but it was not the last weapon. A variety of specialty guns were also designed and manufactured during the armory’s final decade, including the M79 Grenade Launcher and the M73 Machine Gun.

M79 Grenade Launcher

One of my favorite exhibits at the museum is the machine gun exhibit. A large assortment of guns are on display, but none were actually designed or manufactured at Springfield Armory.

Gatling Gun manufactured by Colt

Prototype of the M61 manufactured by General Electric

Firearms were not the only weapons produced at Springfield Armory. Sabers, bayonets, knives, and machetes were also part of the armory’s inventory.

Collection of swords and knives produced at the Springfield Armory

There are plenty of short videos throughout the museum that use detailed animations to show how different types of guns work and how various machines were used to produce guns and gun parts.

Video on the operation of the Springfield 1903 rifle

There is one last exhibit of interest, but you must step into the lobby to see it. A crate hangs suspended above the floor by a rope to show how the guns were hoisted to the top floors for storage. Just as today, the Arsenal Building was a weapons warehouse when Springfield Armory was in operation.

Hoist to the tower of the Springfield Armory

If you have visited Springfield Armory National Historic Site in the past and feel that there is no need to return, keep in mind that the museum also has rotating exhibits based on themes that change once or twice a year. Past exhibits include Springfield Armory Goes To Hollywood, At Camp in the Field: Life of the Civil War Soldier, and Push the Green Hand Ahead: Springfield Armory in World War I.

Prop gun used in The Outlaw Josey Wales compared to the real Colt Walker pistol

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