Watervliet Arsenal Museum

First, this is a US Army Historic Landmark and a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. Part of the collection is well exhibited, lighted and labelled. The other part is stored in the warehouse section of the building and not lighted, the light source is from the few windows. Here is a hint, use the monochrome capability on your digital camera and you’ll capture the item quite nicely. The building is beautifully constructed and unique in that it is the only remaining of its type in existence.

Artillery! Artillery! Go Artillery
To be honest, I showed up here for a project. But the museum is open on Sundays and admission is free. You need to know this museum is on defense department grounds, so be prepared to show picture ID and fill out a registration slip with you name, address and car plates. Big brother wants to know who’s been looking at their guns.
So what is it? Well Watervliet Arsenal is one of America’s continuously operation Arsenal first authorized by Congress in 1813 (due to the fact that Britain gave up a whippin) to supply the troops and forts in Northern New York from a possible invasion from Canada.
Still an operating as an Army Arsenal today, this facility currently produces all the M1A1 Abrams 120 mm tank gun tubes, 155 mm howitzers, 60 mm mortars, 8 inch cannons, and GBU-​25 bunker busting bombs. No, one never got close to Saddam but they destroyed allot of his palaces. If you don’t rest well at night knowing that this places cranks out hundreds of pieces of bombs and field artillery, well Israel sure does.
The Museum itself (opened in 1852) is located in an original 1852 Iron storage shed. Displays are a bit old (soon to be renovated), but the larger storage area is an «Artillery» affectionados wet dream. Dozens and dozens of field artillery pieces with some dating back to the 1400’s. Quite a bit of 19^th century field artillery pieces from the U.S. and Europe as well. Cannons, mortars, howitzers you name it.
The is also an 19^th century machine shop being restored as well with quite a bit of old equipment.
Worth a trip for all you history buffs.