Firearms Museums

Happy Independence Day America!

I thought this subject was appropriate on the 4th of July.

Firearms enthusiasts in America are very lucky. We have many museums who are gathering and protecting historical and valuable firearms for future generations to enjoy.
This post is dedicated to the many firearms museums that we have in America.

We'll start with The National Firearms Museum. This is America's firearms museum, ran by the National Rifle Association and curators Phil Schreier, Doug Wicklund and director Jim Supica.

The museum houses 15 galleries with over 2,700 firearms on display. It is located at 11250 Waple Mills Road, Fairfax, Virginia 22030. The museum is open daily from 9:30 to 5 and admission is free. You can also visit the website and see many of the guns on display: www.nramuseum.org
Another option would be to buy the coffee table book:

The NRA also operates the National Sporting Arms Museum, which is located in the Springfield Missouri Bass Pro Shop store. With nearly 1000 firearms on display, it is worth the journey, especially if your travels already take you to Springfield.

The Store and museum are located at: 1935 South Campbell Ave, Springfield, Missouri 65807. The museum is open daily from 10 am to 7pm and admission is free.

Next we have the Cody Firearms Museum, located at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.

 The Cody Museum has over 7000 firearms and more than 30,000 firearms related artifacts on display. Their Winchester collection is known throughout the world.

The museum is open most days, but hours may vary depending on the season. Admission ranges from $10 to $18 per person. The museum can be found at 720 Sheridan Ave. Cody, Wyoming 82414. Visit their website at www.centerofthewest.org  

Another Museum that houses many Winchesters is the collection at the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose California.
The "mystery house" was built by Sarah Winchester, heiress to the Winchester fortune. She thought she was being tormented by the dead souls killed by Winchester firearms. Some goofball told her that if she kept building on her house, it could keep the spirits at bay.
At any rate the house is a tourist attraction and a museum of Winchester products was a natural fit.

The Winchester Mystery House & Museum can be found at 525 Winchester Ave. San Jose, California 95128. The museum is open daily and charges $25 - $49 depending on the tour package
website can be found at www.http://winchestermysteryhouse.com/index.cfm

 The J.M. Davis Arms and Historical Museum in Claremore, Oklahoma prides itself in being the largest privately held collection of firearms. With over 50,000 items on display, the museum is worth the visit.

The museum is open most days, admission is free (but they gladly accept donations). you can find it at 330 North J.M. Davis Blvd. Claremore, Oklahoma 74017. you can visit their website here: JM Davis Museum

The Autry National Center
The Autry is a museum dedicated to preserving the history of the west. The Museum began in 1988 by actor Gene Autry as the "Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum", the name was later shortened.
The Museum features a large collection of old west firearms and other artifacts.
The Museum can be found at 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, CA 90027, they are open week days 10-4 and weekends 11-5.

 

The Frazier Museum of Historical Arms is located in Louisville, Kentucky. The museum houses three floors of exhibits.

The museum can be found near the Louisville Slugger museum at 829 West Main Street Louisville, KY 40202. Their website can be found here: http://www.fraziermuseum.org/

If you find yourself in Hartford Connecticut, there are two fine Colt collections on display. The 1st one is at The Museum of Connecticut History at the Connecticut State Library at 2301 Capitol Ave in Hartford. The collection of arms was donated in 1957. website: http://www.museumofcthistory.org/colt.asp

 across town at 600 Main Street is the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art. The museum has a collection of Colt arms and artifacts many of which belonged to Samuel Colt and were once on display at his Armsmear mansion. website: http://www.thewadsworth.org/colt-firearms-collection/

If you are a fan of John Moses Browning's work, and I know you are, you really need to visit his home town of Ogden Utah. There you will find Union Station, which is home to the John M. Browning Firearms Museum.

 The museum has many of the hundreds of firearms developed or patented by the legendary gun maker. They also have an exact replica of Mr. Browning's original workshop

The museum is part of a complex of several museums, admission covers entry to all of them and ranges from $3 - $5 per person, with Military and Veterans receiving free entry. Union Station can be found at: 2501 Wall Ave, Ogden Utah 84401 or visit their website: http://theunionstation.org/museums-2/john-m-browning-firearms-museum/

 The oldest firearms maker in America, Remington Arms, has a museum at their famous Ilion New York plant

No need for an address, it is the biggest employer in town...


Smith & Wesson also offers factory tours as well as visitors to their company museum. Admission is free, but you must get an appointment ahead of time.

The Smith & Wesson factory resides at 2100 Roosevelt Ave Springfield, MA 01104, call before your visit (413) 781-8300

Also in Springfield, Massachusetts is the old Springfield Armory (the real one where the US Military weapons were produced). The Armory is now part of the National Park Service and offers free admission.

 

There are thousands of firearms and war related material on display here. The Springfield Armory National Historic Site is located at: 1 Armory Street #2, Springfield, MA 01105.

Next up is the Rock Island Arsenal Museum. This museum is the second oldest Army Museum in the US, it opened to the public on Independence Day 1905.

Over twelve hundred U.S., foreign, civilian, and military small arms are on permanent display. The Rock Island Arsenal can be found at 1 Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island Illinois 61299. Their website can be found here: http://www.arsenalhistoricalsociety.org/museum/

Part of the La Porte County Historical Society, the
W. A. Jones Collection of Ancient Weapons has nearly 850 guns and weapons on display.

The collection can be viewed at: 2405 Indiana Ave, La Porte Indiana 46350. They are open Tues-Sat and admission ranges from $2 - $5 per person.

 If air guns are your thing, you can visit the Daisy BB gun museum in Rogers Arkansas. The museum houses many guns from the history of the Daisy air rifle company. 

They are located at 202 West Walnut Street in Rogers Arkansas
website: http://daisymuseum.com/