THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, June 28, 1995 TAG: 9506280462
SECTION: MILITARY NEWS PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DALE EISMAN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
A general assigned to defend America's capital would take special care of the parcel at the south end of the 14th Street Bridge.
Troops and weapons placed there, at a big bend in the Potomac, would have a commanding view of the river and the city. They'd have easy access to the region's most important airport and the nation's military command center. They could protect vital air, highway and water supply lines.
So perhaps it's not surprising that the U.S. Army is trying this summer to secure the site. Anticipating no attack, the Army wants the 7 acres not for their military value but for a museum that would ``tell the story of the American soldier'' to thousands of tourists.
And so far, the Army is losing.
Republican ``deficit hawks'' in the House of Representatives earlier this month bucked their party leadership to help defeat an Army request for $14 million to buy the land. The service wants to obtain the property, then turn to private donors to raise $72 million to build the museum.
``The U.S. is the only world power without a national army museum,'' said Walter Bradford, a curator at the Army's Center of Military History and the chief planner for the proposed museum.
Bradford sees the project as an unmatched opportunity to protect some 500,000 Army-owned artifacts, pay tribute to the sacrifices of American troops, and educate the public and the Army itself about the service's role in American life.
``The American people need to know about their Army,'' Bradford said, but as the post-Cold War Army shrinks, fewer Americans have contact with it. A museum strategically placed in the capital's ``monumental core'' would help bridge the gap, he argued.
Planners envision a museum with about 100,000 square feet of exhibit space in three major galleries. If the land can be acquired this year and private fund raising for construction proceeds as planned, the museum could open by 2001.
A main gallery would focus on soldiers, with emphasis on how they've lived and fought through the nation's history, Bradford said. An art gallery would house some of the Army's extensive collection of paintings, and a temporary gallery would be used for rotating exhibits on various periods or episodes in the Army's history.
The musuem would include a sampling of the Army's hardware - tanks, guns and helicopters - but Bradford wants visitors to focus on soldiers. He's most excited when discussing potential exhibits such as the bunk beds in which many 19th century troops slept - two to a mattress - and an extensive collection of accouterments, accessories worn by 18th and 19th century soldiers for use in firing and caring for their muzzle-loading weapons.
The Army already has some 50 small museums located on bases across the country and dedicated to various facets of its history. They serve the public and ``help the Army learn from the past to prepare for the future,'' Bradford said.
But because they're on active bases, those museums don't attract the traffic or do justice to the Army's story in the way a central museum in the nation's capital could, Bradford argues.
He said the Army turned to Congress for money to buy the site because the land is a prime location for commercial development and could be lost by the time funds are raised privately. The Army also figures that once it owns the property, potential donors for the building will be assured that the service is serious about pursuing the project.
Bradford said the service intends to press its case in the Senate. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
An artist's rendering shows what the Army museum, in the foreground
at right, could look like along the Potomac River. The House
recently voted against spending $14 million to buy land for the
project, which would be a national repository for artifacts,
paintings and other displays depicting the soldier's life in
American history.
by CNB