National Museum of the United States Army

The United States Army operates a wide-ranging museum system encompassing a variety of relatively small and focused museums and museum activities. Yet the United States is one of the few industrialized countries without a national army museum, a central institution dedicated to interpretation of the Army’s history from a broad, overarching perspective. This situation is about to change. After having obtained a site at Fort Belvoir, just south of Washington, DC the Army and its Center of Military History have been laying the groundwork for a new National Museum of the United States Army (NMUSA). This new Museum will honor the men and women who have served their country from the time of the Army’s origins with the Massachusetts Militia Act of 1636; educate soldiers, citizens and other visitors on the role of the Army past and present; and serve as the dynamic center of the entire Army Museum System.

Lord Cultural Resources developed a Concept Plan that addresses all aspects of the proposed new Museum, including planning for a separate Museum Support Center, and Exhibition Storyline. This included an incisive Business Plan based on a detailed comparables and market analysis and led to projections of attendance, revenues and expenses. Lord Cultural Resources also completed an assessment for the potential use of several properties in Martinsburg, West Virginia with regard to the feasibility of establishing macro artifact storage, conservation and restoration, program development and testing facilities in support of NMUSA.

In 2008 it was determined that the size and scope of NMUSA needed to be phased. Lord Cultural Resources was re-engaged to advise on space allocations and priorities and subsequently to update the market analysis and attendance projections for the opening phase of NMUSA.