Lest We Forget

Dest We Forget ARIZONA'S MILITARY MUSEUM REMEMBERS THE STATE'S ROLE IN FREEDOM

Some visitors walk through the giant carved-oak doors hoping to relive memories. Others seek knowledge and history. And those who charged beaches and tramped through jungles come because they cannot forget, no matter how hard they try.

"Lest We Forget" serves as the theme for the Arizona Military Museum.

"I think it's the finest military museum in the country," said museum director Vincent Leone. "It was started in 1978 by a group of retired military personnel who wanted to remember Arizona's military history."

"The museum preserves the historical aspects of the services, and the men and women who made this country great," added Ken Clawson, the museum's in-house historian for more than 16 years.

Operated by the Arizona National Guard Historical Society, the museum occupies the north wing of a 1936 adobe arsenal on the Papago Park Military Reservation in east Phoenix. During World War II, prisoner of war camp workshops were held at the building for German servicemen, primarily submariners.

A series of exhibits and display cases depicting Arizona's military history, from the days of Spanish rule to Desert Storm, line the museum's entrance.

"It's so much more effective than books," said one guest, a young woman in military dress. "It's like viewing frozen moments in time."

The first exhibit, "In Coronado's Footsteps," tells the story of Francisco Vasquez de Coronado and his quest for the legendary Seven Cities of Cibola. On a trek through Arizona, Coronado and his conquistadores became the state's first tourists when they stumbled upon a massive hole in the world that nearly frightened them back to Spain. Today, we refer to the hole as the Grand Canyon.

The display case features a replica breastplate that resembles the body armor worn by today's police force, a long hatchetlike weapon called a halberd that conquistadores used for swinging and stabbing, and a steel helmet with crimson feathers flowing from the crown. Each item conveys the ferociousness of the era.

A mannequin wearing a Confederate soldier's uniform made of thick tan fabricric and with large gold buttons guards the left side of the Civil War display. A discharge certificate signed by Abraham Lincoln and a 19th-century harmonica captivate history buffs on the lookout for authentic artifacts. The Civil War exhibit also presents a lesson in weaponry with eight variations of rifles, daggers, bayonets and bullets displayed. And a story card recounts the Battle of Picacho Pass in April of 1862, the only engagement in Arizona between Union and Confederate forces.

THE UNITED STATES VOLUNTEER SERVICE. The President's Thanks and Certificate of Honorable Service