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 Updated: 1/2/2012 
Southwest Military Museum Foundation
San Angelo, Texas
Description

Southwest Military Museum Foundation in San Angelo, TX is one of more than 15,400 museums in the MuseumsUSA directory. Find an exciting museum to visit where you live or vacation today.

History

The Southwest Military Museum began as a dream of San Angelo veterans who co-sponsored a visit of “The Moving Wall” (a traveling, half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.) at Goodfellow Air Force Base in 1990. In following years, the group set up several highly successful temporary exhibits at Sunset Mall. Thousands of visitors viewed the display of over 300 artifacts.

The success of these activities led to the idea of a permanent museum and the formation of the War Veterans Education Research Center. WV/ERC, Inc., was approved as a tax-exempt 501©(3) corporation in 1994, and is now known as the Southwest Military Museum Foundation.

After a long search, the Foundation located a historic building in downtown San Angelo to house our museum. We are now in the process of renovating the building, which is located at 119 South Irving Street - just off Beauregard, across from the old Hemphill-Wells building.

The museum is dedicated to honoring all United States veterans, their families, and their service to America—focusing on the period from World War I to the present. Our goal is to educate the public, especially young people, about the impact of these momentous historical events on our society, and to dispel myths about war. The displays and information will provide a better understanding of war’s impact on the participants and the nation.

Artifact Collections

The museum will preserve and display artifacts and memorabilia from veterans, both local and from around the nation. Exhibits will include lifelike full-size and miniature dioramas. The smaller dioramas will display scale models of military items too large to exhibit.

In addition to its own permanent materials, the museum will include rotating temporary exhibits featuring items borrowed from other museums and individuals. Included in the collection are a brick from the infamous Hanoi Hilton, the most notorious Prisoner of War Camp in Viet Nam, Japanese and German artifacts, Pictures, Documents, World War One Bunker, and numerous other items.

Programs

The museum will feature an education center and a resource library offering video and audio recordings, books, and other collected literature for those interested in learning more about the wars involving the United States in the 20th century and beyond.

As we grow, we intend to work with area schools and veterans’ groups to sponsor commemorative events, lectures, and conferences on military history subjects

Street Address
119 S Irving St
San Angelo, TX 76902
Mailing Address
PO Box 208
San Angelo, TX 76902
phone: 915-481-0317
fax: 325-481-0658
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