FORT LEE, Va. -- World War I was a transitional period in military history, during which emerging technology was adopted to address the challenges of the 20th Century European battlefield. During this era, horses still carried messengers and pulled artillery pieces across muddy fields. The industrial battlefield was transforming at record pace to keep up with new ways to retain the upper hand. So alongside the horses, were gas and diesel fueled vehicles, larger caliber weapon systems and even the introduction of chemical warfare, said Brig. Gen. Kurt J. Ryan, Chief of Ordnance and Ordnance School commandant.
The Ordnance Training and Heritage Center paid tribute to the accomplishments of military ingenuity during "the war to end all wars," by creating an exhibit dedicated to educating service members on the many great innovations of World War I. The display, "War of Ordnance", opened Oct. 1 in Hatcher Hall on the Ordnance Campus.
"The artifacts in this gallery are displayed as tokens of our rich Ordnance heritage," Ryan said. "They are worthy of the spotlight, and like all of our historical pieces, they are worthy of safeguarding for future generations to enjoy."
The exhibit is designed to inspire Ordnance Soldiers some of who could develop the next great advances in military technology. More than 40 artifacts are included in the display, many of which are one-of-a-kind prototypes that never actually saw war, but contributed to the evolution of weapons and combat vehicles said Claire Samuelson, Ordnance Training and Heritage Center director.
Highlights of the exhibit include the Skeleton Tank, conceived by Edwin Wheelock of the Pioneer Tractor Company in 1914, as a lightweight tank with the means to traverse the trenches that scarred the European battlefields and break the stalemate of trench warfare. The tank was voted one of Virginia's Top 10 Endangered Artifacts for 2014 by the Virginia Association of Museums.
Also on display is a Bashford Dean 1917 American Helmet Model No. 2 and a blowback submachine gun with a turret capable of firing ten magazines of .45 caliber bullets, both of which were experimental models.
The exhibit is a culmination of efforts between the Ordnance Training and Heritage Center, Ordnance Armament and Electronics Training Department and the U.S. Army Center of Military History. The A&E Department made the exhibit possible by clearing a high bay in their training area to accommodate the WWI display. The Center of Military History supported the creation of the exhibit by funding the movement of the macro artifacts into the high bay space.
Although this exhibit is not currently open to the general public due to its location, it maintains the rich heritage of the Ordnance Corps and their dedication to "support to the line, on the line, on time."
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