The mission of the U.S. Army Ordnance Training and Heritage Center is to acquire, preserve, and exhibit historically significant equipment,
armaments and
materiel that relate to the history of the
U.S. Army Ordnance Corps and to document and present the evolution and development of U.S. military
ordnance material dating from the American Colonial Period to the present day. Established in 1919 and officially opened to the public in 1924, to exhibit captured enemy equipment and materiel, the Museum was located in Building 314 of the
Aberdeen Proving Ground and operated by the
U.S. Army until 1967. Co-location with APG provided convenient access to the equipment being delivered to APG for testing after World War I. In 1965 local citizens formed the tax-free Ordnance Museum Foundation, Inc. to establish and operate a
museum of these military artifacts. The Foundation is not affiliated with the U.S. Army nor the
Department of Defense. The Foundation began operation of the Museum in the early 1970s, upon opening in Building 2601 on the Aberdeen Proving Ground (until its closure in September 2010) and operates the Ordnance Museum until this day. In 2005 a
Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) law was passed by Congress. One of BRAC's requirements was the relocation of the U.S. Army Ordnance Center and School headquarters, the Ordnance Mechanical Maintenance School, and the Ordnance Museum to Fort Lee by the end of 2011. The transfer of artifacts from Aberdeen to Fort Lee began in August 2009.
Hours and entry requirements The collection is used exclusively for training and not available for public viewing. Currently, only soldiers with an
89, 91, or 94 series
MOS are authorized entry.. Open house dates during which the collection is open to the public are available periodically throughout the year, with the museum accessible to the public via entry to the public-facing museum enclave. ==Exhibits==