Photo By Leanna Maschino | Ted Hibbard (left), curator for the Oklahoma National Guard Museum and Dr. Denise Neil...... read more read more
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OKLAHOMA CITY - The Oklahoma National Guard Museum hosted a closing ceremony Saturday to honor its historic home, marking the end of an era for the 1937 Works Progress Administration building that served as a cornerstone in preserving the legacy of the Oklahoma National Guard and its service members.
“Today, we are ceremonially casing the 45th Infantry Division colors to symbolize the closing of the Oklahoma National Guard Museum,” said Command Sgt. Maj. John Hernandez, keynote speaker of the ceremony and state command sergeant major for the Oklahoma National Guard. “It’s a bittersweet day…this museum has been a reminder and education of why we do what we do. The pride of wearing the uniform every day and the sacrifices of those who came before us…the legacy of the 45th and their valor in World War II.”
Though a bittersweet farewell to the building that housed the museum for nearly 50 years, the museum’s executive director, Dr. Denise Neil, expressed gratitude and excitement for the future.
“My first job here was in the early 2000s, and then, fast forward to having the honor of guiding the museum to this new chapter,” Dr. Neil said. “The idea was that we needed a new building to house the museum’s collection so that we could tell a better story of the Oklahoma National Guard. We love our historic building and it has great history to the [Oklahoma National] Guard, but it also has challenges, and a new building will allow us to do a better job.”
Constructed during the Great Depression, the Lincoln Park Armory was one of more than 50 armories built in Oklahoma as part of the WPA. The building has housed various military units, including the 45th Infantry Division Headquarters and the Oklahoma National Guard Officer Candidate School until its transition into the museum in September 1976.
The museum, formerly known as the 45th Infantry Division Museum, has been instrumental in collecting, preserving, and interpreting the history of the Oklahoma National Guard. Its extensive collection includes the Jordan B. Reaves American Military Weapons Collection, Bill Mauldin’s personal collection of World War II cartoons, a tribute exhibit to the 12 members of the 45th Infantry Division and Oklahoma Army National Guard who received the Medal of Honor, a robust exhibit on the 45th ID’s role in the liberating the Dachau concentration camp 80 years ago, and more.
Looking ahead, the museum will soon transition to a new state-of-the-art, nearly 40,000 square-foot facility that will provide enhanced space and tools to effectively tell the Oklahoma National Guard’s story from its founding through modern times, including a focus on domestic operations throughout the state and neighboring states.
“All of the exhibitions will be brand new,” Dr. Neil said. “We will expand our storyline so we’re starting with the history of the Oklahoma National Guard beginning in 1890 with the establishment of the territorial militia and moving up as contemporary as possible. We also are expanding beyond telling the story of war so that we can tell the story of how the Guard responds to natural and manmade disasters in the state and the country as well.”
The new facility, located at 3301 Northeast Grand Blvd. in Oklahoma City, is expected to open in the summer of 2026. In the meantime, the museum's staff will focus on the careful transfer and preservation of its collection, ensuring that the stories and sacrifices of Oklahoma's National Guard members continue to be honored and shared with future generations.
For more information about the museum and its future plans, visit okngmuseum.com.
| Date Taken: | 05.31.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.31.2025 17:32 |
| Story ID: | 499361 |
| Location: | OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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