Heartland Museum of Military Vehicles
Encyclopedia
The Heartland Museum of Military Vehicles (HMMV) in Lexington, Nebraska
Lexington, Nebraska
Lexington is a city in Dawson County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 10,230 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Dawson County. Lexington is located in southern Nebraska, on the Platte River, southeast of North Platte. It sits along the route of U.S. Route 30 and the Union...

 is a non-profit organization run by volunteers and funded by donations and grants.

The museum's goal is to restore, preserve and display historic military equipment of all types, as a way to honor those who served.

It is located near Interstate 80
Interstate 80
Interstate 80 is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, following Interstate 90. It is a transcontinental artery running from downtown San Francisco, California to Teaneck, New Jersey in the New York City Metropolitan Area...

. There is no entry fee, donations are optional. It is open from 10 am - 5 pm Monday-Saturday, and 1 pm - 5 pm on Sundays.

History

In 1986, armed only with a determination to preserve historic military vehicles, four Lexington men formed the Heartland Museum. Today the dozens of fully restored vehicles are dedicated in honor and memory of those who served.

In 1991, a permanent site for the museum was obtained at exit 237 of Interstate 80. In 1998, a 16000 square feet (1,486.4 m²) Visitor Center was constructed which houses many of the vehicles.

Collection

The museum has about 100 vehicles including helicopters, tanks, half-tracks, ambulances, and a jeep
Jeep
Jeep is an automobile marque of Chrysler . The first Willys Jeeps were produced in 1941 with the first civilian models in 1945, making it the oldest off-road vehicle and sport utility vehicle brand. It inspired a number of other light utility vehicles, such as the Land Rover which is the second...

 from every branch of the service. There are also displays of weapons, uniforms, engines, equipment, and more. The everyday necessities of a soldier's life, such as MRE
MRE
The Meal, Ready-to-Eat — commonly known as the MRE — is a self-contained, individual field ration in lightweight packaging bought by the United States military for its service members for use in combat or other field conditions where organized food facilities are not available...

s, blend with unique vehicles, like those used by the German army in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

Staff are very helpful and will tell you just about everything to know about each vehicle at the site. One of the attractions is the prototype HMMWV, serial number 1. Children can explore the interior of a Mike model Huey helicopter, and two tanks.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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