SEWARD, Neb. (AP) - The new Seward home for the Nebraska National Guard State Museum is slowly taking shape as it’s transformed from its previous mission as a Guard armory.
The historian involved, Gerald “Jerry” Meyer, has been sifting through what he estimates is at least 11,000 pieces in the Guard collection that were moved from the former museum site in Lincoln.
“It’s like a treasure trove. It’s like a treasure hunt every day,” Meyer told the Lincoln Journal Star (https://bit.ly/1vt1n9V ).
The museum’s former home was in the State Arsenal building at what was State Fair Park in Lincoln. The National Guard moved the museum to make way for the Nebraska Innovation Campus, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln research park being built on the former fairgrounds.
Since 1956 the Seward armory was the primary training center for Seward-based Army Guard soldiers. The units have been relocated to a new training site in Mead. The Seward armory renovation and landscaping are being paid for with a $2.1 million federal grant, Meyer said.
Visitors eventually will get to see six spires that represent the six aircraft eras of the Nebraska Air Guard. The west side of the building will be landscaped and used for military band concerts and other special events, and there will be a learning center and a 60-seat theater.
There also will be an opportunity for visitors to experience the shock of being a Guard recruit. The ordeal will include a basic medical exam, an oath of allegiance and a chance to get yelled at by a virtual drill sergeant.
The Guard hopes to have the building and grounds finished in time for Seward’s annual Fourth of July celebration next year.
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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, https://www.journalstar.com
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