100th Anniversary
The U.S. Enters WWI
Brooklyn Navy Yard and
Commandant’s House provides
insight into the Navy’s role in the Great
War. It was a hub of activity during
the run-up to World War I, employing
18,000 men and women to construct
vessels ranging from major battleships
to wooden submarine chasers. Guided
tours include a dry dock in use since
before the Civil War, the former Navy
hospital campus and an interactive
museum. bldg92.org/visit
Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden
City features a WWI gallery with early
biplanes like a Curtiss JN-4 “Jenny,” a
Thomas Morse S4C Scout fighter plane
and a Breese Penguin non-flying trainer
designed to give student pilots the
feel of airplane controls at near-flying
speeds, without the danger of actual
flight. Seven other galleries of planes and
spacecraft make this one of the world's
most diverse aerospace collections.
cradleofaviation.org
Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in
Rhinebeck, is a living museum of antique
aviation, possessing one of the world’s
largest collections of early aeroplanes
as well as an array of early automobiles,
motorcycles, engines and memorabilia
spanning the period from 1900-1939.
Airshows are offered on weekends from
June to October, with Saturday shows
featuring pioneer, World War I and
Lindbergh-era aircraft, while Sunday’s
show is a WWI spectacular complete
with aerial dogfight and barnstorming
aircraft. Hardy visitors may take their
own biplane ride. oldrhinebeck.org
The New York State Museum in Albany exhibit honoring the centennial, gathers iconic
artifacts from museums, libraries and historical societies across the state to tell the story
of New York State's outsized contribution to the American war effort. The exhibit includes
a life-size recreation of a trench, ringed with barbed wire, of the sort used on the Western
Front to face off against the enemy across a mine-filled no man’s land. A Spirit of Sacrifice:
New York State in the First World War runs from April 2017 through June 2018.
nysm.nysed.gov
New York State Military Museum in Saratoga Springs focuses on the history of New York
State's military forces, from the Revolutionary War to Desert Storm. Among the 10,000
artifacts housed in the Museum's historic armory are significant holdings relating to New
York’s 27th Division in World War I and World War II and notable state military regiments
such as the 7th (Silk Stocking Regiment), 69th (Fighting Irish), 71st and 369th (Harlem Hell
fighters). dmna.ny.gov/historic/mil-hist.htm
National
The United States Military Academy
at West Point houses West Point
Museum, the oldest and largest public
collection of military artifacts in the
western hemisphere. WWI is amply
represented with exhibits that include
the artillery piece that fired the first
shot by the American Expeditionary
Force, as well as armored vehicles,
communications equipment and period
uniforms. Visitors can also find exhibits
on American Wars, History of the U.S.
Army and History of Warfare.
westpoint.army.mil/museum.html
Photo by ornoth via flickr
Chief Nurse Beatrice Mary MacDonald,
wounded in action in 1917, is the first known
woman to be awarded the Purple Heart.
New York and New Yorkers played
pivotal roles in "The Great War." One
in ten of America's WWI military
personnel hailed from New York,
more than from any other state, and
more than 13,000 New Yorkers died
in service to their country during
the conflict.
From war diaries and weapons,
to artwork, photographs and actual
aerial “dogfights” enacted with
period airplanes, exhibits and sites
across New York shine a light on the
state’s many roles in WWI.
View of USS ARIZONA in 1916, taken from Manhattan Bridge on the East River in New York City, on
its way back from sea trials.
86 | 2017 in new york: A yeAr of milestones
National Purple Heart Hall
of Honor in New Windsor inspires
visitors with its stories of sacrifice
and valor in conflicts from World War
I through today. Exhibits chronicle
the