Fort Riley celebrated the grand re-opening of the 1st Infantry Division Museum Friday, almost a year after reopening the nearby Cavalry museum.
“The Big Red One” is the oldest continuously serving division in the Regular Army, and their museum is once open again after being closed for 6 years due to various improvements.
“Today, with the opening of the 1st Infantry Division Museum, we have reached the capstone of the museum redesign and remodel projects, begun nearly 15 years ago,” said Dr. Robert Smith, Director of the Fort Riley Museums complex.
Renovations for both museums began in 2018 and were slowed down by the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain issues.
Major General John Meyer detailed why military museums are important.
“(There are) 13,578 reasons why. Those are the names on the monument that I will rededicate next month at the White House in Washington, D.C. 13,578 soldiers serving in 36 different campaigns over 107 years with 38 medal of honor recipients,” he said.
The First Division was formed in 1917 and fought in the trenches of World War I, the jungles of Southeast Asia, and the deserts of Southwest Asia.
Colonel Brian Hunt is the Director of Army museums and says the re-opening will have a positive impact on the community…
“We hope that the 1st Infantry Division Museum and the U.S. Cavalry Museum here will support all of you soldiers, family members, the local community and veterans,” he said. “We hope that the museum supports the learning about those who have forged the path of freedom as soldiers of the Big Red One.”
World War II veteran Jim Sharp, of Manhattan, is immortalized in the newly renovated museum. Sharp, who also turned 100 on Thursday, was on hand Friday to help cut the ceremonial ribbon.
