ORDNANCE AND WEAPONRY COLLECTIONS

Moderator: Les Jensen, U.S. Army Center of Military History, Washington, D.C.
 

EXPLOSIVE ORDNANCE SAFETY: THE BOOM IN THE BACK

Brenda Windle Moe, Curator, Naval Undersea Museum, Keyport, WA

I. Definition of presentation

A. This presentation is not about disarming weapons, but rather how to manage a process to ensure your collection does not pose a danger to the museum staff, volunteers, visitors, or community professionals responding to an emergency call. II. Background A. Explosive items can look relatively harmlessCand often even historic, like the Civil War cannonball. Unbeknownst to some, cannonballs can be filled with explosives, and I have several documented incidents to demonstrate that point.

B. Explosives do not have to be large in sizeCa little soot residue, a small squibCBIG problem. "I'd like to keep all five fingers, thank you very much!"

 III. Thirteen Steps to Help You Sleep at Night A. I have identified 13 steps to building a trust-worthy system of ensuring ordnance safety in the museum. These steps include the following: 1. Developing a baseline
2. Identification of ordnance
3. Identification of other dangers
4. Creating a tracking tool
5. Contract development
6. Obtaining inspectors
7. Developing a contingency plan
8. Determining facilities and tools and who will furnish what
9. Constructing a paperwork trail
10. Establishing a process for future inspections
11. The ethics of artifact preservation
12. Financial requirements
13. Current regulations IV. Your Obligation to the Community A. Going one step further, your obligation does not have to end at the museum door but can extend to the local community as well. Share information about ordnance safety with your own hometown.    
 
US ARMY ORDNANCE MUSEUM, ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MD: MUSEUM RESTORATION PROJECT

Patricia McCloskey, Cultural Resource Specialist, US Army Ordnance Center and School,
    Aberdeen Proving Ground, Aberdeen, MD

The US Army Ordnance Museum has recently started a restoration program to restore their 247 artifacts which make up the outdoor ordnance collection. The Ordnance Museum maintains one of the most extensive and significant collections of military ordnance in the world. The ravages of time and the weather have greatly deteriorated the vehicles. The project was started after the museum grounds were identified as a potential storm-water pollution site in 1995. Many artifacts were driven or towed into place approximately thirty years ago. They never had any of their petroleum oils or lubricants drained (POLs). Over time, the seals and gaskets have begun to deteriorate and the POLs are leaking into the soil. The restoration program includes opening all of the vehicles, testing the POLs and draining them. Some of them will be recycled and some will be disposed of as hazardous waste. In addition to the POLs, the paints have begun to break down and also pose a threat by depositing heavy metals into the soil. Very few of the vehicles have their original finish. Over the years special duty soldiers and summer hire students have helped preserve the structure of the artifacts by repainting them. The pieces will have all of the lead-based paint removed. Once the paint is removed, body work will be done to the artifacts, halting rust and corrosion. The vehicles will be repainted using historically correct colors and markings. The project will not repair any battle damage or other historically significant alterations to the artifact. The project is being carried out by the USAOC&S Safety and Environmental Office, in conjunction with the Ordnance Museum. This presentation discussed the experiences, challenges, and successes we have faced by trying to accomplish this project in an environmentally friendly way.

 
 
THE NEW JERSEY NATIONAL GUARD PROJECT

James Barnes, US Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis, MO
Dean Arrighi, New Jersey Army National Guard, Trenton, NJ

In September 1997, the New Jersey Army National Guard (NJARNG) began a project to inventory all of the historical military objects at New Jersey National Guard armories. The project goals were to provide NJARNG with an accounting and assessment of the historical objects at each of its facilities. Of primary concern was ownership and intellectual control. The project assisted NJARNG in developing a comprehensive inventory of historical objects and establishing the level of ownership, whether private, state or federal.

 

 
BEYOND EXPLOSIVES: SPECIAL CONCERNS OF MILITARY COLLECTIONS

Les Jensen, Museum Curator, US Army Center of Military History, Washington, D.C.

Museums with military collections, both government and privately owned, house a number of objects, over and above explosives, which have special requirements. Radiological dials, fuels, anti-gas devices, flags and colors, and certain types of weaponry not only involve safety issues, but legal ones as well. This paper alerted participants to these areas of concern and ways to address them.

 
 
NUCLEAR HERITAGE SITE HAZARDS

Connie Estep, Curator, Columbia River Exhibition of History, Science & Technology (CREHST),
    Richland, WA

Buildings at the Hanford Site, producer of plutonium for World War II and the Cold War, are currently being decontaminated and decommissioned. Artifacts & records important to the story of Hanford are being identified for long-term curation and the B Reactor has been set aside for a museum. CREHST is curating the artifacts & records under contract to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Hazards include radioactivity inherent to objects or as contamination. Surveying by health physics technicians for radioactivity provides a status baseline, but contamination can reoccur when carried by insects or mice. Remedies include avoidance (choosing a non-radioactive item when possible), decontamination, long-term protected storage and pest management.

A different hazard is found in information handling. Although many associated documents have been declassified, Export Controlled Information (ECI) is sometimes applicable. This is information containing technical data as defined in and controlled by U.S. export control statutes. There are criminal liabilities for noncompliance. Information on this may be found in the U.S. Department of Energy Explorer Website:  www.explorer.doe.gov:1776/htmls/directives.html. Look under: Current directives; New series; Series 200 (Go to Attachment 7, page 7-5)