The Minnesota Military and Veterans Museum has moved its public displays to a new site near Highway 371 outside Little Falls, taking them beyond the security gates of Camp Ripley. Its former home was a 1931 National Guard regimental headquarters inside the base, where visitors passed through security checkpoints. The museum drew about 12,000 visitors annually, according to MPR News.
A project built over several years
The new facility followed five years of planning and occupies 40,000 square feet, or eight times the size of the previous museum. It displays more than 25,000 historical artifacts, MPR News reported.
The development began with a 2019 donation of 32 acres from Little Falls-area veteran and landowner Bob Anderson, according to the Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum. The Minnesota Legislature provided $32 million through two bonding bills—$13 million and $19 million—while supporters raised $7 million in private donations for exhibits and galleries, according to the museum, the Minnesota House of Representatives and MPR News. MPR News describes the overall facility as a $40 million project.
A ceremonial groundbreaking took place Sept. 17, 2023. Organizers used an authentic 1944 Cletrac World War II construction-battalion bulldozer during the event, according to Wreaths for the Fallen.
From Camp Ripley to a public-facing museum
According to the Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum, Camp Ripley is a state-owned 53,000-acre military training center on the Mississippi River just north of Little Falls. The museum says the camp received its first troops in June 1931, when its cantonment area included a headquarters building and other initial facilities. The museum's former location inside that training center placed its displays behind a military security checkpoint, while the new Highway 371 site puts them outside the base. The relocation therefore expands access to the museum without changing its connection to Camp Ripley and Minnesota's military history.
Information for opening visitors
The three-day grand opening commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for youths ages 6 through 17. Active-duty military members and children under 5 enter free, and the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs says free shuttle buses are operating from downtown Little Falls during the opening weekend. Gallery visits require timed reservations, according to the agency.
The USS Ward gun
The museum’s collection includes the 4-inch/50-caliber gun from the USS Ward. Minnesota naval reservists manned the weapon when the destroyer sank a Japanese submarine attempting to enter Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941; MPR News reported that the gun fired the first American shot of World War II.
The gun had stood on the Minnesota State Capitol grounds in St. Paul since 1958. State officials removed it on Sept. 2, 2025, for restoration before its permanent installation at the museum, according to the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs.
A statewide military history
The museum’s stated mission covers Minnesota military history from the Civil War through the conflicts involving residents after the 2001 terrorist attacks. MPR News reported that the exhibits include stories of more than 40,000 Minnesotans who have served since 2001.
Outdoor displays include a World War II tank and components from the Cold War-era submarine USS Minneapolis-St. Paul. The submarine material includes its tower and rudder, and the vessel served in the Navy from 1984 until it was decommissioned in 2008, according to MPR News and the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs.
