Northeast News
May 4, 2012

Above is just one of the artifacts you'll find inside the traveling World War I gallery.

Thanks to the generosity of Waddell & Reed, the National World War I Museum will be open free to the public on Monday, May 7,  in commemoration of the company’s 75th anniversary and National Military Appreciation Month.

Both Waddell & Reed and the museum partnered together to transform an 18-wheel “big rig” truck into a traveling World War I art gallery called “Honoring Our History.” To date, the gallery has visited 44 communities across the U.S., attracted 55,000 visitors and has raised nearly $100,000 for the National World War I Museum. The traveling art gallery will be back in Kansas City and open for public tours from Saturday, May 5, through Monday, May 7. It will be parked outside of the museum, 100 West 26 Street  Kansas City, MO,  and will also be free to the public.

“Honoring Our History” features 66 artifacts, including weapons, uniforms, posters, flags and more.

“We are grateful to Waddell & Reed for their outstanding commitment to the National World War I Museum at Liberty Memorial, ” said Brian Alexander, president and chief executive officer of the National World War I Museum. “The ‘Honoring our History’ tour has allowed our Museum to reach thousands of individuals from all corners of the nation. We are also appreciative of their offer to open the Museum to the public for free on May 7. We hope this free day will allow thousands to experience the Museum’s world-class collections.”

In addition to offering free admission to the museum May 7, a Military Spouse’s Weekend will be held May 4-6 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Active duty personnel and their spouses will receive free admission to the National World War I Museum throughout the weekend. Official identification is required.

Also, Anatomy of a Donation will now be available to the public at 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 5.
In this lively “show-and-tell,” Senior Curator Doran Cart will talk about the largest single donation of objects and archival materials in the museum’s 92-year history. Cart will also explain how contact is made with potential donors, the packing and shipping process, processing items into the collection and more.

Here's an outside look of the traveling WWI gallery.