The History class run by adjunct professor, Michelle Brown hMichelle led a class trip to the Saratoga Military Museum and Veterans Research Center on the afternoon of Friday, February 22, 2018. The museum is home to over 10,000 artifacts from every American conflict dating back to the Revolutionary War all the way to Desert Storm and speaks volumes about the contribution of veterans who remind us that our freedom did not come “free.” Another notable quality of the museum is that it owns the largest collection of Civil War flags in the entire world!
One would probably need at least three weeks or longer to fully absorb many of the facts stored within this breathtaking tribute to our American heritage. But the students still had plenty of time to explore many of the vestibules housing exhibits in which the past and present collide. One of the more prominent exhibits includes an enormous battery-powered EE-8 Field Telephone from 1942 that was used in World War II and could connect with another model up to 15 miles away. (You can say that it was our first version of a cell phone!)
The students also saw a piece of the blood-stained dress that the famous British as truly made the past come alive for the students of the College Experience! actress and producer, Laura Keene wore while cradling Lincoln’s head immediately after he was shot in the head by assassin, John Wilkes Booth during the play, “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theatre. There is also a mold made from Lincoln’s actual hand on display in that same section.
College Experience staff members, Edith “Plummy” Chase as well as Jesse Saperstein drove the students to Saratoga Springs, NY and assisted the instructor.