----- Original Message -----
From: gysgtred@alltel.net
To: webmaster@popasmoke.com
Sent: Friday, November 12, 2004 8:07 PM
Subject: Assistance request for USMC museum

Marines we need some assistance please. We are a comprehensive USMC museum (See below and our web site at www.mclm.com)
We need a set of Vietnam flight gear for our display in phase II and are looking VERY hard for a USMC Tiger Stripe flight suit.
Also, squadron patches and documentation on USMC helos in Korea -personal accounts.

Semper Fidelis,
Red MIllis
GySgt USMC (ret) Curator, MCLM

About The Marine Corps Legacy Museum
Officially opened on the first Marine Corps birthday in the new millennium, 10 November 2001, the Marine Corps Legacy Museum (MCLM) is the only private, historically comprehensive Marine Corps museum in the country. The museum is sponsored by the Association for the Preservation of U. S. Marine Corps History, Inc. a 501 ( c ) (3) educational non-profit corporation chartered in Arkansas in 1998. The museum is the culmination of 10 years of planning and effort by the father and son founders, both retired Marines, and they and their immediate families serve as the officers of both the corporation and the museum. There are no salaried staff members. To date, the museum has been a self-funded enterprise with the exception of donated artifacts, small cash donations and low level fund raising efforts by the MCLM staff. As a “thank you” to our donors we place their names, either personal or business, on our web site. For donors of artifacts we also place their name on the display in the museum when their artifact is shown.

From the very beginning, two basic premises dictated MCLM policy. First, the museum is not a hobby, it is a professional effort; thus, when the museum is eligible we will seek accreditation with the American Association of Museums, (AAM). To further this goal, the AAM was contacted early on to ascertain what their accreditation criteria were. Once that information was received, the museum was structured in consonance with those criteria. Second, we do not believe in revisionist history. If a historical occurrence can be factually documented, that is how it should be portrayed. Therefore, all museum presentations strive for total accuracy. We feel that the Corps’ overall achievements, honestly portrayed, can stand any scrutiny without apology and that is the way the MCLM presents the history of the Marine Corps.

The museum’s displays depict the history of the Corps from 1775 to the present with large, well lit cases displaying uniforms, weapons, equipment, personalities, and art from the days of sail to the exploration of space. Each display is interwoven with the American history of that period, giving the patron not only a view of the history of the Marine Corps, but also the policies and global events which required the deployment of America’s Marines. Missions as diverse as guarding America’s embassies overseas; guarding the US Mail here at home; conducting bloody assaults on Japanese held islands during WWII; conducting rescue and life saving operations around the world; and, spear-heading America’s global War on Terrorism. The MCLM shows the Marines and the equipment they used to accomplish these and other missions in over 200 years of service to the Nation. As a result of this long history of accomplishment by their Marines, Americans have come to believe that “Send in the Marines” means the situation will be taken care of.

Current activities are not limited solely to museum operation. The museum staff conducts an educational outreach program presenting classes to students from grade school to college level. Some presentations are made in the museum, but many are presented on campus. During the course of making these presentations, it became appallingly apparent that most of today’s students have very little knowledge of their nation’s history. Therefore, the MCLM presentations now provide more information on the historical background of America in order to show the events that led to the varied missions of the Marine Corps. To stir the youngster’s interest in their history, a multi-media presentation is being developed to present both United States and Marine Corps history. In conjunction with the presentation, the students can be provided with a reading list to encourage self-study.

Another project the museum has embarked upon is an Oral History program aimed at enlisted Marines. The purpose of this is to document Marine Corps activities with a perspective not usually provided by senior officer biographies or organizational histories. These personal histories will become a part of the museum’s archives which is a reference resource that already contains hundreds of books, photos, periodicals, and documents relating to the Corps and the nation.

The MCLM also supports other military museums. For example, in April 2000 a donation was made to the National Museum of Naval Aviation at Pensacola, Florida. This consisted of copies of the flight logs, held by the MCLM, of the first commanding officer of Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro, California.

The museum is heavily involved in the community. It sponsors the Boone, Searcy and Newton County Toys for Tots program. It sponsors a Veterans Day Parade in Harrison, hosts a Marine Corps Ball, and provides “Living History” displays each year. The museum has also become the local point of contact for individuals seeking assistance in obtaining official records; color guards and burial detachments for military funerals; and, in providing any other assistance it can to members of all services and their families.

As a public information effort, the MCLM provided a five- part article for publication in the local paper during the anniversary week of the Iwo Jima campaign. An exhibit of the island battlefield was also prepared and displayed in the county library.

Last, but certainly not least, the MCLM actively supports the Marine Corps recruiting effort in this region. The museum is available, on a no cost basis, to area recruiters and museum staff members make presentations of Marine Corps history at recruiting events.

MCLM involvement in community activities resulted in the museum being awarded The Main Street Harrison Community Commitment Award for 2001; a Certificate of Appreciation from the Commanding Officer, Recruiting Station, Kansas City, Missouri for its support of USMC Recruiting; and, a Letter of Appreciation from the Boone County Sheriff’s Office for Community support.

In 2003, the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation awarded the MCLM the prestigious Colonel John H. Magruder Award for excellence in presenting USMC history in a museum setting. The MCLM was the first organization to qualify for the award since 1999.

Strategic planning for the museum consists of three phases:

Phase 1 - "Store Front" operation with time line displays, a reference library, and an educational outreach / living history program. (Phase 1 is operational at this time.)

Phase 2 – Acquisition of a much larger facility. Time line displays covering no more than 10 years for each display. Construction of "Stand Alone" displays documenting the story of Marine aviation, women Marines, black Marines, etc. Various rotating displays covering operations such as US mail guards in the 1920's, the Presidential Security Detachment, and US Embassy guards. Additionally, displays for such combat actions as Bladensburg; Harper's Ferry; Belleau Wood; Wake Island; Iwo Jima; Inchon and the Chosin Reservoir; Khe Sanh and Hue Phu Bai; and, the liberation of Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq. The Phase 2 facility will also house an auditorium for multi- media presentations in support of the educational outreach program. When Phase 2 is operational, we will request accreditation by the AAM. The MCLM already holds most of the artifacts required for Phase 2 with ongoing efforts to acquire the additional artifacts necessary for the planned expansion. In addition, the Marine Corps History and Museums Division is ascertaining what artifacts are surplus to their requirements that can be provided to the MCLM to assist its move forward to Phase 2.

Phase 3 - A structure specifically built to support a museum capable of expanding the extent and quality of Marine Corps history presentations such that the museum will become a National Asset.

A project was recently initiated to accurately replicate 18 Marine Corps uniforms that were in service from 1798 through 1847. These uniforms have never been authentically replicated before because there are no known examples of the uniforms to use as patterns. Another problem is the length of time to conduct the appropriate research. The successful completion of this project resulted in ascertaining, with the highest level of accuracy, the design and material of the uniforms and accouterments. Because of the materials requirements alone the uniforms will cost approximately $1000.00 apiece to accurately replicate. Upon completion, patterns and fabric sources will be provided to the National Museum of the Marine Corps at Quantico, Virginia to facilitate their reproduction and display of these uniforms as well. The patterns and material requirements will also be available to other museums and historical associations who express an interest in having the material.

Since 11 September 2001, the Marine Corps Legacy Museum is probably one of the few Marine museums readily available to the public and the only Marine Corps museum in the central United States. While the museum is primarily about Marines, we are dedicated to becoming a valuable asset for all Americans. Thus, visitors are exposed to our nation’s history as well as the Marine Corps story as the two are woven together to provide a fascinating look at our nation's path through time. The most gratifying result of our effort is that without exception, the response of both military and civilian visitors to the museum has been enthusiastic approval.

As has been pointed out, the museum is involved in many ancillary activities in addition to the primary mission of being a museum. However, we see these activities as helping contribute to an awareness of the Marine Corps and its legacy to the nation - which is now 229 years of proud service.

The MCLM is located on the Harrison, AR. Town Square and is open all year from 10am to 5pm Tuesday through Saturday. Contact the MCLM at 870 743 1680 or visit the MCLM web site at www.mclm.com