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US Army Ordinance Museum at Aberdeen Proving Ground Photos
You can visit the US Army Ordinance Museum at the Aberdeen Proving Ground military base in Aberdeen, MD just a short drive off of I-95. For directions see the Museum's website here.
The tank museum grounds consist of:
Indoor museum with a French tank and a few other vehicles, light artillery pieces gatling guns, and rockets, an extensive collection of small arms, and some more unique pieces like a German WWII robotic mine/explosive device and a section of the early supercomputer Eniac- Outdoors on the grounds you'll find a fairly extensive collection of tanks and other armored vehicles and a variety of other weapons. Some very rare WWII Panzers are on hand as well
- Various artillery pieces from WWI and WWII
- Anti Aircraft weapons from the US, Soviet Union, and Germany
- Some very heavy artillery pieces such as the German Railway gun Anzio Annie, the Atomic Cannon, a 16 inch coast defense gun and the huge Little David Mortar
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The US Army Ordnance Museum hopes to eventually get all of the exhibits indoors once several large planned hangars are constructed. Current stumbling blocks to this plan are funds and that some government bureaucrats would like to see the museum moved. More and more vehicles are being moved indoors, which unfortunately means they are not longer accessible to the public. A number of vehicles that were there a few years ago are missing along with the Tiger I and King Tiger. The M-48 Patton Tank was being removed from the grounds on the morning I had arrived. The tank transporter cut one concrete pad a little close and blew out several tires during the effort. A Porsche Ferdinand tank destroyer had just been removed also and was at a railway loading platform a short distance from the museum. 
60 years of outdoor living have taken a toll on the outdoor exhibits and many are in poor condition and badly rusting. In spite of that it was still a thrill to see many of these rare tanks and other armored vehicles up close and to be able to touch them. For me to see an actual German WWII Panzer Mk V Panther up close was amazing, but to see two Panther Tanks side by side was fantastic.
You will need a valid drivers licence or passport to get a pass to go onto the base grounds as the US Army Ordnance Museum is on the Aberdeen Proving Ground military base. If you are driving you will also need your registration and insurance card for the vehicle you are driving in. As you leave the gate to get to the museum, keep your eyes on the right. There is a lineup of restored and rare tanks from various armies and periods. In the period shortly after 9/11 visitors were not permitted to pull over and view this row of tanks but fortunately Aberdeen Proving Ground has relaxed the rules so it's permitted again. The Stuart Light tank, Panzer Mk IV, Sherman Tank, and M10 Tank destroyer were restored to a high cosmetic standard.
There are fast food vendors on the base just a short distance from the US Army Ordnance Museum so lunch is easy. Pay them a visit if you're in the area. Or even if you're not. The staff are friendly and the museum could well use any donations you contribute. It's an amazing display of the vehicles our fathers and grandfathers fought with and against.
