Wright Museum

The Wright Museum is located in Wolfeboro, NH.

The Wright Museum is primarily a military museum that focusses on the WWII era and consists of several sections:

• 1940s WWII Home Life exhibits including a period soda fountain and and interesting time line of household objects and costs of goods throughout the 1940s
• Visitor's Center with a gift shop, two vehicles, a Link Aviation Trainer and other military exhibits
• Military Wing with the Pershing and Stuart tanks, halftracks, Jeep, motorcycle and Piper L4 Grasshopper observation plane

I've focused on the military vehicles and exhibits as that was my primary interest in visiting the museum, but there is much much more that you will see when you visit Wright than I've covered here.

The centerpiece of the Wright Museum in my eyes is the US Army T26E3 Pershing Heavy Tank. The tank is in outstanding condition, and actually starts, runs and goes. It is a WWII Veteran and the only surviving Pershing tank that participated in the assault on the Remagen Bridge in Germany towards the end of the war. The Pershing used to run in 4th of July parades in Wolfeboro, however the tracks were damaging the pavement in some areas and shopkeepers were complaining of it rattling their glassware as it rumbled by so the town put an end to that tradition. I think a water truck wetting the pavement ahead of the Pershing would have been enough to save the pavement as the tank tracks run on rubber blocks and the weight is pretty well spread out.

The Stuart Light Tank is also in great shape and runs, and is very well kitted out. The access hatches are open and the interior lit so you can get a good view of most of the tank's interior.

Two White Halftracks are on display, an M2 Halftrack for transporting personnel and weapons, and an M16 Multiple Gun Carriage halftrack with 5 big Browning M2 .50 caliber machine guns mounted in a power operated turret in the back. I saw one in NJ during a Veteran's Day service and boy, can they scoot!

Two WWII Jeeps are on hand, one a Ford Jeep and another unlabelled in the visitor's center (I only covered the Ford Jeep in the Military Wing). The Ford jeep looks outstanding and mounts a Browning .50cal in the back. Four Harley Davidson WWII Motorcycles are on display, two U/UAs and two WUAs. Boy, they sure look like fun to ride! A White Scout car is also on display. It resembles the White Halftracks in many ways, except it uses wheels in the rear rather than tracks. An unusual vehicle was an M7 Snow Cat, kind of an early military snowmobile with a track drive in the rear and that used either wheels or skis in the front for steering.

The staff were friendly and knowledgeable and busy working to keep the exhibits presentable. The lighting is soft and varies, with some sections of the vehicles lit well and others in shadow. My images don't do some of the vehicles justice with some areas a bit grainy as I tried to recover details from areas in shadow.

There is no food onsite at the museum, however it is close to downtown Wolfeboro and several eating establishments. Parking is free and easy and close to the entrance. Handicap parking spots are close to the door and the museum is very handicap accessible with ramps where needed and an elevator to the second floor. A gift shop is on hand with a variety of toys, books, hats, T-shirts and other military and period related items.

Visit the Wright Museum's Website for hours and directions. The museum is closed in the months of November through January, and open limited days February through April. Pay these folks a visit. The vehicles are in outstanding shape and there is much more to see than I've covered here. The staff are also happy to see you too. If you live in the area, volunteer. The museum has an active summer schedule and can use the extra hands.