Rock Island Arsenal Historical Society

06/12/2026

If you’re attending tomorrow night’s 2026 Rock Island Arsenal Army Birthday Ball hosted by RIAHS, we had two exciting pieces of information for you!

We are so pleased to share that 10X National Security has signed on to be our Presenting Sponsor for this year!

https://10xnationalsecurity.com/

Secondly, we were going to wait, but just couldn’t resist, so here’s a sneak peek at this year’s take home/thank you gift! A huge thank you to a local artist who laser engraved this slate coasters for us and made a truly memorable gift this year.

05/20/2026

05/18/2026

A new display at the Rock Island Arsenal Museum is honoring the life and legacy of World War II veteran Henry Langrehr.

04/16/2026

03/27/2026

Back with another “From the Vault Friday,” this time highlighting artifact rehousing and condition reporting. Part of a curators job is making sure artifacts, that are not on display in the museum, are properly housed and their condition is routinely inspected. Leather artifacts can be particularly tricky keeping in stable condition, as they are prone to red rot, blooming, and when in contact with brass hardware the leather can contribute to green verdigris forming on the brass. We monitor artifact condition, and we do basic conservation work, such as removing the white blooming and verdigris.

Pictured is one of our artifact cabinets with leather pouches, holsters, cartridge boxes, and patterns, cavity-packed within ethafoam.

03/26/2026

On 26 March 1898, Rock Island Arsenal received orders to produce 25,000 complete outfits of infantry equipment in support of the Spanish American War.

By August of 1898, the Arsenal was producing 6,000 complete outfits of infantry equipment per day.

To learn more, visit the Rock Island Arsenal Museum. Open Tuesday-Saturday from 10am-4pm.