The answer to the “What is it? Wednesday” question from July 9th is the shift pattern plate in our M3A1 Scout Car! Have you ever driven a WWII era truck like this?![]()
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Stay tuned for the next “What is it? Wednesday” question tomorrow, July 16th at 10:00 am EST!![]()
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#americanheritagemuseum #whatisitwednesday
Calling all car collectors! Register and spread the word about our first annual Heritage & Horsepower Fundraiser Car Show at the American Heritage Museum on Saturday, August 23rd from 11am to 3pm! Go to our website and register your car today and help us spread the word! All proceeds from the day go toward our Fuel Our Field Trips Fund to provide transportation and admission grants for underserved schools in our region!
If you didn't make it out to our WWII Pacific Reenactment yesterday, there's still time! Today, Sun, July 13th, all 3 of our museum buildings will be open, with food trucks, vendors and more! Plus, we will have our Pacific war reenactment at 1:00pm, honoring the 80 year anniversary of the end of WWII in the Pacific. So don't wait!![]()
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You can buy tickets in advance on our website, or pay at the gate. The weather looks good, so come join us for a day of learning at the American Heritage Museum!![]()
www.americanheritagemuseum.org/event/wwii-pacific-re-enactment-saipan-campaign-2025/![]()
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(Photo credit to Matthew Ford, and Keith Reid @madbadger_aviationlens on IG)
Special for Saturday at the WWII in the Pacific Re-Enactment Weekend at the American Heritage Museum will be an appearance (weather permitting) of a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter from the Massachusetts Army National Guard where it will be on display from arrival at 9am to departure around 3pm on Saturday. Unfortunately, it will not be on display on Sunday. Come and learn how the MANG uses it to support various missions, including disaster response, medevac, and troop transport.
The July 2025 Briefing Room eNewsletter just came out! Check out the latest news from the American Heritage Museum!
mailchi.mp
The American Heritage Museum’s Vietnam War Gallery will be expanding with two significant new additions over the coming year: a Soviet SA-2 Guideline surface-to-air missile (SAM) on long-term loan ...
Drive the Famous Light Tank That Spanned Two Wars
The American Heritage Museum is proud to offer exciting tank driving experiences in the Spring, Summer, and Fall aboard the M24 Chaffee light tank used in World War II and the Korean War. The M24 Chaffee is a fast and maneuverable tank that replaced the M5 Stuart light tank during WWII and brought the harder hitting 75mm M6 cannon to the battlefield.
Tank driving programs on the M24 Chaffee are a donation of $995.00 per driving participant aboard the tank for a one hour training experience that includes ground instruction, startup, driving instruction with our instructor, and YOU drive the M24 Chaffee for 20 minutes on our tank driving grounds at the American Heritage Museum. If you would like to add an additional rider in the turret during your driving experience, please add a $195 donation to your booking.
Watch a Video on the M24 Driving Experience
Book Your M24 Chaffee Tank Driving Experience Today!
Tank driving experiences on the M24 Chaffee are being offered in the mornings of select weekends through the season. Please click the button below for schedules and online booking. We can also accommodate custom tank driving slots during weekdays when available – call us at 978-562-9182 to inquire about weekday driving reservations.
For safety, all driving participants should be 16 years of age or older and be at least 5′ 2″ tall and have good physical strength to drive. Any additional riders in the turret must be at least 5′ tall to ride. Children under the age of 14 should be accompanied by an adult in the turret if they meet the height requirement.
Gift Certificates Available
Looking to give a tank driving experience as a gift? We have presentation gift certificates available for gift giving to the tank enthusiast in your family! Tank Driving Gift Certificates are open ended and allow the recipient to schedule their own driving experience at their convenience. Click here to learn more about and purchase an M24 Chaffee Tank Driving Experience Gift Certificate at this link.
History of the M24 Chaffee
Seeking to replace the aging M3 and M5 Stuart series of light tanks, the U.S. Army Ordnance Department and Cadillac joined forces to create a new light tank. The new T24 pilot vehicle was delivered in October 1943 and full scale production began in 1944 as the Light Tank, M24. The Chaffee retained the M5 Stuart’s twin Cadillac V-8 powertrain, but came armed with a lightened 75mm Cannon adapted from a version used on B-25 Mitchell bombers, replacing the under whelming 37mm used on the Stuart. The Chaffee was speedy and nimble. The M24 saw use in WWII, but found a calling in the cold, mountainous environment of Korea, where it fought as a part of reconnaissance units alongside “Easy Eight” Shermans, M26 Pershings and M46 Pattons. Long after the United States replaced the M24 with newer models such as the M41 Walker-Bulldog, other countries such as Israel and France used the Chaffee well into the 1950s.
SPECIFICATIONS
Armament: 75mm M6 Cannon, one .50 cal. MG and 2x .30 cal. MGs.
Crew: 5, Commander, Gunner, Driver, Loader, Co-Driver
Engine: Cadillac Series 44T24, 220 horsepower.
Range: 100 miles
