Washington - Naval Historical Center/Navy Museum

The Naval Historical Center features ship models, uniforms, medals, photographs and fine art. It is located in the former Breech Mechanism Shop of the old Naval Gun Factory. Many of the exhibits encourage hands-on learning, especially the periscope and gun mounts.

The origins of the Center go back to 1800, when President John Adams instructed the first Secretary of the Navy to compile a collection of professional books. Over 130 years this upstart collection evolved into the Naval Records and Library department, charged with documenting naval history.

Southeast Washington's Navy Yard became the Navy's historical headquarters in 1961 when the yard was turned from an industrial facility into an administrative center.

The several branches of the Navy's historical department were amalgamated under one roof in 1982 in a building named after Captain Dudley W. Knox, one of the driving forces behind the Navy's commitment to historical documentation.