The National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia is a world-class museum

Helmet worn by Hal Moore in Vietnam.

Several weeks ago, James and one of his buddies, Mason Goldman, were over at the house watching a movie about the Iraq war called, “The Hurt Locker.” I put the book down that I was reading and started watching the movie with them. When it was over, I asked James if he remembered the time that we went to the National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia.

This was years ago, when James was much younger, and he didn’t remember much about the museum or the trip to Fort Benning. We’d gone there with my friend, Gilbert Harden, to see Gilbert’s nephew, Jamie, graduate from airborne school. Jamie, an Army sniper, was already a combat veteran with multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan under his belt, and he went to airborne school to help his chances of promotion.

When “The Hurt Locker” went off, I told James and Mason that we should pick a Saturday to ride over to Columbus to go through the museum again. We ended up going this past Saturday, and after a three-hour drive from Excel, we found ourselves at the museum. The museum is actually just off post, so you don’t have to go through the main gate’s security checkpoint to visit the museum. The museum also has free admission, but they do encourage visitors to make a $5 donation to support the museum.

For those of you who have never been to the National Infantry Museum, it is world class. I’ve been to lots of museums, including the Smithsonian museums in Washington, D.C., and the National Infantry Museum is as good, or better, than those. For three years running, the National Infantry Museum has been named America’s No. 1 Best Free Museum and America’s Best History Museum by USA Today.

Much of the museum is dedicated to displays that describe the evolution of Army riflemen, starting with Revolutionary War militiamen all the way through modern soldiers, who are equipped with night-vision equipment, sophisticated radios and state-of-the-art weapons. Other portions of the museum are dedicated to armor and cavalry soldiers as well as soldiers who fought in conflicts from the Revolutionary War all the way through Iraq and Afghanistan.

I think the thing that impressed James the most was in the museum’s gallery dedicated to the Vietnam War. James has watched the Mel Gibson movie, “We Were Soldiers,” which is based on a book by Lt. General Hal Moore called “We Were Soldiers Once…And Young.” James has read portions of this book, so when we got to the display about the Battle of the Ia Drang Valley, he was stunned to find himself standing in front of the actual helmet that Hal Moore wore during that famous battle.

On the way home, we talked on and off about the museum, and I could tell that James and Mason had really absorbed a lot of what they’d seen. They even remembered some things that I hadn’t paid attention to, and I feel like the memory of this trip will stay with them for a long time. They’re already planning a trip to the museum at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, which is also world class.

In the end, if you’ve never been to the National Infantry Museum, I highly recommend it. It’s a relatively short drive from Monroe County, and it’s free. If you go, I feel certain that you won’t regret making the trip.