The Corps Museum

The VTCC Museum began in 1985, when then-Commandant Lt. Gen. Howard M. Lane asked Col. Joseph Reich ’75, then a captain and an Air Force ROTC detachment instructor, to start a Corps museum. Today it is a diverse collection of Corps memorabilia: old uniforms and historical artifacts donated by alumni over the years.

Because of recent construction on Upper Quad, the museum's collection was moved during the 2012-13 academic year to Newman Library. The library donated a beautiful area on the fourth floor to hold the museum’s display cases. The original Skipper cannon resides in the lobby of New Cadet Hall. 

In the future, the Corps Museum will be housed in the planned Corps Leadership and Military Science Building on Upper Quad. Fundraising efforts are well underway, and if you are interested in helping with this effort, please contact the VTCC development team.

Thanks to the generosity of the Moore family, the Major General Cecil R. Moore collection will anchor the VTCC Museum’s collection, providing new, primary sources for historical research. Hundreds of documents, postcards, and souvenirs populate the collection, along with his military uniforms, photographs, war booty, and diaries. While serving under Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower as chief engineer, European Theater of Operations, during World War II, Moore’s command was responsible for maintaining and repairing bridges, tunnels, and rail lines in Europe.

The history of the Corps of Cadets is the history of the university. The mission of the VTCC Museum is to tell the story of the Corps’ past, present, and future for not only future generations of cadets, but for the public as a whole. The museum strives to acquire, preserve, and maintain a respectful and accessible collection and presentation of the rich history of the cadets who have gone to serve honorably in the U.S. armed forces, as well as in the private sector.

If you would like to make a donation of memorabilia items to the museum, please contact the Alumni Office 540-231-7431.

If you are visiting Blacksburg, please stop by the library or the Holtzman Alumni Center to see the Corps items on display. In addition, the Corps historians can provide tours of the museum dependent on their class schedules, so please contact the alumni office at 540-231-7431 if you are interested.

Items to be auctioned

Occasionally, the Corps Museum will use eBay to auction items that do not fit within the scope of its collection. Examples include medals without the recipient's name, spare uniform pieces, objects that have no connection to Virginia Tech, books, etc. All funds raised through the auctions will remain with the musuem —either for conservation, preservation, or to acquire objects to fill collection needs.