Iowa Gold Star Military Museum — Attraction in Johnston

What a stellar experience! They’re very proud of this little gem and for good reason! It is very well maintained and provides a very in-depth walkthrough of the service history of our troops throughout history spanning revolutionary war to the wars in the Mideast with a focus on Iowa’s role. As you enter the museum there is also a brief history of the Iowa state patrol and law enforcement. From the displays to the cleanliness of the museum and the helpful friendly nature of the staff here if you want a history lesson on the conflicts throughout history there is no better place to start then here at the Iowa Gold Star Military Museum!

The only trouble we had was finding the Public entrance as the maps take you to the private entrance. It is set on an active national guard base so you need to make sure you go to the gated guard entrance. They will give you a map with instructions on how to get to the museum. This info can be found on their website which I missed prior to going but found it as we were looking for the entrance.

TLDR; great museum for conflict history with amazingly friendly &...

If you are into military history this is the museum you need to visit. The museum is laid out in chronological order from pre-Civil war to modern conflicts. There is a lot to see and do so make sure you plan to spend some time there. Want to see a WW1 Liberty Truck and listen to how the engine sounded like or walk into a WW1 trench? Or step into a display of the communications area of a WW2 bomber, see an interview of a veteran explain what it was like to fly a Mustang or learn about the Flying Tigers? Want to see a Korean War Jeep or Vietnam Huey? Or try out a working submarine periscope, get on board a troop transport or try a Falcon flight simulator? It all here and more! Well worth the visit and believe it or not admission is free. You just need an ID to enter Camp Dodge where the...

I took my youngest (grade school age) to this museum. He has been interested in D-Day recently. They had an interactive display with a map of the world to show the different battles fought in WWII. It was nice for him to see the relationships between the different countries. Other highlights were the military vehicles and airplanes inside the building and outside the building. The most popular feature with my kid was the real periscope that allows you to look around Camp Dodge from within the museum. I would highly recommend this museum to anyone interested in the...