THE GOVERNMENT NEWS DESKPERMANENT NPS STORY ARCHIVE
Organized by publication date and destination. Each story retains its permanent State & Nation address and official NPS source.
Join us August 29th from 10am to 3pm at the Springfield Armory National Historic Site for "Forging Freedom"- a full day of excitement, history and hands-on experiences! Kids can become Junior Rangers, enjoy free ice cream and explore interactive exhibits. Families can experience re-enactments, see military vehicles up close and even watch a Black Hawk helicopter land on the Armory Green!
Official NPS source
Springfield Armory National Historic Site will host a free, family-friendly commemoration on Saturday, January 17, 2026, 12:00–3:00 p.m., marking the 250th anniversary of Henry Knox’s daring “Noble Train of Artillery.” The event honors the 300-mile winter expedition that brought captured artillery from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston, an achievement that helped secure one of the Continental Army’s earliest strategic victories.
Official NPS source
The University of Wyoming’s Firearms Research Center (FRC), in collaboration with Springfield Armory National Historic Site, will host its 2025 Fall Conference, “Sparking the Revolution: Flintlocks, Gunpowder, and Policy in America’s War for Independence,” on November 20–21, 2025. The conference is free, open to the public, and available in person or virtually, with select sessions eligible for Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit.
Official NPS source
Springfield Armory National Historic Site (NHS) is proud to announce a community-wide celebration to mark its 50th anniversary as a National Park Service site. The public is invited to a free, family-friendly festival on Saturday, August 16, 2025, from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, held on the scenic grounds of the Springfield Armory and Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) campus at 1 Armory Square, Springfield, MA.
Official NPS sourceSpringfield Armory National Historic Site is honored to host a special lecture by acclaimed historian and author John McManus on Saturday, August 2, 2025. McManus will discuss his latest book, “To the End of the Earth: The US Army and the Downfall of Japan, 1945.” This presentation coincides with the 80th Anniversary of the end of World War II in the Pacific.
Official NPS source
. This event will delve into the gripping narratives of Daniel Shays' 1787 assault on the Springfield arsenal and John Brown's daring attack on the Harpers Ferry Armory in 1859, examining the motivations, comparisons, and consequences of these pivotal moments in American history.
Official NPS source
Join Springfield Armory National Historic Site on Saturday, May 10, 2025, for a World War II Symposium marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day.
Official NPS source
From 1:00pm-2:00pm on March 22, 2025, renowned World War II author Alex Kershaw will give a free lecture at the Springfield Technical Community College auditorium on his book, “The First Wave,” in collaboration with Springfield Armory National Historic Site.
Official NPS source
Join author and historian Daniel Bullen for a deeper look into his book, "Daniel Shays’s Honorable Rebellion," on January 25th at 1:00pm.
Official NPS source
From January 12 to March 23, 2025, The Springfield Armory National Historic Site Museum will be open Wednesday-Saturday from 9:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. The museum will be closed Sunday-Tuesday.
Official NPS source
Bring your holiday cheer and join us at Springfield Armory National Historic Site for a festive afternoon concert on Saturday, December 21 at 1:00pm performed by West Mass Brass. Sing along to your favorite holiday songs or just sit back and enjoy the magic of the Christmas season.
Official NPS source
Join Lead Museum and Outreach Educator Gabriel Norwood from Plimoth Patuxet Museums for his presentation, Creating Thanksgiving, Origins and Sources.
Official NPS source
Join us as we celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Springfield Armory National Historic Site! Beginning in October 2024 and ending in October 2025, a year-long celebration will take place with multiple special events.
Official NPS source
Join Springfield Armory National Historic Site October 20 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. as we host a public outdoor Write Out event. This free, drop-in event will feature nature-based writing prompts, arts and crafts activities, warm refreshments, and guidance from park rangers and local writing instructors.
Official NPS source
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts will welcome 176 new U.S. citizens at Springfield Armory NHS in celebration of Citizenship Day and Constitution Week.
Official NPS source
Join Springfield Armory National Historic Site and the Friends of Springfield Armory September 7 and 8 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. as we celebrate the stories of former Armory workers. The weekend of free activities and programs explore the history of labor at the Armory and in Springfield and surrounding communities.
Official NPS source
Join museum educator Gabriel Norwood from Plimoth Patuxet Museums for his presentation, In Conflict and Alliance, New England (1620-1630). The program will be held on Saturday, August 10 at 1:00pm.
Official NPS source
Springfield Armory NHS in partnership with Fishing Friends worked to secure a $25,000 grant from the National Park Foundation.
Official NPS source
Two presentations to celebrate Black History month will be offered in February. On February 10 at 1:00pm, Ranger Roger Osorio from Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers NM will virtually present a program on the 25th Bicycle Corps. On February 24 at 1:00pm, author Richard Andersen will discuss his children's book, "A Home Run For Bunny".
Official NPS source
Author Daniel Bullen to speak at Springfield Armory National Historic Site on January 27, 2024, at 1:00 p.m. offering new perspectives on Shays’ Rebellion from his book Daniel Shays’s Honorable Rebellion.
Official NPS source
This fall the Springfield Armory team completed the replacement and upgrades of 16 full-color wayside exhibits throughout the grounds of the Armory and Springfield Technical Community College, Springfield Technology Park, the former Water Shops, and at the Quabbin Reservoir.
Official NPS source
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the National Park Service will welcome 176 new citizens during a special naturalization ceremony Thursday at the Springfield Armory National Historic Site in celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. Magistrate Judge Katherine A. Robertson will preside and the clerk of the court will administer the Oath of Allegiance. Springfield Technical Community College Zahi Haddad will deliver congratulatory remarks. Welcoming remarks will be offered by Springfield Armory National Historic Site Superintendent Kelly Fellner, Springfield Technical Community College President John B. Cook and Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno.
Official NPS source
Join Springfield Armory National Historic Site and the Friends of Springfield Armory as we celebrate the stories of former Armory workers. Friends and staff will offer a weekend of free activities and programs focusing on labor history highlighting connections with Springfield and surrounding communities September 9 and 10. “Worker Weekend 2023 marks the beginning of an annual tradition honoring the workers of the Armory, which was in operation from 1797 to 1968 and has deep roots in Springfield,” said Superintendent Kelly Fellner. “We are grateful for the efforts of the members of the Friends of Springfield Armory and Jessica Scott, PhD candidate in public history at UMass Amherst. Jesse’s enthusiasm and dedication to the weekend brings our vision to life while helping to connect with members of the community.”
Official NPS source
A team of four young people with local ties are gaining valuable experience working on historic preservation projects in the park. They are currently restoring the historic 1875 fence surrounding the Armory and will be completing various projects through December. The youth are members of the Student Conservation Association and part of a Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) Legacy Restoration Fund Maintenance Action Team (MAT). They are receiving on the job training in traditional historic preservation and restoration techniques from skilled employees of the National Park Service Historic Architecture Conservation and Engineering Center who travel to national parks to repair historic structures and train others in the craft. "The work of the MAT crew is already having a positive impact on park neighbors, community partners, and visitors," said Springfield Armory National Historic Site Superintendent Kelly Fellner. "The investment in the restoration of these historic structures, with youth preservationists taking the lead, enhances the experience for visitors to the site and to Springfield as a tourist destination."
Official NPS source
The historic grounds of Springfield Armory National Historic Site will be swinging to the sounds of big band music on Saturday, July 15th from 6 – 8 p.m. Bring a lawn chair, a picnic dinner, and your dancing shoes. Enjoy a free, energizing, twilight jazz and blues orchestra performance on the lawn in front of the Commanding Officer’s Quarters.
Official NPS source
Superintendent Kelly Fellner is pleased to announce that the four historic clocks and bell on the Main Arsenal building are once again in working order thanks to the efforts of the Friends of Springfield Armory National Historic Site. In 2015, About Time Restoration, LLC from Higganum, CT worked with the National Park Service and Friends of Springfield Armory on Phase I of the rehabilitation project. Phase I, replaced the 400-pound gravity driven clock system installed in 1850 with a computer system. This spring, Electric Time Company, Inc. from Medfield, MA completed phase II replacing the drive gear system through the installation of drive motors to electronically control the arms on each of the four clock faces.
Official NPS source
Earlier today, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, the Boston Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Park Service held a ceremony to mark the return of the late-19th century marksmanship medals that went missing from the Springfield Armory, a national historic site located in Springfield, Mass., in the 1990s.
Official NPS sourceJoin Park Rangers at Springfield Armory National Historic Site for special family programs during school vacation week, Wednesday April 19 – 23.
Official NPS source
Springfield Armory National Historic Site (NPS) is proud to host a photography exhibit; “Celebrating Our Nation’s Promise”, curated by the Putnam Vocational Technical Academy photography club and their instructor Denise Stewart. The exhibit will be on display at the Springfield Armory museum through May 7th.
Official NPS source
After half a century, a stolen museum artifact was recently returned to Springfield Armory National Historic Site. At a ceremony held on March 13 at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia, 50 firearms and other military-related items stolen up to 50 years ago were returned to 16 museums and historical societies. Curator Alex MacKenzie received the Model 1842 USM (United States Model) Pattern Pistol, No. 12 on behalf of the National Park Service.
Official NPS source
Celebrate National Park Week with us! Bring your family to visit during National Park Week as we celebrate our service men and women, and our network of parks with fun, family activities, and more. Be sure to pick up your Interagency federal recreation lands pass, free for you and your family. Discover the history and culture of the Springfield Armory, take a ranger-led walking tour, participate in Junior Ranger activities, make a sun catcher, plant some seeds, learn about bees, attend a ranger program and more.
Official NPS source
Coltsville National Historical Park is seeking candidates for a temporary park ranger position. Have you dreamed of being a park ranger? We have a position available for you: a one-year position with our Interpretation and Education team. We’re seeking a motivated individual with strong communication skills and a desire to learn. Experience with social media, research and/or customer service is helpful. Foreign language abilities are desirable.
Official NPS sourceThe Springfield Armory will be temporarily closed early in 2020 for construction.
Official NPS source
Springfield Armory National Historic Site (NPS), in partnership with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), will hold a naturalization ceremony on the armory grounds at One Armory Square, Springfield MA 01105 on September 18, 2019. U.S.
Official NPS source