National Guard Armory

A National Guard Armory, National Guard Armory Building, or National Guard Readiness Center[note 1] is any one of numerous buildings of the U.S. National Guard where a unit trains, meets, and parades. A readiness center supports the training, administration, and logistics of National Guard units by providing assembly space, classrooms, weapons and protective personal equipment storage, and training space.[2]^:4 Readiness centers can also be utilized as communal assembly areas, utilized by local organizations and governments.[2]^:45

The Kansas Army National Guard armory in Concordia, Kansas is a typical building used for the National Guard programs in the United States.

After World War II, the Section 5 Committee of the Office of the Chief of Staff, War Department, chaired by MG Milton Reckord, approved a policy of constructing National Guard armories using 75% federal and 25% state funding.[3] In 1968, the Army National Guard had 2,786 armories;[4] in 2000 the Army National Guard had 3,166 armories in 2,679 communities.[5] In 2009, the Kansas Adjutant General's Department announced it would be closing 18 of its then-56 National Guard armories "due to state budget cuts."[6]

A report to Congress in 2014 noted that some National Guard armories are in poor or failing condition, with "the average nationwide [Readiness Center] condition [being] fair, but bordering on poor…".[2]^:10 The report noted that the $377 million annual expenditure for constructing and improving readiness centers would produce "major long-term risks," and recommended more than quadrupling annual funding to "get to green" on key performance indicators by completely transforming and modernizing the portfolio of readiness centers.[2]^:13–14

Specific armories in the United States

• The D.C. Armory, a multi-use facility adjacent to RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.
• Hoosick Falls Armory, Hoosick Falls, New York
• National Guard Armory (Batesville, Arkansas), listed on the NRHP in Arkansas
• National Guard Armory Building (Searcy, Arkansas), formerly listed on the NRHP in Arkansas
• National Guard Armory (Mena, Arkansas), listed on the NRHP in Arkansas
• National Guard Armory-Pine Bluff, Pine Bluff, Arkansas, listed on the NRHP in Arkansas
• Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory, Tampa, Florida, listed on the NRHP in Florida
• Villisca National Guard Armory, Villisca, Iowa, listed on the NRHP in Iowa
• National Guard Armory (Fort Mill, South Carolina), listed on the NRHP in South Carolina
• National Guard Armory 127th Regiment Infantry Company G, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, listed on the NRHP in Wisconsin
• Schenectady Armory, Schenectady, New York

See also

• List of armories and arsenals in New York City and surrounding counties
• Drill hall
• Armory (military)

Notes

1. The name readiness center is deemed to reflect the recently-expanded responsibilities of the National Guard.[1]

References

1. Dunn, Conor (May 27, 2014). "National Guard opens $18M G.I. Readiness Center". The Grand Island Independent.
2. Readiness Center Transformation Master Plan: Final Report to Congress (PDF) (Report). Army National Guard. December 19, 2014.
3. Milton Reckord papers, University of Maryland Libraries, hdl:1903.1/1281
4. Annual Report, Chief National Guard Bureau, Fiscal Year 1968, 1968
5. National Trust for Historic Preservation; National Guard Bureau (2000), Still Serving: Reusing America's Historic National Guard Armories (PDF), p. 5
6. "Adjutant General Announces Location Of 18 Armory Closures" (Press release). Kansas Adjutant General's Department. December 11, 2009. Retrieved July 5, 2018.

External links

• Installations+Environment, Journal of the Army National Guard, 2018
• The Army National Guard Recruiting Site
• The National Guard Bureau
• The National Guard Bureau Heritage Collection
• Virtual Armory (login not required)