The Museum’s growing collection consists of over 20,00 artifacts include USS Hornet herself, aircraft, documents, photographs, military decorations and commendations, uniforms, cruise books, plane models, firearms, and personal crew ephemera. Most of our donations come from former crewmembers or their surviving family members intending to preserve these items for future generations.
The Museum has also opened a Research Library. With advanced reservations, guests can investigate primary source material in our archives that includes historical naval and aircraft books, cruise books, photo albums, reference books, historical newspapers, newsletters, magazines, and USS Hornet publications from her time during service.
Our team is also working diligently to preserve the personal histories of veterans who served aboard USS Hornet or her sisters. Please visit the Oral Histories tab for more information.
The Museum’s Artifact Collecting Goals
Our museum primarily cares for USS Hornet related materials related to the ship itself and former crew members. Due to limited resources, we must be selective in what materials go into the permanent collection because it requires the highest level of care. However, we also have a use/teaching collection that has materials that are important for use in outreach or offsite exhibition. Lastly, we have a research library that is open, with advanced notice, for the public to learn about USS Hornet history.
Here are materials we are most interested in accepting in our permanent collection:
1. Items related to identified crew members of USS Hornet
2. Items related to Hornet’s sister ships (other Essex-class aircraft carriers)
3. Items related to the NASA Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 missions.
For questions about artifacts, contact: artifacts@uss-hornet.org
ORAL HISTORIES & STORIES
Veterans who served during WWII are members of the ‘Greatest Generation’ and have varied and unique experiences to share. To capture these stories, the USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum has launched an Oral Histories Program. The goal is to preserve the personal histories of veterans who served aboard Hornet for future generations. Once completed, the Oral Histories will be cataloged in our Research Library, used in future exhibits, shared on our website, and offered to the Library of Congress to be preserved.
If you, or someone you know, has a relevant story to tell, let us know! We are actively seeking candidates to participate in this Oral Histories Program. Please contact us for further information at: collections@uss-hornet.org or (510) 521-8448 x 235.
See a collection of our Oral Histories below
RESEARCH LIBRARY
The USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum now has a Research Library available for visitors to further research information related to WWII, naval aviation, USS Hornet, or her sister ships.
If you have a research inquiry or would like to schedule an appointment to visit the Research Library, please contact: collections@uss-hornet.org or call (510) 521-8448 x 235.
Use of the Research Library is charged by the hour, with additional costs for scanning, copying, and printing. Museum Members can wave the initial usage fee by providing their membership number.
Resources:
USS Hornet History
Naval History and Heritage Command
USS Hornet Museum Archives
