Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum Trust, Inc.

Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum Trust, Inc. www.soldiersandsailorshall.org We honor all the men and women of Pennsylvania who serve in the United States military. RAD works here.
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Soldiers & Sailors pays tribute to our military with exhibits from the Civil War to the present.





*Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum is supported in part by the taxpayers of Allegheny County through a public grant from the Allegheny Regional Asset District (RAD).

08/25/2025

The Medal of Honor, sometimes referred to informally as The Congressional Medal of Honor, is the highest award for valor in the United States military. It is awarded by the President on behalf of Congress.

In this look at the Medal of Honor awarded to Sgt. John Kirkwood, we can see the back of the medal, which specifically says "The Congress to..." before listing the recipient's name, unit, and the location and date of the valiant act through which the Medal was earned.

08/24/2025

We are resharing many of our previous Live videos so they remain available to our followers here on Facebook! All of our Live videos (including this one!) are also available on our YouTube channel, as well!

This is a reshare of our 2022 African American Heritage Celebration: Breaking Barriers in World War II!

How a city forged in steel, along with the Pittsburgh Courier’s Double “VV” Campaign and Western Pennsylvania’s Tuskegee Airmen, paved the way for Civil Rights in America

08/22/2025

We are resharing many of our previous Live videos so they remain available to our followers here on Facebook! All of our Live videos (including this one!) are also available on our YouTube channel, as well!

This is a reshare of our February 2022 Spotlight On: Robert Gould Shaw Post 206, African Americans in the Civil War!

Approximately 180,000 African Americans served during the Civil War as a part of the USCT (United States Colored Troops). After the war many of those former soldiers joined a popular national veteran’s organization known as the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). Pittsburgh was home to the Colonel Robert Gould Shaw Post, one of 15 “colored” posts in Pennsylvania. Each GAR post kept a book in which individual histories of their members were recorded. The Shaw Post’s book is a part of the collection at Soldiers & Sailors and contains valuable information regarding the service of Pittsburgh’s African Americans. Join Curator Michael Kraus and Educator Tim Neff to learn these stories and more.

This artifact is smaller than a dime, but it should never be overlooked. This tiny object actually has a huge significan...
08/21/2025

This artifact is smaller than a dime, but it should never be overlooked. This tiny object actually has a huge significance.

Do you know what this is? Find out in our next post!

08/19/2025

In 1906, the US Army created what they called "Identification Discs" or "Identification Tags" to cut down on the number of soldiers who were unfortunately buried in unmarked graves. More commonly known as a "Dog Tag", these tags were originally circular and made out of aluminum.

This tag, identifying Martin T. Sullivan (111th Infantry, Company D), would have been worn with a second, identical tag around the neck on a shoelace-like cord around the neck.

Interested in learning more about the history of Dog Tags? Check out our Spotlight On program, The History of Dog Tags, on our YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/live/moFOeh5J-20

08/18/2025

We are resharing many of our previous Live videos so they remain available to our followers here on Facebook! All of our Live videos (including this one!) are also available on our YouTube channel, as well!

This is a reshare of our January 2022 Spotlight On: One Year in the Curatorial Department!

Soldiers & Sailors maintains a collection of more than 11,000 objects, a number that continues to grow as we receive artifacts donated on a regular basis. Join Curator Michael Kraus and Collections Manager Lisa Petitta for a fascinating look “behind the scenes” at what it is like to work with the museum’s collection. Learn about all of the varied procedures that make up the management process. The program will also highlight several significant objects that arrived during 2021 and the stories behind them.

08/17/2025

Our artifact this week is WWI Identification Disc, aka a Dog Tag!

Check back soon for more information about this Dog Tag and the soldier it identified!

08/16/2025

We are resharing many of our previous Live videos so they remain available to our followers here on Facebook! All of our Live videos (including this one!) are also available on our YouTube channel, as well!

This is a reshare of our December 2021 Spotlight On: Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs!

Guardian Angels was founded in 2009 by Executive Director Carol Borden when she was approached by Sam, a young man tragically paralyzed in a high school football accident. Sam acquired a young German Shepherd named Bessie for companionship and a sense of independence, but quickly lost control of the dog. Carol stepped in, and after endless hours of training, an amazing service dog emerged and Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs was born. Since that first successful pairing, Guardian Angels is very proud to have donated more than 300 wonderful service dogs with deserving veterans and others in need.

Among those benefiting from the program is Army Veteran and Soldiers & Sailors Board member Ben Keen. He is also an official ambassador for Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs. Ben will share his story during our virtual event

This small object has been an iconic part of the life of a soldier for well over 100 years! But the versions, like the o...
08/15/2025

This small object has been an iconic part of the life of a soldier for well over 100 years! But the versions, like the one pictured here, look quite a bit different from what people today are accustomed to.

Do you know what this artifact is?

08/14/2025

The Spanish American War began in April, 1898 and ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on December 10th of that same year. The brief duration and limited casualties led to Secretary of State John Hay coining the phrase “The Splendid Little War”. However, the war had significant and lasting consequences, particularly in terms of the rise of the United States as a global power. This program will highlight artifacts from the museum’s collection and stories about the contributions of individuals from Western Pennsylvania.

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We would like to give a big THANK YOU to everyone who helped to make our Senior Citizens Day celebration a success!Thank...
08/14/2025

We would like to give a big THANK YOU to everyone who helped to make our Senior Citizens Day celebration a success!

Thank you to our donors: Oakmont Bakery, AE Works Ltd., Rocket Fizz

Thank you to our vendors: Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Animal Friends, Duquesne Light Company, Highmark Wholecare, Allegheny Health Network, Pittsburgh Regional Transit, Starbucks, UPMC, Veterans Breakfast Club USA, Veterans Place of Washington Boulevard, YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh, and VFW District 29 PA -Allegheny County!

And, of course, a big thank you to everyone who attended! We hope you had a wonderful time!

08/13/2025

We are resharing many of our previous Live videos so they remain available to our followers here on Facebook! All of our Live videos (including this one!) are also available on our YouTube channel, as well!

This is a reshare of our Ju;ly 2025 Spotlight On: The Korean War. Our next LIVE Spotlight On will be Thursday, August 14th (THIS THURSDAY!) at 7 PM!

Each year National Korean War Veterans Day is celebrated on July 27th commemorating the signing of the armistice agreement ending the conflict in 1953. On that day our nation formally honors and thanks the Korean War veterans for their service and sacrifices. This program will highlight artifacts and stories from our collection as we pay tribute to those who served in the “Forgotten War”.

Address

4141 5th Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA
15213

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

(412) 621-4253

Website

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