The year was 1988, although in my fourth-grade class, it could’ve just as easily have been 1488: for some reason or other, my school spent about three solid months trying to teach us kids about the Dark Ages. I guess medieval life must have been in vogue or something; in addition to the Castle series of Lego construction sets that were flying off the shelves at Toys R Us, it wasn’t long after that when the film world was treated to the genius of “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.” (If you haven’t dusted off that VHS tape in a while, it’s worth re-watching: this film is a rare chance to see Kevin Costner at the peak of his career, bolstered by the star power of Morgan Freeman, Christian Slater, Sean Connery, and the late, great Alan Rickman.)
But let’s face it, kids can only spend so much time making swords and shields out of construction paper, so after a while our teachers had no choice but to drag us out on a field trip. Fortunately, I grew up within driving distance of Worcester, Massachusetts, and the Higgins Armory Museum.
This unique building began its life in 1930 as a showpiece on the grounds of the Worcester Pressed Steel Company, but by 1972, it had became the only museum in North American solely dedicated to arms and armor. And looking at the place through a fourth-grader’s eyes, it was probably the coolest place ever! My class spent hours wandering through the deadly edged weapons, punching each other in the shoulder with steel gauntlets and laughing at that one tiny, ridiculous set of dog armor. In short, it was awesome.
Fast forward about twenty-five years or so, when for some reason or other, I found myself living in Massachusetts again. It was one of those deals where I knew I’d be moving again soon, so I made it a point to drag my own kids out exploring whenever we had the chance. Of course a road trip out to Worcester was right near the top of my list, and even though the Higgins Armory Museum was showing its age, the old girl didn’t disappoint. In fact, it was entirely possible that the place had gotten even better with time.
Yes, that silly little set of dog armor was still there, but they’d also added a kids’ zone with foam castle building blocks and a virtual reality jousting simulator. We spent an entire afternoon meandering through the exhibits on a perfect, uncrowded weekend, and topped the trip off with a combat demonstration from a group of local swordplay enthusiasts. I’ll be honest, I honestly had no idea that counted as a hobby, but hey, these guys seemed pretty good at what they did.
All seemed right with the world, but apparently, it wasn’t. I guess the museum had been struggling financially for a long time, and right around the time of our 2013 visit, the directors went public and announced that they just couldn’t afford to keep the place open anymore. It happened quickly, painlessly, and by the end of that year the historic building was closed down for good. The collection was pared down and sold off to collectors, although I’ve heard that the bulk of the armor is still on display across town at the Worcester Art Museum.
So if you ever find yourself passing through the second-biggest city in New England, be sure to stop in there and take a look. And if you happen to see that tiny little set of dog armor, how about letting me know it’s okay?
