Close by the Army Depot is the small town of Hawthorne, population 2700, whose economy is entirely dependent on the base, although like any self-respecting town in Nevada it does have a casino. Which is about it!
We had not gone to Hawthorne as a destination, we were just passing through on our way from Reno to Las Vegas, but a display of military hardware outside a storefront on the high street caught my eye. This turned out to be the Hawthorne Ordnance Museum.
Hawthorne Ordnance Museum
It was the outside exhibits of Hawthorne Ordnance Museum I initially got excited by, which included a range of bombs, torpedos and artillery shells as we all as some nifty looking artillery pieces and an M47 Patton Armor Tank. Sadly, we arrived on a Sunday which is the only day the museum is closed. Nevertheless, this was an opportunistic discovery so we were not too disappointed, especially as we found a great little coffee stand just across the way.
I wouldn’t suggest making a trip just to visit the Ordnance Museum but if you’re passing it is a nice place to take a pit-stop.