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Senator John Heinz History Center

Through January 10, 2016
10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

It’s the decade that brought FDR’s unprecedented third term as US president, WWII, Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, the Polaroid camera, swing music and much more. This Saturday, the 1940s will come to life in new ways when the Senator John Heinz History Center opens its latest major exhibition, We Can Do It! WWII.

We Can Do It! WWII runs through January 10, 2016.

As the country gets set to commemorates the 75th anniversary of the start of the Second World War, the Strip District-based institution will host special Opening Day events on Saturday, April 25th.

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Kicking off the opening day festivities will be a mini-motorcade of historic Jeeps, along with a Pennsylvania-built M3 Stuart tank provided by the First Frontier Mechanized Cavalry Division. Outside of the museum, visitors will be invited to take photos with the historic military vehicles on display. At 10:45 a.m., a receiving line complete with celebratory confetti and mini American flags will welcome local WWII veterans into the museum for a special flag folding ceremony, where visitors and veterans can help unfurl and fold a giant 36-foot American garrison flag in building’s first floor Great Hall.

Following the flag folding demonstration, veterans and visitors will be among the first to experience the new 10,000-square-foot We Can Do It! exhibition, which features four Jeeps, 275-plus rare artifacts, interactive displays and immersive environments.

Showcasing Pittsburgh’s role during WWII from the home front to the battlefield, the informative exhibition also explores the development of the Jeep—a uniquely American invention produced by the American Bantam Car Company in Butler—and uncovers compelling stories behind “real-life Rosie the Riveters” and local Tuskegee Airmen whose significant contributions made a lasting impact on the war effort.

History Center admission is free on Opening Day for all veterans, active military and their families. For general visitors, all Opening Day events are included with admission ($15 for adults, $13 for seniors, $6 for students and children age 6-17 and free for children age 5 and under and History Center members).

Do you have WWII photos, memories and experiences to share? The History Center’s Detre Library & Archives is inviting the public to contribute to its new Pittsburgh WWII Photo Album. The online gallery features family photos and stories from local residents and also shows how the region came together during a pivotal time in US history.

Jennifer has worked at the Mattress Factory, Brooklyn Museum of Art and Dahesh Museum of Art and is co-author of Pittsburgh Signs Project: 250 Signs of Western Pennsylvania. She also is co-coordinator of Handmade Arcade. Musically, she is in a band called The Garment District and is a founding member of Brooklyn's The Ladybug Transistor.