Our Crowdfunding Groups
Thank you for your assistance in helping the Corps of Cadets preserve a vital piece of their history. It is because of donors like you that we can remember our past while marching proudly into the future.
The uniform was produced in 1897 and worn by Col. John Samuel Adolphus Johnson, an 1898 graduate who went on to become the Commandant of Cadets and Chair of the University’s Mechanical Arts Department for more than 25 years. It is an important piece of University history because it marked the University’s name change to Virginia Polytechnic Institute from Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1897. It carries the letters “VPI” in embroidered script on the collar — a design that has never been repeated on the iconic blue dress uniform still worn by cadets today. Once restored to its former glory, the uniform will have a prominent space in the new Corps Museum planned for the future Corps Leadership and Military Sciences Building on Upper Quad.
Private tour of our collection in storage; Invitation to a lecture by an expert on the collection
Invitation to a lecture by an expert on the collection, coupled with a reception. Private tour of our collection in storage
Advance Invitation to a lecture by an expert on museum collections, including receptions and special events; private tour of collection in storage