Defense bill OKs future national intelligence museum

A new museum focusing on the intelligence and special operations communities is coming to northern Virginia.

In its latest national defense spending bill, Congress officially recognized the planned institution as The National Museum of Intelligence and Special Operations.

The $125 million privately funded facility is likely to hold a groundbreaking ceremony in July 2025 and officially open in late 2027, according to Charles Pinck, president of the organization developing the museum.

His group, The Office of Strategic Services Society, honors the agency that preceded U.S. Special Operations Command and the CIA.

“I hope people will take away how important these communities are to our national security and why they deserve our support,” said Pinck in an interview with Military Times, adding he also wants the roughly 8.5-acre site in Ashburn to inspire future generations to serve.

The 60,000-square-foot museum is being designed by Fentress Architects, which also designed the National Museum of the Marine Corps. It is to be shaped as a spearhead — a symbol still used today by the special forces community — and will feature 14,000 square feet of exhibit space, an educational program area and an outdoor event pavilion naturally called “Tip of the Spear.”

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The estimated 100,000 patrons expected each year can anticipate special artifacts and interactive galleries that immerse visitors in the historic and current experiences faced by special operators and intelligence officers.

Pinck has long sought to create this type of space, and shared that he draws inspiration for the museum from his late father, Dan Pinck, who served as an operator for the OSS in China during World War II and later wrote a memoir about his experiences.