Tanks, Prototypes, and Secret Bases: Inside the Military Technology Museum of New Jersey
Tucked away in Wall Township, New Jersey, is a location that feels like it was ripped from a spy novel. Camp Evans was once a top-secret government site, home to Project Diana (the first experiment to bounce radar signals off the moon) and possibly, according to local lore, some Cold War secrets.
Today, the site is known as InfoAge Science and History Museums, a sprawling campus of preserved buildings. While there are many museums here, one stands out for its sheer scale and heavy metal: The Military Technology Museum of New Jersey.
Housed in a refurbished 1940s government building, this museum is virtually unheard of even among history buffs, yet it houses one of the finest private collections of military vehicles in the world.
A Family Legacy
The collection is the result of over 35 years of passion by the late Dan Janquitto, his son Luke (the current curator), and a dedicated army of volunteers.
When the U.S. Army vacated Camp Evans in 1997, they left many buildings in ruins. The Janquittos and their team didn’t just move in; they restored the building themselves, creating a space that feels less like a dusty museum and more like an operational motor pool. Their mission isn’t just to show you “cool tanks” (though they have those), but to show how military tech influences our daily lives—from the origins of the Jeep to the battlefield invention of M&Ms!
Here are just a few of the incredibly rare machines you can see here.
The Jeeps You’ve Never Seen
We all know the classic WWII Jeep. The museum has plenty of standard Willys MB models, which served as the primary 4-wheel-drive vehicle for the Allies.
But the real gems here are the failures and prototypes.
- The 1943 Chevrolet Cel (Serial #2): The Army wanted a jeep that weighed less than 1,000 pounds. Chevrolet built this prototype, which weighed in at 1,062 pounds. It’s incredibly rare—one of only two in existence.
- The “Tuxedo Park” Mark IV: Fast forward to the 1960s, and you can see the evolution of the Jeep from a farm tool to a status symbol. This 1965 Kaiser-Willys features chrome hubcaps and an interior light—luxury features that signaled the birth of the modern SUV.
The “AquaCheetah”
One of the strangest vehicles on display is the 1940 AquaCheetah Model XAC-1.
Conceived by Buffalo entrepreneur Roger Hoffeins, this was a DIY attempt to prepare for World War II. Looking at a map of Europe, Hoffeins realized soldiers would need to cross a lot of rivers. He built this amphibious vehicle out of a 1939 Ford Convertible.
While it was featured in newsreels at the time, the military never mass-produced it. This specific vehicle was discovered rotting in a backyard in Buffalo in 2012. It was rescued and is now preserved in its “as-found” condition—a fascinating, rusty time capsule.
The Motorcycle Tank
Perhaps the most “sci-fi” looking vehicle in the collection is the 1942 Stoewer Kettenkrad.
Imagine a motorcycle front grafted onto a tank rear. German soldiers were already trained to ride motorcycles, so the Germans designed this tracked vehicle to be steered with handlebars. It was used extensively on the Eastern Front and in North Africa.
While over 8,000 were produced, very few survive. This is the only known Stoewer Kettenkrad in the United States.
From the Battlefield to Broadway
Not every vehicle here has a combat scar; some have stage fright.
Tucked in the back is the front half of a 1952 General Motors Cargo Truck. It was the first Army truck with an automatic transmission and was designed to ford deep water. However, this specific truck’s claim to fame is that it was chopped in half to serve as a prop in the Broadway revival of South Pacific!
The Wider World of InfoAge
The Military Technology Museum is just one slice of the pie. It is located within the InfoAge Science & History Museums campus (a National Historic Landmark).
Your admission to InfoAge grants you access to a “museum of museums” all on one site, including:
- The Radio Technology Museum (located in the original 1914 Marconi Hotel)
- The Vintage Computer Federation Museum (featuring mainframes you can actually touch)
- The New Jersey Shipwreck Museum
- The National Broadcasters Hall of Fame
It is a place where you can easily spend an entire afternoon getting lost in the history of radar, radio, shipwrecks, and tanks.
If You Visit
- Location: 2201 Marconi Road, Wall Township, NJ 07719
- Hours: InfoAge is generally open Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM.
- Admission: One ticket grants access to all museums on the campus ($12 for adults, $8 for kids, accurate as of 2026).
- Note: The campus is large and spread out. Wear comfortable walking shoes.
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