In 1926 the Schuylkill Arsenal was renamed the Philadelphia Quartermaster Depot. Image courtesy Defense Supply Center Philadelphia.

Meriwether Lewis put the newly built Schuylkill Arsenal through its paces during his Philadelphia visit. The arsenal met the call much like it has for the last 200 years.

The arsenal was built in 1800 to provide the U.S. military with supplies of all sorts. Lewis was one of the first to use it. The arsenal was prepared for Lewis' visit. Its superintendent, William Irvine, had been instructed by the secretary of war to furnish the explorer with whatever he needed. It was quite a list.

Lewis departed Philadelphia with supplies that he estimated weighed 3,500 pounds. He had to purchase a second wagon just to get them to Pittsburgh to be loaded onto a boat. Among the items he picked up were clothing, blankets, tents, powder horns, sheet lead, scalping knives, and knapsacks. The supplies held up well during the expedition.

In the years following Lewis' visit, the arsenal's primary function became manufacturing and storing uniforms for the U.S. military. During the Civil War more than 10,000 seamstresses and tailors were hired to make uniforms and clothing for Union troops. That function kept up during World War I. The operation became so large that after the war, the arsenal moved to newly constructed buildings in South Philadelphia. In 1926 the arsenal was renamed the Philadelphia Quartermaster Depot.

In 1942 new buildings and a clothing factory were added to help meet the demands of World War II and the more than 8 million soldiers enlisted in the Army.

In 1965 the operation was reorganized into the Defense Personnel Support Center. Its mission was expanded to provide food, medicines, and medical supplies in addition to the clothing and textile supply responsibilities. In 1993 the government closed the textile factory and moved the remaining part of the South Philadelphia operation to the Naval Support Station in Northeast Philadelphia. It was renamed the Defense Supply Center Philadelphia in 1998.

From supplying Lewis and Clark to helping today's military, the Schuylkill Arsenal has come a long way.

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