On December 31, after a long battle with budget deficits, the Higgins Armory Museum in Worcester, MA will close for good. The institution opened to the public in 1931 and housed the collection of John Woodman Higgins, a steel magnate and collector of American arms and armor.

The most important works from the collection (along with the Higgins’ nearly $3 million endowment) will go to the nearby Worcester Art Museum. The objects are planned to go on display in March; a permanent gallery for the Higgins pieces is planned for 2015. Other pieces from the Higgins’ collection are being sold periodically at auction. The future of the Higgins building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, is undecided.

For nearly 8 decades, the Higgins Armory was the only museum in the U.S. devoted solely to arms and armor.