Constructed at Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois in the mid-1930s, the M2A2 light tank was the first production model tank both designed and built in the United States. By 1942, the pre-WWII tanks were declared obsolete and were recycled or dispersed to various bases as training aids.

This M2A2 tank was presumably transferred to the Flora Ordnance Training Center in Flora, Mississippi, for training purposes in the early 1940s. For decades, the tank lay abandoned until 1977 on land at the former site of the Flora Ordnance Training Center. At the time of its discovery, the tank’s tracks were sinking into the ground, and a tree was growing through rust holes in the hull. Markings still evident on the tank indicated it had been assigned to the 80th Armored Regiment, 8th Armored Division, as a training aid before its transfer to the Ordnance Training Center.

The tank has since been restored and is prominently displayed in the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum. It is thought to be the last existing M2A2 tank.