George Petersen / National Capital Historical Sales

[vintageproductions]

Was just informed that George Petersen / National Capital Sales, passed away last night.

 

He was a mentor, friend and family member.

 

I have known George since I was about twelve years and he was that grumpy military dealer that had no time to mess around. I asked him a price on a piece, again when I was 12, and he told me “ more then you will make in a lifetime of allowances now get the fu*k away from my table”. That started a lifetime of friendship.

 

I will for sure miss the grumpy old bastard.

[Legion72]

Sad to learn of George's passing.  He was a stable in the militaria field since the early 1960's.   I first meet him in 1967 when he had a small militaria shop in Alexandria where I remember he had a box of WWII P-37 holsters for $3.00 each.  He invited me to visit his apartment over the next few years, I was astounded by the large number of Third Reich uniforms he had crammed into his closets.  It was unbelievable!  Another icon gone.  God have mercy on his soul.

[268th C.A.]

Re enacted with George back in the late 70's 80's. I went in his shop many times. I talked with him this past year at the Raliegh NC show. He was still George, but not so gruff. I guess age does that.  These pictures are from Robert "Bob" Bruce's book German Automatic Weapons of World War 11. he was on the cover. 

"Rest in Peace George." 

[manayunkman]

Very sorry to hear about this.

 

In all my dealings with George he was always polite and as helpful as anyone.

 

i started to get to know George back in the 1970s when I went to Gettysburg College and we would drive down to Delta International and finish up with a visit to George.

 

I got on his mailing list which was one of the smartest things I ever did because he had descriptions and prices, that and my Brian L. Davis book brought everything into perspective.

 

As I got older I would sell more to than buy from and George became a great customer.

 

Thank you George and I hope you are in peace.

[Rakkasan187]

I didn't have the chance to meet George but I was a loyal customer and his reprinted reference books from the Army Quartermaster Corps were and still are a great source of information. I have many of them on my bookshelves. 

 

Just today I was looking through a reprinted Ration Book from George.. I recall seeing his map directions to his place N.C.H.S.

 

Condolences to his family and friends. 

 

Leigh 

 

 

[Pointedcuffs]

One of the best. Rest In Peace

[everforward]

I posted a portion of this over on Bob’s VP Facebook page earlier, and thought I’d post it here as well….George was ‘local’ to us here in Virginia, so we could run down to his shop as long as we had the time to do it and he was gonna be open….I along with a few of my good friends reenacted 29th ID and George knew us well, because we were spending money with him all the time, LOL…. In this pic from 1982 we are all using something we had bought from him. A few of us went on to have careers in the military, some in the Regiment itself as the Division was reactivated only three years later.

 

To those of us who reenacted in the late 70s-early 80s, we probably couldn’t have gotten by without him. He had nearly everything for everyone, and if it was GI it was all original, there wasn’t anything being repro’d in those days. Going to his store in those days was like a trip to Disneyland. He sold at all the major events in those days, and also participated as a Fallschirmjäger….. hard to believe that was 45+ years ago now. The last thing I bought from him last April was a near-new PASGT Helmet with a DCU cover, and it was a sweetheart deal.

 

RIP George….

 

 

 

[militbuff]

I only met George in the late 90s when I started collecting again as an adult .  I remember the first time a friend took me to his Alexandria store.  I went to trade something I had picked up for one of his items.  He said sure, “my junk for your junk”!  Definitely crusty when I first met him but he mellowed out in later years.  He was a good guy.  He will be missed.

[ScottG]

4 hours ago, vintageproductions said:

Was just informed that George Petersen / National Capital Sales, passed away last night.

 

He was a mentor, friend and family member.

 

I have known George since I was about twelve years and he was that grumpy military dealer that had no time to mess around. I asked him a price on a piece, again when I was 12, and he told me “ more then you will make in a lifetime of allowances now get the fu*k away from my table”. That started a lifetime of friendship.

 

I will for sure miss the grumpy old bastard.

 

             This is so true, back when OVMS was still at the Drawbridge Inn I used to have my tables next to George. At one of the shows this guy who was about my age at the time which was in my early 20s, kept coming to Georges table asking about prices of other dealers items, or their validity, etc... This went on for about a day and a half with the guy showing up about every hour or so.

               Finally he shows up with another handful of items and asks George for his advice. George looked at him as serious as one could, and said, ' kid, my honest advice to you, put that s--t back and go spend your money on lunch and a f-----ing book'  What a guy, and a legend in the community.

               RIP George.

                    Scott

[TheArmorist]

I had the privilege of meeting George several times at shows over the years, and he was always fair and polite every time. The militaria collecting community has lost one of its greats. Rest easy George. 

[PQD]

I was but a kid, when I first went to George’s shop.  The man was a pioneer, a legend, and our hobby’s Google.  When I last saw him in Louisville, in 2024, he said he was writing a book on the hobby before the internet, and I and my company’s color magazine ads from the 1990’s were to be included, along with most of the dark secrets George held, to include naming names.  I was humbled and honored - this sounded as if it would be quite an interesting book for old and new alike.

 

I have numerous great memories with George, and I most fondly recall several trips to his shop in the summer of 1995, when he invited me to come down on a Sunday when he was closed so I could run free and he did not have customers to attend to.  I came away with some really great scores that were buried out of view, as well as hundreds of pairs of WWII khaki trousers, which I took with me to the Great Western Show that Nov. to sell to Japanese dealers.  Then, there was the invitation to venture down to shop from his Luftwaffe collection, when he chose to liquidate that in late 1999.  George and I had a great relationship of mutual respect and admiration and trust.

 

As with General George S. Patton, Jr., the book he was writing would have been the greatest account of WWII, and so we have lost the greatest account of this hobby with the passing of George Petersen.  I will miss my old friend and the greatest resource for anything even remotely related to this hobby.

[jmpmstr]

I only had a few encounters with George throughout the years, mostly at shows in passing or with my pal Allan. He was always kind, salty, but fun to talk to and deal with. He always took time to shoot the bull and give some advice when asked. Always friendly in my experiences. He was a mainstay and is and will be sorely missed. 

[101CH47]

 I met George in 1980, always enjoyed my interactions with him.  The last time I saw him was at this year's SOS.  Sad to hear of his passing.

[Scarecrow]

R.I.P George.  You were always fair and honest in our dealings and that was always appreciated.

[unclegrumpy]

Yes, he will be greatly missed.

[268th C.A.]

George A. Petersen of Alexandria, Virginia died peacefully at home on November 24, 2025.

Mr. Petersen was one of the most experienced and respected collector-dealers in the field of historical military memorabilia, with more than 50 years of expertise spanning World War I through the conflicts of the present day. Known internationally for his deep knowledge of military material, he spent his lifetime immersed in the history, preservation, and study of military uniforms, insignia, equipment, and ephemera.

A specialist in German historical aviation, Mr. Petersen once maintained the world’s largest private collection of Luftwaffe uniforms, medals, badges, flags, and related items. His reputation in the field made him a trusted resource for collectors, museums, scholars, and filmmakers across the United States and abroad.

George A. Petersen was born in 1945 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He served in the U.S. Army from 1964 to 1967 where he was a specialist (Spec-4) with an 111B Light Weapons MOS and a member of B Company, 3rd Infantry Regiment, the Army’s ceremonial Old Guard, based at Fort Myer in Washington, D.C. From December 1965 to December 1966, he served in Vung Tau, Republic of Vietnam, with the 765th Security Platoon as an operations and security specialist.

After his military service, Mr. Petersen worked with Replica Models, Inc., Unique Imports, and other firms in the 1960s and 1970s, developing a career centered on historical military material. He founded NCHS, Inc., in 1979, establishing a retail store in the Alexandria/Springfield area which has served the military collecting community for more than four decades. Well known in military, and private circles, he appeared in numerous domestic and international publications.

Mr. Petersen provided consulting services and sourced artifacts for many museums, including the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum; the Navy Museum in Washington, D.C.; the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Fla.; the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base; the 82nd Airborne Museum at Fort Bragg, N.C.; and major military museums in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Hanoi.

For the Smithsonian’s The Price of Freedom: Americans at War exhibit, which opened on Veterans Day in 2004, he supplied uniforms and insignia for several displays, including items identical to those he wore in Vietnam. He also provided equipment for the figures representing infantrymen, wounded soldiers, and helicopter crewmen in the exhibit’s Vietnam War section.

Mr. Petersen contributed photographs, research, and expertise to more than 100 military reference books and was deeply involved with Bender Publishing’s extensive series on U.S. and World War II German subjects. His consulting work extended to major motion pictures, including The Hunt for Red October, Gardens of Stone, Red Dawn, Born on the Fourth of July, and The Thin Red Line.

From 1976 to 1991, he was active in World War II reenactment, portraying both U.S. infantrymen and German paratroopers. Over the course of his career he traveled widely to historic battlefields and sites, advising government agencies, museums, collectors, and film productions around the world.

Mr. Petersen was a member of numerous military and veteran organizations, including the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Vietnam Veterans of America, the American Society of Military Insignia Collectors, the Military Vehicle Preservation Association, the American Association of Military Uniform Collectors, Chute N’ Dagger, the Air Force Association, the Experimental Aircraft Association, and others.

George was predeceased by his Father, George Adolph Petersen; Mother, Ada Valentine Petersen; and sisters, Marian Rosalie Petersen and Helen Petersen Larimen. He is survived by many close friends and fellow military collectors.

A private ceremony will be held for close family and friends. He was a private person and per his wishes, no public services will be held.

Dear George, “It is what it is.” We will miss you. Rest in peace.

(off line obitutary)

[M422A1]

I am so sorry to hear this. I first met George when I was 14 years old back in the seventies. I bought my first German tunic (along with a k98 bayonet & a Heer zeltbahn) from George by skipping lunch at school and saving my lunch money.

I bought a lot of stuff from George over the years, especially when I started re-enacting. He would always show up at the big events with tons of stuff.

I guess I last saw him at a military show in Chantilly, VA several years ago.

Rest in Peace, George!

[USARV72]

Knew George since early 80s and may have shot him in a reenactment. Bought, sold and traded with him for years and would see him at SOS back then. Would see him at the Raleigh shows for several years, he was in a wheel chair. He will be missed. RIP Sir.

[Graciejane44]

I met George in 1979 when I was an Alexandria Va police Officer.  We remained friends through the years and I visited him often .  He was a special person and will be missed. No one had more knowledge of the military collecting field and he was always willing to help.  Charlie

[kammo-man]

George and I….

RIP legend

owen 

[obal7]

I first met George in 2015.  It was my real first adventure into the world of collecting Militaria.  
I feel, I became a regular customer and would visit him once a month, especially when he was in town. George would always answer my emails and send me a few dates, to visit that would work out for both of us. 
George always had time to sit down and talk to me about the hobby, collecting, the difference between original and repro item, and his never ending stories and experiences in the hobby. His knowledge would never cease to amaze me. He would always tell me , If I was not sure about an item, to send him an email, and always got back to me. He has saved me thousands of dollars. (I am going to miss this tremendously). I don’t think there was one military item that he didn’t know what it was. He was always fair and honest with me. 
I would find items that I would bring to him, and we could always work out a deal. I would refer other customers to him, and reward me for the contact. 
If there were items that he wasn’t sure of, he would put me in contact with the experts. 
One of my fondest memories of George was when I went to the SOS in Louisville in 2021, where he invited me with a few of his friends to his favorite German Resturant. He said, “you’re my friend and one of the family”.  Coming from him, that meant a lot. 
George was and will always be a legend. 
you will be missed. 
Dave O. 
obal7

[B-17Guy]

Great guy, he will be missed.

Legend in the community.

John