Lin N. Ezell

Director, Marine Corps National Museum

Lin Ezell was appointed as Director of the National Museum of the Marine Corps in July 2005, after having served 21 years with the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum. The new National Museum of the Marine Corps, under construction near Quantico, Virginia, will open to the public in November 2006 and showcase the history of the U.S. Marine Corps, from its establishment in 1775 to today’s deployments around the globe. 

At the National Air and Space Museum, Lin held several senior positions, including Executive Officer for Development; Program Manager for the planning, design, and construction of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, which opened near Washington Dulles International Airport in 2003; and Assistant Director for Collections Management. She joined the Museum’s staff in 1984 as a curator. In March 2005, she was awarded the Director’s Award for Excellence for her work on the Udvar-Hazy Center. 

Lin worked as an historian for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for 10 years, from 1974 to 1984. While at NASA, she co-authored histories of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project and the Viking Mars landing program. At NASA Headquarters, she wrote two reference volumes in the Historical Data Book series. 

Lin is a faculty member in the historic preservation certificate program at the Loudoun County campus of Northern Virginia Community College and author of Out of Harm’s Way: Moving America’s Lighthouse (2001) and Building America’s Hangar: The Design and Construction of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (2004). 

A native of Illinois, Ezell graduated from the University of Illinois at Springfield with a degree in English and history. Her Master’s degree in public administration is from the University of Maryland, where she attended as a James Webb Fellow. She is married to Daniel McClarren of the National Park Service and resides in southern Maryland. Her hobbies include deep sea fishing, gardening, and cooking.

Biography courtesy of the National Museum of the Marine Corps.

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