Thought this could be of interest
nburlakoff
-----Original Message-----
From: Public Sector Folklore List [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of
Morgiana P Halley
Sent: Friday, December 26, 2003 9:04 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Anybody want to buy a museum?
Saw this on the local news tonight and it just got sent to MARHST. Thought
somebody here might have an interest, although anybody with that kind of
money is rare. However, there might just be a PUBLOREan with the expertise
to help, who might want to get in touch with Mr. Atkison and work out some
kind of a compromise deal.
> Portsmouth museum just didn't click
> By MEGHAN HOYER, The Virginian-Pilot
> ) December 26, 2003
> Last updated: 9:38 PM
> An unlikely item has joined the iPods and Beanie Babies for sale on eBay
an
> entire local museum.
> The Portsmouth Museum of Military History, which features more than 2,000
> pieces of memorabilia ranging from Purple Hearts to Vietnam-era Army
vehicles,
> is listed for $1.6 million on the online auction and sales site.
> There s just one catch: The owner doesn t really want to sell.
> But Richard T. Atkison, a local contractor who opened the private museum
in
> 1998, may not have a choice.
> With no grants, government funding or public donations, and with few
visitors
> passing through the doors, Atkison has personally underwritten the costs
of
> the
> two-story museum on Court Street since it reopened this summer.
> The museum, which costs about $50,000 a year to operate, is run by a
nonprofit
> foundation bankrolled by Atkison. He is a history and museum enthusiast
who
> never served in the military, though he regularly fights frustration as he
> struggles to keep the facility open.
> I don t have time to do this full time, Atkison said. It s one of them
> hobbies you get that eventually, you re over it.
> And I m over trying to do something so people could see it and having
such a
> little response.
> Last weekend, he said, the place had one visitor.
> The museum looks like a well-financed production, with a small theater
> featuring war documentaries, large items such as a World War II-era
> Harley-Davidson military motorcycle in the lobby, and rows of cases
displaying
> uniforms, historic newspapers, weapons and military bicycles and
instruments.
> Walking through the labeled exhibits this week, Atkison pointed to a rare
> military patch that he said is worth more than $1,000 and to the tail
wing of
> an F-14 fighter jet. He has hundreds of pieces of history like these, and
he
> doesn t understand why so few people will pay the $5 admission to see
them.
> The museum has struggled from the beginning. For two years, the city
donated
> money. But the facility was forced to close in 2002 for a year before
Atkison
> reopened it earlier this year with limited hours.
> He is still trying to secure donations and is hoping to hire a full-time
> director who can pursue grant money and plan marketing strategies. But
with
> little past success, he has turned to eBay to see if someone else can
carry
> out
> his hope of educating people about the common heroes who have served the
> country.
> His sales pitch posted on eBay touts the museum s location in downtown
> Portsmouth and its large collection of military items dating back to the
> Revolutionary War.
> It s not the only quirky listing on the Web site.
> This week, eBay s real estate listings also feature a small Florida
> airport, an
> island in Canada and the town of Tortilla Flat, Ariz.
> The museum is up for sale not auction. Its eBay advertisement will
expire on
> Thursday, and so far, Atkison has failed to find a buyer, despite about 10
> serious inquiries.
> The Portsmouth Museums Foundation, which helps raise funds for city-owned
> attractions, hasn t considered buying the museum, said William Hargrove,
board
> president.
> And the Norfolk-run MacArthur Memorial, which houses many military
artifacts,
> also isn t interested, director Bill Davis said. Could it sell?
Certainly,
> Davis said. It s finding the right person with the interest and the
> ability to
> do it.
> Atkison knows he could easily sell his artifacts individually to
collectors.
> Almost as easy would be to renovate the building and sell it as office
space.
> But he has no interest in seeing his items parceled out to private
collections
> or someone s attic.
> What use is having something if you can t show it to people? he asked.
The
> whole idea is to take things out and share them.
> Reach Meghan Hoyer at 446-2293 or [log in to unmask]
>
> ) 2003 HamptonRoads.com/PilotOnline.com
>
>
>
> Dave Shirlaw
> Editor SeaWaves Magazine
> www.seawaves.com
> Tel: 604-924-5401
> Fax: 604-924-5403
> Cel: 604-454-SHIP (7447)
Morgiana P Halley, Ph.D. ([log in to unmask])
Maritime Ethnographer and Folklorist
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