Persistence pays off for Appomattox museum bid By Sarah Watson [log in to unmask] September 6, 2007 An early reaction from Museum of the Confederacy officials to Appomattox tourism proponents about relocating the largest collection of Civil War artifacts in the world in part to a tiny town off U.S. 460? "It's in the middle of nowhere." But S. Waite Rawls III, the museum's president and CEO, said Wednesday that Appomattox's persistence in selling itself as a tourism destination despite the location is what paid off in the end. "They drove home the point that despite its inaccessibility, a whole lot of people were getting there anyway," he said. "That really caught our interest." Though it isn't a done deal yet, the Richmond museum announced Wednesday its intent to locate permanent exhibits from its collection to Appomattox, Chancellorsville and possibly other locations. The museum's headquarters, collections storage and research facilities would stay in Richmond because of close ties to the Library of Virginia and the Virginia Historical Society, Rawls said. "Right now, it's at the real good idea stage where a lot of people have said, 'That's a really good idea and let's pursue this as hot and heavy as we can,'" Rawls said. The museum's exact location has yet to be determined, but it won't be part of the Appomattox Court House National Park, said park historian Patrick Schroeder. "But it will be a benefit to have another historical institution with the original artifacts so close by." News of the plan was embraced Wednesday by officials in Appomattox County and the Town of Appomattox, who see it as a potential boon for tourism dollars and economic development. Appomattox already attracts between 150,000 and 200,000 visitors a year, including a large number of Civil War tourists who are known to spend time and money, Rawls said. The goal is finding ways and reasons for tourists to stay longer. The announcement comes just as several projects are deep into their planning stages, including preservation of the site of the Battle of Appomattox Station, the precursor to the famed surrender at the courthouse in April, 1865. "It's exciting that this announcement comes at the same time that we're in the process of discovering a lot of new information about the Battle of Appomattox Station," said Scott Smith, project manager for the battlefield restoration. In May, a consulting firm announced that the battlefield's roads and characteristics were still visible and an antebellum house was found in the woods in remarkably good shape, with full restoration a very strong probability. The town responded to a proposal request about possibly relocating the Museum of the Confederacy away from Richmond about a year ago, Beckie Nix, tourism director for the town of Appomattox said. "We felt in the beginning it would be a tremendous site and a win-win situation for both the museum and Appomattox," she said. "The town has the name recognition to help them," she said. "And anytime you do a paired site of similar interests like the national park and the Museum of the Confederacy, you're going to bring more visitors who are going to stay longer, and that results in a very positive economic impact on the area." While there had been numerous conversations, Nix said the town didn't know for sure until the news release was sent Wednesday morning. Rawls said he has been to the town to tour several potential places near the national park property. "We have a lot of options," he said. The museum hired an architect to design the first plans about two weeks ago. Nix thought the town might be included in some form of the project and put together a basic economic impact study to show town council members last month. Using data from the Virginia Tourism Corporation's profile on Civil War travelers and their spending habits, Nix realized that the town could see an additional $8 million per year "just resulting from a one-night stay of the visitors we already have." "We believe the future of Appomattox's growth is in tourism," Del. Watkins Abbitt, I-Appomattox, said. "This would certainly be a great addition to the national park here. It would attract more people and hopefully hold visitors longer and overnight." Museum visitation in Richmond has dropped significantly in the last 10 years, from 92,000 in the early 1990s to 44,000 in the last budget year. Appomattox County administrator Aileen Ferguson said the county was hoping the town would be the final choice, but was unaware of the decision until Wednesday afternoon. "We really felt it would be an enhancement to the community and a great tourism draw, so we're really excited about the opportunity." The first step is to get the concept to the public, meaning access to potential donors, Rawls said. The museum will need to raise about $15 million for the entire project, including new museum buildings in Appomattox and Chancellorsville. "The first stage is conceptual. Then raise the money, do the details and then you put a shovel in the ground," Rawls said. As soon as the concept is approved by the museum's board of directors sometime in early 2008, the fundraising process will begin, Rawls said. They will look for state, local and federal money as well as private donations, he said. "This will take a lot of assistance from the General Assembly," he said. "We think it's a real good thing for the General Assembly because it's not just focused on one area of the state." The fundraising campaign will likely take about 18 months. The goal is to start construction on the entire project in 2009 for completion in time for the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War in 2011. Conceptual plans call for about 5,000 feet of exhibit space, with roughly half devoted to Appomattox-related exhibits. The other half would be dedicated to rotating and traveling exhibits, Rawls said. The project will put about three times the amount of artifacts on display with four to five times as many people having opportunities to view items from the collection, Rawls said. "That's the exciting part." "It's hard to get more than 50,000 to 75,000 people per year to one site," he said. "I think we can get that many or more at these sites because the people are already there" for other reasons. "It's exciting news for the local people, for the town of Appomattox," Schroeder said. "Any time you can draw in a quality museum, it's going to be a benefit to the local area. It will just add to the history here."