The Macon County Historical Museum held a “Grand Re-Opening” last week.

Director Barbara White said the museum, located on Main Street in Franklin, was closed in January to redesign and change the displays. White said some displays were moved, some were retired for the time being and some new ones were created.

Great care was taken in the preservation and protection of all exhibits. Quilts that had been on display were stored in special boxes. White said the quilts would be used as study pieces.

White also had to pack away her favorite piece - a handmade willow-tail coat, worn by a young man killed at the battle of Horseshoe Bend where Gen. Andrew Jackson and Cherokees fought against the Creek Indians.

According to White, the coat was handmade by a 12-year-old girl. White said the young woman made the thread, wove the cloth, then made the coat. This piece is stored like the quilts and is also considered a study piece.

One of the new exhibits in the museum will replace the quilts. It is an exhibit of coverlets, dating back to the mid-1800s. Most of the coverlets were either made in Macon County or arrived with early settlers.
The museum is located in the old J.R. Pendergrass dry goods store. The Macon County Historical Society purchased the building in 1989, and it has served as a museum since 1990. The three story building was built in 1904 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Pendergrass was obviously a man of many hats. Besides being the local dry goods clerk, he was also a Baptist minister and served as superintendent of education. Much of his library is still intact and on display at the museum.

While the first two floors of the building are dedicated to displays, the third floor was damaged by fire and has not, yet, been restored. White is making plans, though.

She would like part of the area to be climate controlled for secure archival storage. There would be some office space and a projection room for school programs.

White is a former teacher and education and school programs are high on her priority list. An interactive children’s corner is being developed. There is a totally new Franklin Schools exhibit, there are several outreach programs for children from surrounding counties and there is a 4-H program each summer. Four-H members are working on an exhibit of what they think may be in the museum in the year 2050.
One of the new exhibits is on black history. Besides photos and mementos depicting early black residents of Macon County, the exhibit also contains the retired basketball jersey of Walter (Willie) Scruggs. The red and white No. 44 hangs in the case as a reminder of one of the first blacks to attend Franklin High School in 1964. Scruggs went on to be the first black enrolled at Piedmont College, Cleveland, Ga., in 1965. He died in a car crash on his way home from college, Dec. 24, 1965. Franklin High School recently retired his jersey.

The Macon County Historical Museum is supported by the approximately 250 members of the Macon County Historical Society. Money is raised through donations and grants plus the sale of the books Heritage of Macon County, Volumes I and II, the sale of items from the museum’s gift shop and the sale of engraved bricks that are placed in the park next to the museum. One of the donations White is most proud of is the $112 dollars raised by school children in their “dollars for downtown” program.

White said while some of the displays were on loan, most of them are donated to the museum. Donated items compose the large tool collection that has been given a more prominent display space in the museum.

There is a lot of reference material in the museum and now it is more accessible than ever. Many people come to the museum to peruse the old references or to do genealogical research, according to White.

White hopes to improve the Native American area of the display. There are several arrowheads, points, shards and tool blades, but the specific origin of most is not documented. White would like to focus more on Cherokee history.

The museum is a popular stop downtown. During the season, White said it is not uncommon to have 80 or more daily visitors to the museum enjoying the exhibits or perhaps taking time to challenge the current checkers champion.

White is the only full-time staff member. Janet Reynolds works 20 hours per week through the State of Franklin Senior Aid program. The rest of the staff are dedicated volunteers, said White.

“There is always room for more volunteers,” she said.

White and/or the museum may be reached at 828.524.9758.

 

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The Smoky Mountain News