Ground broken on Washington County museum building

November 06, 2007|By JOSHUA BOWMAN

County officials broke ground Tuesday on a second building for the Washington County Rural Heritage Museum.

The building will house all of the museum's large farm equipment, a threshing machine and several exhibits, according to Richard Schukraft, fundraising coordinator for the Agricultural Education Center.

The museum owns corn shellers, mowers and rakes, corn crackers, plows, planters and many other items that are crowding the museum's single building, Schukraft said.

The Washington County Commissioners attended the event and participated in the groundbreaking ceremony. Last month, the commissioners approved $279,200 to build the 7,200-square-foot structure.

Schukraft also announced the agricultural center's plans to erect a third building to house the museum's transportation display.

The museum owns several wagons and hopes to expand its collection to include things like old cars, taxi cabs and even a crop duster plane, Schukraft said.

A $100,000 state grant is available for the project if the agricultural center can raise $100,000 to match, Schukraft said.

So far, the center has raised $58,000 through donations from local businesses, organizations and individuals.

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