thedailytimes.com-The new space to house the Greenback Heritage Museum is close to being ready for occupancy, but members of the museum’s board of directors say more funds are needed to complete the task.

“We have the drywall pretty much finished, and the flooring is ordered,” said Museum Board Member Jennifer Hedrick. “But right now, we are out of funds.” She said installation of the flooring, painting the walls and acquiring display furniture still need funding.
A plaque noting major donations will be displayed in the new museum. Levels are $10,000 platinum; $5,000 gold; $2,500 silver, $1,000 bronze; and $500 supporter. To make a donation, make checks payable to the Greenback Heritage Museum, now a 501©(3) organization, and send to The Greenback Heritage Museum, P.O. Box 165, Greenback, TN 37742.

Volunteers are also needed to help pack the artifacts in preparation for the move. The museum will be closed while the packing and move take place.

Former hardware store

The McCall-Kerr Hardware building was donated to the town of Greenback by the late Rachel M. Ragain’s family for museum expansion. When the new facility opens, the current facility, also owned by the town of Greenback, will be rented to another local business.

Work on the building, next door to the current museum space at 6725 Morganton Road, began in October 2022 under the direction of General Contractor Deb Rossi.

The town appropriated $250,000 for renovations to the building, which was constructed in 1917 and shares a wall with the museum. In addition, fundraisers held by the Greenback Heritage Museum and the Greenback Historical Society as well as donations to the Betty Carroll Memorial Fund have supplied additional funds. Hedrick said according to the Greenback Mayor’s Office, $336,000 had been spent as of Aug. 14.

The museum now measures 50 by 75 feet; when completed, the new museum space will be 100 by 75 feet and will contain additional storage, a conference room and a larger display area.

Museum Board Member Barbara Davis said, “It was a huge room. I didn’t realize how large it was. We plan on having it sectioned into rooms.”

Hedrick said, “We have a bed and a trunk and things to go in a bedroom, and we have kitchen stuff, including a little antique refrigerator from the Cochran family, that can go into a kitchen area. We will also have a military area. Most likely, the rolltop desk that had belonged to Betty Carroll is going to come out on the floor for display so we can make an office area. Of course, you always need a school section.”

A designated space will be made available where people doing genealogical research can use their laptops, as well.
Sign painter Jim Donahue painted “McCall Hardware” on the brick above the doorway to the new space.

Background

Rossi reported in an April update, “We broke ground around Oct. 10 and then poured the slab, and we started the framing on Dec. 19. By Jan. 30, we had a roof on.” Subsequent work included installation of HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), plumbing and electrical, windows and doors reproduced to look like those authentic to the McCall-Kerr Building, outside painting, and sidewalks in front of the building.

Hedrick said workmen were able to save three walls of the hardware building: the front wall facing Morganton Road, the brick wall facing Walnut Street and the wall adjoining the current museum space. “The back wall had to come down,” she said.

Also in April, Greenback Mayor Dewayne Birchfield said getting the new space ready has been a collaborative effort between his office, the museum board and the Greenback Historical Society as well as others in the community who have donated funds, materials and labor.

The Greenback Heritage Museum’s current space is the former King’s Beauty Salon adjoining the Greenback Drug Store, now Greenback Diner, purchased by the town of Greenback for the purpose of creating a space to house a museum. After extensive renovations and more than a year’s worth of hard labor and community donations, the Greenback Heritage Museum opened its doors on March 6, 2006, and the grand opening was March 18 and 19, 2006. Betty Carroll served as museum chairman from the opening in 2006 until her death in February 2018.