The History Museum of Springfield-Greene County in Springfield, Mo., is running out of room, and it hopes to reopen in a former downtown department store sometime in 2013, reported KY3-TV in Springfield.
The station said:
Three years ago the museum bought the old Barth’s department store building on the northeast quadrant of Park Central Square.
Construction on a new museum was slowed down because of the economy. There was also less money rolling in from donors, the city, and county.
But the project is once again well underway. Leaders of the museum say the new “Downtown History Center” will have twice the exhibit space, and will be a lot more visible for visitors.
The square also is on the original Route 66 alignment in Springfield, and the museum contains plenty of artifacts from the Mother Road.
According to the museum’s website, the new museum location will feature “hands-on” history for kids, walking tours, costumed re-enactors, and additional history exhibits. The museum also seeks to add more traveling exhibits.
Here’s an artist’s rendering of the renovated building:
The Barth’s building, by the way, is listed on the city’s historical sites and landmarks list. A Google Street View image of the building now can be found here.
A video report can be viewed here.