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Saving Civil War icons?
State funds sought for museum, White House of the Confederacy
BY JANET CAGGIANO
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
The Museum and White House of the Confederacy was thrown a surprise lifeline yesterday, putting on hold a possible move by the 108-year-old museum and National Historic Landmark.
After months of study by a House of Delegates subcommittee, Del. William R. Janis, R-Henrico, proposed that the state, through a subsidy, pay to keep the White House at 12th and Clay streets, where it is being swallowed by the expansion of Virginia Commonwealth University.
The resolution asks that the assembly's money committees "identify sufficient funds for the museum to offset the impact of [VCU] construction."
The subcommittee voted to present the idea to the assembly during its 2006 session, which begins Jan. 11.
Sinking in debt for years, the White House deficit could balloon to nearly $500,000 next year. Without help, officials say, they might have to sell part of its collection, cut hours and reduce programming.
"I don't think the [White House] can long survive as a privately owned institution in its current location," Janis said. "But at the same time, I don't think there's a consensus . . . to take such an extreme step as relocating it."
Although the resolution does not specify an amount, Waite Rawls, the museum's executive director, who had favored moving the White House to a site behind the Science Museum of Virginia, said about $500,000 would keep the institution afloat another year.
"I'm very pleased with this resolution," Rawls said after the meeting. "The White House is a national asset. To do something as significant as moving it needs more of a public consensus than we have achieved so far."
The resolution also calls for an organized effort to save and promote all cultural institutions in the downtown area.
Before the resolution was passed, 19 speakers addressed the subcommittee during an hourlong public hearing. Nearly all spoke in favor of leaving the former residence of Confederate President Jefferson Davis where it is.
"Moving the White House will literally destroy the history and integrity of this building," said Dale Wheary, director of Maymont House Museum, who made it clear she was speaking as an individual and not as a Maymont employee. "It represents a unique look at our past. To relocate it would be a pathetic shame."
Most speakers echoed her. When they finished, Janis surprised the crowd of about 100 with the resolution. Subcommittee action had not been expected.
"This is too important to leave to the whim of somebody," said Sen. Charles R. Hawkins, R-Pittsylvania. "This is our charge. Unless we have some cultural identity to where we are, everything is lost. [We must] provide some gateway to the past so we can understand our history. The White House is part of that."
Contact Janet Caggiano at (804) 649-6157 or jcaggiano@timesdispatch.com