by Glenn Tschimpke
Staff Writer
As of now, the Jacksonville Museum of War and History is as concrete as the words on this page; it resides in a world of shifting forms and ideas. But by the time the Super Bowl stampedes into town in 2005, the museum’s visionaries hope to bring their dream into the realm of bricks and mortar.
The Super Bowl is still three years off, but the museum has a long way to go before its planners can swing the doors open to the public.
“Basically, we’re starting on getting grants,” said museum public relations director Joy Lockerby.
The basic premise of the gallery is set. The museum will feature exhibits from the American Revolution through the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and virtually all points in between. While World War I and World War II are obvious subject matter, plans call for coverage of smaller conflicts such as the invasion of Panama in 1989 and the Kosovo war a decade later. The museum will also focus on the role of African-Americans and women in the military — aspects often overlooked.
Lockerby would like to see a more personalized angle to the gallery that focuses on individuals.
“There are so many people that are recognized in the military,” she said. “You’ll see in the news that five pilots were killed. They’ll say their names but you won’t know their history or what they’ve done.”
Wars are often the subject of controversy, which is something Lockerby says will be avoided in the displays and exhibits. Museum literature flatly states: “The museum will include no controversial issues, only documented historical facts.”
“We chose not to get into that,” said Lockerby. “A lot of veterans, for example, when they came back from Vietnam were alcoholics or drug addicts. We want to focus on the people and the families and what the wars were about.”
The Jacksonville Museum of War and History would add to the First Coast’s fledgling cultural profile and complement the area’s handful of military dedications, including the Lonely Sailor statue on the Southbank Riverwalk and the Veterans Memorial Wall at the Coliseum.
“It’s a voice for American veterans,” said Lockerby. “Everybody that we’ve come across really thinks Jacksonville needs a museum. What does Jacksonville really have? You can go to the MOSH museum and you can go to the art museum. But that’s about it.”
Jacksonville’s demographics look promising in terms of local interest in a war museum. According to the Chamber of Commerce, 16 percent of First Coast residents are connected with the military in some way, either active duty, reserve, retiree or civilian employee. Each year, over 4,000 military members retire or leave the service in Jacksonville. Eighty percent stay in the area. Jacksonville’s concentration of Navy personnel lags only behind Norfolk, Va. and San Diego.
Lockerby said she’d like to see the museum find a home downtown, either in an existing building or a new one, which would give Super Bowl visitors one more reason to stick around town instead of going to St. Augustine or elsewhere for a day’s entertainment.
Gathering funding to find a home for the museum is one issue. Filling it with artifacts is another. But Lockerby indicates that it could be easier than it sounds.
“There are a lot of people across the country, businesses as well as collectors, who have stuff in their garages,” she said. “The Smithsonian does loan programs where they will loan things out to different museums. Also, there is so much stuff in storage a lot of museums don’t even have room for.”
Despite the grandiose plans, the museum is still years away from reality. Until grants and donations increase, it is relegated to the world of shapes and forms.