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A two-headed goat in a jar filled with formaldehyde, a flea wedding, a dress made for a 700-lbs woman and historic items depicting what life was like in eastern North Carolina were viewed by patrons of the Belhaven Memorial Museum for 54 years. In about a year from now, after the historic building where the collection resides is restored, the curious collection will be on display again. 

The Belhaven Memorial Museum is housed on the second floor of the town’s former city hall building (211 Main Street) which was constructed in 1901. The museum and building have been closed for six years; however, a local historic preservation group and non-profit are working to re-open the museum and building to the public. 

Down East Preservation Construction and Design, LLC is putting the manpower behind the restoration of Belhaven Memorial Museum, Dawson Tyler confirmed. Tyler is the founder of Down East Preservation which has two locations – one in Belhaven and another in Edenton. 

The plan for the museum, Tyler explained, is to not change it, but enhance what is already there and make it more accessible to visitors. This process starts by curating and cataloguing items already in the building. 

“We want to curate it and we want to catalogue it. We want to know what’s there and see, out of what’s there, might need restoration or help or be put in a more appropriate environment,” Tyler said.

Two universities plan to help curate the collections – East Carolina University’s History Department and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s UNC Rural. UNC Rural which helps rural communities connect with people and resources on campus that can help rural communities thrive, UNC Rural’s webpage describes. 

Maintaining as much of the collections as possible helps to tell the story of Belhaven’s beginnings and give a glimpse into what life was like in eastern North Carolina so that future generations understand it, Tyler said. 

As far as restoring the turn-of-the-century building, Tyler said it needs structural repair on the cupola where lightning struck it and caught the cupola on fire, several years ago. The incident also caused water to leak into the building. Too, the HVAC system will need repair to make visitors comfortable as they peruse the collections. 

At this time, Down East Preservation has basic architectural designs and a proposal on how to make the building more accessible by adding either an elevator or lift. 

Tyler said the interior design of the building will mostly remain intact. He said the beadboard stage, once used for small performances, will remain as well as murals from when the museum was open and press-tin ceilings. 

Restoration is being funded by grant money. Tyler explained that there are two “buckets” per se that grant money can go into. The first bucket being for architectural drawings, bringing the building up to code and curation and cataloguing of the collection. The second bucket of grant money will go towards paying for aesthetics, fixing places where water leaks in, falling ceiling tiles, lighting, and adding an elevator or lift. 

In total, Tyler projects the project costing an estimated $200,000. He estimates $50,000 paying for the first bucket and $150,000 paying for the second. Half of the second bucket, he said, would go toward the elevator or lift. 

“The building itself is in wonderful shape,” Tyler said. 

Helping to find funding is area non-profit Belhaven136. Belhaven136 and Down East Preservation are collaborating to see the complete restoration of the Belhaven Memorial Museum. 

Belhaven136  is an affiliate of Main Street America. The Town of Belhaven is a North Carolina Small Town Main Street community which is a designation given by the N.C. Department of Commerce Main Street & Rural Planning Center, the town’s website shares. Belhaven136 is tasked with facilitating the program at the local level in addition to establishing public-private partnerships that generate economic development and job creation. 

According to an article published by the Daily News in 2016, the museum was located on the second floor of the building and contained varied collections curated by Eva Blount Way. She charged patrons a small fee to tour her collections (then located at her home) as a way to raise money for the American Red Cross. After her death, local citizens bought her collections and displayed them in the museum in 1965. “Displays include countless buttons, artifacts, clothing, military memorabilia, antique dolls and a general hodgepodge of items documenting life in eastern North Carolina during Way’s lifetime, 1869 to 1962,” the article reads. 

At this time, the goal is to not charge patrons to visit the museum.