RICHMOND, Virginia — Most of the exhibition space at the Virginia Historical Society museum will be closed this year for a major renovation and redesign, although the research library and museum shop will remain open and a variety of programs will be presented at the historic structure.
The $38 million Story of Virginia Campaign will include $20 million in capital projects, $8 million in program improvements and $10 million for an endowment for long-term operation of the 183-year-old museum.
“This is not a traditional bricks-and-mortar campaign. Rather, its goal is to put learning at the heart of the Virginia Historical Society’s mission and to make smarter use of our existing space,” said Paul A. Levengood, Virginia Historical Society president and CEO.
The capital projects include the renovation of all public space on the main level, a larger Story of Virginia long-term exhibition, the creation of a pedestrian-friendly Boulevard plaza, a new south entrance with better accessibility and visibility and the reorganization of existing space on the ground floor to create a multi-classroom learning center with a new, dedicated entrance.
The project will include restoration of the Charles Hoffbauer Memorial Military Murals that have been on the walls of the original 1912 structure since its construction.
The program improvements will include a website redesign, more digitized content online, processing and cataloging projects to make the research collection accessible through a single-search solution and support for existing programs.
The Boulevard entrance to the VHS is closed while construction, which began in February, is underway. The work will be completed in phases over the next 18 months and will be sequenced so that the building will remain open during the process.
