Churchill Museum in Fulton Could Become a National Landmark
The National Churchill Museum in Fulton is one of the best-kept secrets in Missouri. In an event with President Harry Truman at Westminster College six decades ago, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill famously said, “an iron curtain has descended across the continent.”
The college commemorated the iron curtain speech by purchasing a London church that had been destroyed in World War II and rebuilt it in Fulton as a home for the museum. Now, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has introduced legislation to raise the museum’s profile by designated it a National Historic Landmark. The Senate voted unanimously to pass his bill.
“This is truly a national effort to recognize that what we have known for a long time here in mid-Missouri is indeed a national and international treasure,” Chief Curator Tim Riley said, according to KCUR.
The National Historic Landmark designation potentially can present opportunities for additional funding and assistance with preservation, although these resources are not guaranteed. Hawley’s bill, if enacted into law, also would direct the park service to conduct a study of the museum to identify future uses for the site.
“We’re hopeful in the future that we can work with the nation to lift up the reputation and to tell our story,” Riley said. “It’s an inspiring one.”
Riley’s team is optimistic that the designation will spur increased tourism to the small-town attraction and free the museum of its status as a “hidden gem.” “I want to hear ‘gem,'” he said, “not ‘hidden.'”
The bill now moves on to the U.S. House, where Rilley hopes the designation will become official by March 5, which is the 80th anniversary of the Iron Curtain speech, and coincide with the completion of restoration projects on the church’s exterior.
“I’m sure if the House members agree with the Senate and believe that this building and what it stands for in Churchill’s legacy can continue to inspire new generations that it will in fact be signed into law,” he said.
–Alan Goforth
