Preservation Council wants place to display artifacts found downtown

McMinnville Digs History. A new exhibit by the Preservation Council will prove that not only do members dig it, they dig preserving it.

The Preservation Council was established by the city of McMinnville before the Downtown Economic Revitalization Project began. Its goal was to make photographic and videographic records as well as recover, identify and preserve items of historic value discovered during construction.

When the council began, some believed not much would be found. However, the project turned into an archeological dig with the amount of items found.

‘Some people thought we were crazy,’ said council member Jimmy Haley. ‘We found just a small percent of what is out there. MTSU loved what we found and what we were trying to do.’

Among the numerous pieces found and identified were German gambling coins from the 1800s brought to McMinnville by Union soldiers. As they occupied the area, they would gamble with these coins. Other items include:

‘ William Henry Harrison campaign buttons. Harrison was elected ninth president of the United States in 1840. Shortly after taking office, he caught a cold that developed into pneumonia. On April 4, 1941, he died. He was the first president to die in office.

‘ A safe. Back in the 1800s there was a lawyers’ row of buildings downtown. The buildings subsequently burnt. While digging in that area, a safe was found.

The council will be applying for a $3,000 to $5,000 grant to build a display cabinet at McMinnville City Hall. The cabinet, with a glass front and glass shelves, will be from the floor to the ceiling and placed in the main hallway.

The council will also try and partner with local schools. A folding display board will be used as an interpretive center that can be taken to the schools in an effort to teach students about local history through the archeology that was done.

For the project, called McMinnville Digs History, the Preservation Council will be partnering with the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area at MTSU. The organization, through direct assistance and partnership funds, enhances Tennessee’s efforts to conserve, enhance, and promote the heritage of the Civil War and reconstruction.

Although the National Heritage Area will be focusing on the items of most significance from the Civil War era, the Heritage Council will be backtracking and tracing the evolution of how the city grew up around town square.

The deadline for the grant application is Aug. 31. The funds require an equal match from the city but that can be done with in-kind services.