Columbus tourist attraction temporarily closes, asks for more support to help it survive
A well-known Columbus tourist attraction temporarily has closed and is asking the community for more support to help it survive.
Historic Westville, a living history museum demonstrating 19th-century Southern culture, announced on its Facebook page Tuesday that the facility temporarily is closed.
The only other part of the message is this sentence: “We will update you as soon as we reopen!”
Westville’s website has a similar message: “Temporarily closed. Check website for updates.”
The L-E reported in September 2021 that Westville was struggling financially after being closed for several months due to the COVID-19 pandemic and reopening in October 2020 with coronavirus protocols in place.
Westville not only was dealing with decreased ticket sales but also paying the $9.5 million cost of moving its 17 historic buildings from Lumpkin, about 40 miles south of Columbus, that was completed in June 2019.
George Singer, president and chairman of the Westville board, told the Ledger-Enquirer in an email Thursday that the museum still is recovering from the financial burdens of its move and its COVID shutdown.
“Although Westville has been able to overcome the majority of costs associated with these events, they have taxed our financial resources to the point that the organization needs to close temporarily,” he said. “We are hoping to use this time to raise operational funds and to evaluate how the organization can adapt and diversify revenue streams in an effort to become more sustainable.”
The village opened in 1966 on 80 acres in Lumpkin. The current location is on 35 acres, about half a mile from the National Infantry Museum & Soldier Center outside Fort Benning and Columbus State University’s Oxbow Meadows Environmental Learning Center.
Westville has 13 employees, five full-time, plus a group of group of volunteers who help with interpretation, crafts and museum operations. Staffing isn’t a problem, Singer said.
“With volunteers and staff, we currently can handle our current visitation levels,” he said. “As visitation increases, we hope that the organization can grow as needed.”
Asked for visitation numbers, Singer wasn’t specific but said, “Initial visitation on reopening was strong but slowed in winter 2019/2020 (typical) and obviously stopped for a prolonged period during COVID. Visitation post-COVID has increased in 2021/2022 and continues that trend in 2023, but has still not reached our projections.”
An optimistic sign is the “largest increase from schools,” Singer said. “In 2022, we had over 60 schools visit the sight, often taking multiple educational field trips to Westville. Schools have included private, public, and home school groups from as far away as Atlanta, Montgomery, and Tifton.”
Tourism impact
VisitColumbusGa president and CEO Peter Bowden, who serves on the Westville board, told the L-E the temporary closure will impact tourism in the Chattahoochee Valley and the way VisitColumbusGa markets the area, especially with Westville being so near the National Infantry Museum and Oxbow Meadows.
“It does cause us to rethink part of our strategy,” he said. “… That cluster is a great experience for kids and families.”
Bowden also is president and CEO of the Columbus Film Commission, which promotes the region as a location for the production of movies, TV shows, commercials and other film projects. Westville is among the local sites attractive to producers, he said, and the commission is in discussions with a producer about such an opportunity.
That undisclosed project still could be filmed at Westville while the museum isn’t open to the public, Bowden said, depending on the situation.
“How dramatic or drastic this closing is, I don’t know,” he said. “But if it reopens by April, it’s not a showstopper.”
How to help
In a news release appealing for donations, Singer said, “We have reached a point where without your immediate support our ability to continue operating and providing these programs is at risk. Your support through memberships and donations is irreplaceable.”
Donations, membership renewals and ticket purchases can be made online at westville.org or by sending a check to Historic Westville, P.O. Box 3442, Columbus, GA 31903.
This story was originally published March 1, 2023 at 11:18 AM.
