Trump cut funding for Lawrence museum. How community rallied to raise it back
After facing federal grant cuts, the Douglas County Historical Society has regained its financial footing with the support of the Lawrence community, an online fundraiser and a generous private donor.
The society's museum, the Watkins Museum of History, located at 11th and Massachusetts Street in Lawrence, celebrated its 50th anniversary in April. But the party was rained on when, also in April, a $50,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services was terminated due to an executive order from President Donald Trump.
Executive Order 14238 continues the reduction of the federal bureaucracy that President Trump has maintained is unnecessary. But the move has also put Congressionally-approved federal funding like the musueum grant in jeopardy.
'It was granted to us by a federal institution authorized by Congress,' said Will Haynes, the deputy director for engagement and learning at the Watkins Museum. 'This was illegal what they were doing, and what they are doing still.'
The grant would have funded an educational project called 'Seeking a More Perfect Union, ' said Haynes. It included lesson plans and teacher resources on the Underground Railroad, which was active in Lawrence.
The society has an important duty to share the roots of the city, he said.
'Lawrence has a history that is nationally significant because the city was founded as part of the movement against slavery,' said Haynes. 'We take that special history seriously, and we try to interpret history in such a way that we show folks how it's relevant to this day.'
The grant cut caused a $13,000 loss for the society. The termination was due to the project being deemed to 'no longer serve the interest of the United States,' stated a letter from the IMLS.
'The claim that it does not serve the interest of the United States was false, and I think evidence of that is seen in the great outpouring of support that we got with the GoFundMe campaign,' said Haynes.
Last week, the society finally recovered the $13,000 lost due to the grant funding being pulled after a private donor contributed $6,000, in addition to the more than $5,000 raised from GoFundMe, Haynes said.
'It was a very gratifying thing to see the support of the public, and it was a reminder that the public supports what our museum and other museums and historic sites do,' he said.
Watkins Museum is considered a staple of the Lawrence community by many, according to Haynes. The free museum brings in about $1.5 million yearly in revenue for the county.
In fact, the society recently received a proclamation from the city commemorating their work.
'We're still following the same mission that we did back in 1933 of preserving the county history, and I'm having it available to tell stories of local history and then interpreting those artifacts, documents, and stories for people today,' said Haynes.
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