Museum of Dolls, Toys and Miniatures marks construction for new location
Published 12:00 am Sunday, May 7, 2023
The North Carolina Museum of Dolls, Toys and Miniatures held a celebration to mark the construction start for its new location at 440 S Salisbury Ave. in the Park Plaza Shopping Center. Photo by Jim Ryser
The North Carolina Museum of Dolls, Toys and Miniatures board of directors attended along with local officials, community leaders and museum staff. Photo by Jim Ryser
The North Carolina Museum of Dolls, Toys and Miniatures’ new location in the Park Plaza Shopping Center is across the street from where it operates currently. Photo by Jim Ryser
SPENCER — The North Carolina Museum of Dolls, Toys and Miniatures held a celebration to mark the construction commencement for its new location at 440 S Salisbury Ave. in the Park Plaza Shopping Center, across the street from where it currently operates.
The museum’s board of directors attended along with local officials, community leaders and museum staff. The new location will provide a larger, more modern space for the museum’s collection of dolls, toys, and miniatures, as well as expanded programming and exhibition opportunities.
Nance
“We are thrilled to finally begin construction on our new location, which has been in the works for several years,” Beth Morris Nance, NCDTM’s director, said in a news release. “This larger space will allow us to showcase more of our incredible collection and to offer new educational and outreach programs to our visitors.”
The new location will feature state-of-the-art exhibition galleries, classrooms for educational programming and a research library for scholars and researchers. The new location will also feature a range of enhanced accessibility features for the 501c3 nonprofit museum, which was established in 2012 in memory of Rowan County native Amy Dawn Morris, who suffered from a rare disability. The new location has been designed to ensure that all visitors, regardless of their physical abilities, can fully access and enjoy exhibits and programs.
The groundbreaking ceremony also included a preview of the new floor plans and intended exhibitions, which are set to feature a range of themes, including historic dolls and toys, miniatures and model trains. The museum’s collection spans centuries of toy and doll-making traditions and is recognized by Our State magazine as one of the state’s “top 30 most memorable museums.”
“We are proud to continue to preserve and celebrate the history of dolls, toys, and miniatures for generations to come,” said Susan Lane Morris, museum co-founder. “Our new location will allow us to share this incredible collection with even more visitors and to engage new audiences with our programming.”
The new location is set to open within the next year and the museum is still accepting donations for the capital campaign.
To learn more , email info@ncmdtm.org or visit ncmdtm.org/capital-campaign
