Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum

Last updated
Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum
USA Indiana location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within Indiana
Established1992 (1992)
Location Columbus, Indiana
Coordinates 39°15′18″N85°53′53″W / 39.2549°N 85.8980°W / 39.2549; -85.8980
Type Aviation museum
FounderWendell Ross [1]
Website www.atterburybakalarairmuseum.org

The Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum is an aviation museum located at the Columbus Municipal Airport in Columbus, Indiana.

Contents

History

Background

In mid-1988, an F-4 was flown to the airport as a sling load underneath a helicopter and was placed on display a few months later. [2] [3]

Establishment

The museum's 3,168 sq ft (294.3 m2) building was dedicated on 11 November 1992. [4] [5] The restoration of the former base chapel, renamed the Lewellen Memorial Chapel, was completed in 1998. [6] It opened a new exhibit called A Century of Flight in 2003 featuring a 1:4 scale replica of the Wright Flyer. [7]

The museum broke ground on the Bruce Dalton Media Center, the first half of a two part expansion, in July 2009. [8] [9] It began construction of a second, 3,700 sq ft (340 m2) addition in July 2013. [10] The addition opened in April 2014 along with a new barracks exhibit. [11] [12] Then, in 2017, it announced plans for an 1,800 sq ft (170 m2) expansion to store artifacts and serve as a restoration shop. [12] The Thomas Vickers/John C. Walter Artifacts & Restoration Center was dedicated in June 2018. [13]

The museum acquired a C-119 from Greybull, Wyoming and began disassembling it in 2019. [14] The last parts arrived in July of the following year and it was placed on display in May 2021. [15] [16]

Exhibits

Exhibits at the museum include an airport beacon, a reproduction barracks, a CG-4A glider nose section. [17] [18] [19] Local manufacturers such as Cosco Housewares, Cummins Engine Company, and Noblitt Sparks are also represented with displays of some of their products. [20] Other objects include a motorized cutaway of an R-3350 engine. [21] A collection of five 1:8 scale aircraft models hang from the ceiling. [22] [23]

Collection

References

  1. "Wendell Ross". The Republic. 22 December 2015. p. A9. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  2. "Bakalar Green". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  3. "Phantom Lands New Assignment". The Republic. 10 October 1988. p. A1. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  4. Smith, Yolanda (9 August 1992). "Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum Off, Flying". The Republic. p. B1. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  5. "Veterans Remembered". The Republic. 11 November 1992. pp. A1. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  6. McCawley, Harry (23 September 2011). "Veterans Dedicated to Airport Chapel". The Republic. p. A4. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  7. Blair, Bryan (8 May 2003). "The Sky's the Limit". The Republic. pp. 12–13. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  8. McCawley, Harry (10 July 2009). "Dalton Promoted Gliders 'til Very End". The Republic. p. A6. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  9. Ellis, Cecelia (28 July 2008). "Air Museum Expansion to Get Off Ground". The Republic. pp. A1, A3. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  10. McCawley, Harry (19 July 2013). "Air Museum Beginning Expansion". The Republic. pp. A1, A3. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  11. McClure, Julie (6 April 2014). "Sharing Their Stories". The Republic. pp. A1, A7. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  12. 1 2 Kent, Matthew (14 March 2017). "Grant to Fuel Museum Project". The Republic. pp. A1, A8. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  13. Kent, Matthew (9 June 2018). "Air Museum Dedicates Restoration Center Expansion". The Republic. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
  14. East, Andy (12 February 2020). "Piece by Piece". The Republic. pp. A1, A6. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  15. East, Andy (2 February 2021). "Getting Closer". The Republic. pp. A1, A4. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  16. East, Andy (20 May 2021). "On the Move". The Republic. pp. A1, A6. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  17. "The WWII-Era Rotating Beacon". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  18. "The Atterbury Barracks Display". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  19. "World War Two Glider Pilots". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  20. "Columbus Manufacturers". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  21. Webber, Mark (18 February 2019). "Flying High". The Republic. pp. A1, A4. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  22. McCawley, Harry (29 October 1996). "Model Airplanes Recreate History". The Republic. p. A4. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  23. McCawley, Harry (14 November 2000). "Air Museum Welcomes B-17 to Model Formation". The Republic. p. B4. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  24. "Project "Charlie 119"". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  25. "The F4C Phantom Jet Fighter". Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum. Retrieved 3 December 2023.

Further reading