Another chapter in the area's manufacturing history has ended, with the closing of the Mt. Pleasant Glass Museum.
The museum's board of directors announced the decision on March 23.
The nonprofit museum, which was dedicated to Western Pennsylvania's glass manufacturing history, was founded in 2013 and focused on three glass factories in Mt. Pleasant during the 20th century: Bryce Bothers, L.E. Smith and Lenox.
The museum was housed in the old Lenox factory on East Main Street.
“What happened is that we've been struggling financially for some time,” says board president Sandy Spence of Mt. Pleasant.
Smith says that although the museum was recently approved for two grants — one for $1,128 from the Pennsylvania Rural Arts Alliance and another for $13,250 from Rivers of Steel Heritage Corp. — both required a 100 percent match.
“That would use up all the money we had or projected to receive this year,” she says. “We did a cash flow analysis that showed we couldn't keep open past April.
“I'm personally devastated. Four generations of my family were associated with L.E. Smith.”
Museum director Amy Philips-Haller, board members and volunteers are in the process of returning loaned items and determining where others will go. Spence says preserving the collection is the museum's first priority.
“Our bylaws and museum ethics require that (items) go to another (nonprofit) museum,” Spence says.
While the Senator John Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh will receive first choice from the collection, Spence says, “The Museum of American Glass in Weston, W.Va., is willing to take a significant number of items. We've been asking donors if they have a preference where they will go.”
“The past year was a tough year,” says museum founder and former board president Cassandra Vivian of Mt. Pleasant. “They're broken-hearted, I'm sure, and so am I. They worked hard and they deserve better.
“Grants and 200 memberships kept us afloat, but this past year a lot of that fell away,” she says. “Of our 200 members, only 30 were from Mt. Pleasant. We needed more support from the community.”
The museum had been closed for the winter and reopened this month. Admission was free, though a donation of $5 per person was suggested.
Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer.
Reach her at 724-836-5750 or smcmarlin@tribweb.com
