HISTORY of the MUSEUM
excepts from the NCM site
Terry McManmon had an idea. The burly 43 year-old with the free-flowing beard had been a member of the National Corvette Restorers Society (NCRS) for four years and shared its passion for the preservation of all things Corvette. Attending his first NCRS convention in August of 1984 at Copper Mountain, Colorado, McManmon spoke up in the general membership meeting in favor of establishing a not-for-profit foundation to gather Corvette-related materials into a common library or archives.
On July 11, 1988, McManmon presented the “Final Report of the Library/Archives & Museum Committee” to the NCRS Board of Directors in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Acting upon the recommendation of the committee, the Board approved the formation of the NCRS Foundation and $2,000 start-up costs. Finally there was a commitment to create a Corvette museum. McManmon drew a sigh of relief. He had been working on the project for four years. He didn’t know then there would be another six to go.
Based in part on a startlingly optimistic economic impact study, the NCM Foundation secured a $6.6 million loan from local banks. On June 1, 1993, the Bowling Green/Warren County Tourist Commission agreed to act as partial guarantor for the initial bond payments; shortly thereafter, the city and county stepped in to guarantee the remaining bond payments. Finally, the NCM was afloat. Construction began soon after. The National Corvette Museum opened its doors on September 2, 1994, ten years and two weeks after Terry McManmon stood up at Copper Mountain, Colorado and proposed a Corvette library.
Read the Full History Here