Dexter Board won't fund museum donated by deceased resident

DEXTER, Mo. -- Last November, the Dexter Board of Aldermen made a decision not to renew a contract for funding with the Wagner Museum. Now, with three of the aldermen who were on that board gone, the issue has come up again.

Dexter resident Norman Gillespie operates the museum, located at his home at 1007 Cottage Lane. His uncle Elvin Wagner was its creator. Upon Wagner's death, the museum was willed to the school, which turned over ownership to the city of Dexter.

For almost four years, the board decided to help fund the museum, paying Gillespie an initial $1,250 and $625 each year after the first. Then in November 2003, the board voted 4-2 to stop the funding.

But recently, Gillespie has been making an appeal to the board to continue funding. He has collected over 400 signatures of locals who support the museum, and has been making appeal after appeal to the board to renew the funding, re-questing $875 per year in funding.

Getting through

"A lot of people got the idea in November," said Gillespie, "that the museum was shut down. It's beginning to pick up a little bit now, and I'm beginning to get through to people." Since the museum is located in Ward I, Alderman Jerry Corder took it upon himself to look into Gillespie's pleas. He looked at the signatures collected and verified that most of them were real people who either lived in or owned property in the Dexter area, he said.

However, the petition still doesn't meet the standards of the city code, since the signatures have to be from registered Dexter voters, one of which must sign an affidavit.

"I've looked over all these names É and as far as I'm concerned I feel like at least 300 or so are legal," said Corder, "because I know them, or they're listed in the phonebook with good names and good addresses. And regardless of how I feel about it, I feel there's enough names on here É that I'm willing to consider doing what they want to do with their tax money.

"I really feel that Mr. Gillespie is only interested in keeping the Wagner Museum open to the public, and not in it for personal gain."

However, Corder faced opposition from some aldermen, such as Jim Tate of Ward II, who want no part of renewing funding for the museum.

"I've talked to more than one person and they said they just cannot believe that the city's spending money for an attraction that draws no more people than it does," said Tate.

By the end of the meeting, no action was taken on the matter except a decision to have city attorney Bud Lawrence research the city's obligation to the museum that was left to it. Gillespie left in a mood of defeat.

"I see you turned me down again," said Gillespie. "As long as I'm physically able to take care of it the museum is going to be there, in my building, free of charge, open to the public. I don't know how I'll do it, but by the grace of God and the Lord, someway or another I'll make it.

Gillespie vowed to return after the municipal election in April to plead before a new board.

"You all have went against a man's dying wish," he said. "You all are making a bad mistake."