Duke Museum of Military History shutting down
Many of the items in collection available for purchase
Leslie Duke has decided to bite the bullet and shut down the Duke Museum of Military History.
“I hate it but I thought about it long and hard,” Duke said.
After three years in operation, Duke said the cost of keeping the museum running was just becoming prohibitive and that he needed to turn his attention to other projects he has had in the works.
He is involved in the development of new technologies related to the ballistics industry and the aerospace industry as well as opportunities in the food service sector.
Prior to opening the museum, Duke operated companies called Ballistics Research and Op-Four Weapons, so he is no stranger to high-tech develop- ments in personal weapons systems.
“I have developed some stuff that should prove to be pretty lucrative,” Duke said Monday afternoon.
He had been in the process of renovating the interior of the museum for the last couple of weeks and was real excited about several new donations to the museum.
The museum included artifacts and memorabilia related to conflicts the U.S. has been involved in since the Civil War, including items from Vietnam, Somalia, Panama, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Duke said that anyone interested in mannequins or glass display cases can contact him via email as he will be attempting to liquidate virtually all of the hardware related to the display of his military memorabilia as possible.
He estimated that 80-85 percent of the items that were displayed in the museum were part of his personal collection and that most of those items will be available for purchase.
Anyone interested in acquiring items can reach Duke by email at dukemuseum@gmail.com.
Duke made the announcement via the museum’s Facebook page Monday.
“If you or your family have anything that has been donated or put on loan to the museum please contact us via email so we can make an appointment to return those items to you,” Duke said via Facebook.