Submitted by Sequoyah Birthplace Museum
VONORE, Tenn. – Sequoyah Birthplace Museum is a recipient of a $55,084 grant for Capital Maintenance and Improvements from the State of Tennessee as administered through the Tennessee State Museum. The grant award will be used for a new entrance front and rear doors for the Museum and bat-proofing the building.
The Tennessee General Assembly made available $5 million in funding from the 2025-2026 Appropriations Act, “for the sole purpose of providing grants to museums with a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization or affiliated with a governmental entity for capital maintenance and improvements.”
In the third year of the grant program, it remains a highly competitive process. In total, the Tennessee State Museum received 178 applications, totaling $12,031,874 in requests. The Museum has made full or partial awards to 99 museums across the state, representing 45 counties. In the three years the Museum has administered the grant program, it has served museums in 73 counties across the state. A complete list of 2025-26 grantees, counties and amounts is posted at TNMuseum.org/grants.
“The Tennessee Capital Improvement Grants continue to support and strengthen the infrastructure of institutions preserving our state and local history and culture,” said Ashley Howell, Tennessee State Museum executive director. “We are honored to help support the commitment of those institutions to better serve their communities and visitors through collection care and visitor accessibility these last three years. We are inspired by the dedication of their staff and volunteers. None of it would be possible, of course, without the State of Tennessee’s unwavering support for Tennessee history.”
“The Capital Maintenance Grant from the Tennessee State Museum assist smaller museums, like ours, to cover large capital projects that other grants will not cover. Without the support and funding from the Tennessee State Museum we would not be able to complete projects like upgrading our almost 40-year-old entrance doors and addressing bat problems we have been battling for several years”, stated Charlie Rhodarmer, manager/director of Sequoyah Birthplace Museum.
The Capital Maintenance and Improvements grant had a minimum request amount of $5,000 and a maximum request amount of $100,000. All projects must be completed by June 30, 2026.
