THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 8, 1995 TAG: 9512080507
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 57 lines
The Museum of the Albemarle is breaking in its third director in 18 months, but this one apparently has promised to stay for awhile.
The newest director, Rhonda Tyson, told museum trustees she would remain at the helm until a planned downtown museum opens its doors, board chairwoman Barbara Snowden said Thursday.
Former Director Wesley S. Creel had been brought from Raleigh in June to oversee the design, construction and exhibits of a 50,000-square-foot museum on the old Davenport Motors property across from Waterfront Park.
But Creel left this fall.
``He sort of, all of a sudden, took another job out of state,'' said James McNutt, administrator of the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh. ``We've lost some administrative time in this, but we didn't lose much else.''
Tyson, chosen for the job on Nov. 1, has worked for the North Carolina Museum of History for nearly 10 years, and she headed the design branch during the construction of the museum's new facility in Raleigh. She was not available for comment on Thursday.
``Her strength is in her organizational skills,'' Snowden said. ``She knows the budgeting process; she knows what has to be done to set up a museum.''
The Museum of the Albemarle, housed in a tiny building on U.S. 17 South, for years has been eyeing downtown property and a chance to fully display the artifacts that tell the region's story to thousands of visitors annually.
In November 1994, after more than a year of negotiations, Jewel and Lee Davenport donated their two-acre property at Ehringhaus and Water streets to the College of The Albemarle Foundation. Under a three-way agreement, COA immediately sold the parcel to the museum for nearly $800,000.
Architects are currently preparing preliminary drawings that museum officials expect to unveil in February, Snowden said. State administrators don't know yet whether they'll ask the General Assembly for funds to build the museum in 1996 or wait until the next session, McNutt said.
Tyson grew up in Charlotte and received a bachelor of fine arts degree from East Carolina University in 1976, according to the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. She worked at the Cape Fear Museum in Wilmington for several years before going to Raleigh.
She replaces Creel, who had served as assistant administrator of branch museuems for the state before his brief stint in Elizabeth City. His new job, Snowden said, is at a private museum in Florida.
Creel took over for Charlene Akers, who was appointed in May 1994 and served only about a year.
Snowden said the regular turnover in directors has not had a major effect on the museum's operations.
``What you have to realize is that there are some very strong people on the staff that have really continued the job,'' Snowden said. ``The staff has been the continuity.'' by CNB