Home for public display of vintage gear?

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Messages
3
Reaction score
6
Location
Raleigh, NC
# of dives
1000 - 2499
Hello Divers!
For several years, the North Carolina Maritime Museum Hatteras/Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum has hosted a history of diving exhibit featuring vintage equipment of both historical significance and ties to North Carolina. With the museum closing for an extended overhaul, we are seeking a new place for these items to be shown to the public, with the goal of preserving the history of diving.

We have been in contact already with all NC Maritime Museums, NC aquariums, the History of Diving Museum in Islamorada, the Man in the Sea Museum in Panama City, and the Avalon Diving History Exhibit on Catalina, but, while there is interest, it seems that no one has display space.

So, we are asking if anyone has any suggestions for a location that could display this equipment with appropriate security. If you have ideas other than the places noted above, please reply.

For further info:
Focal points of the display are the evolution of scuba equipment including the first type of regulator manufactured in the United States and the shift of regulators from double hose regulators to single-hose. Also featured is the progression of safety in recreational diving including the first diving certification available in the United States and early safety devices. The current display further includes a small part on the development of underwater cameras.

Potential enhancements for the exhibit from the existing collection include homemade diving equipment to show how ingenuity and some surplus parts were all one needed to be an underwater pioneer; military scuba diving equipment; and other items including cameras and tanks.

We are seeking to put the exhibit on loan in a location where it will continue to educate and inspire generations of explorers from those who used the equipment when it was new to those who will go on to use gear not yet developed. The exhibited items can be scaled up or down to fit a space, or even placed on a rotating basis, so space utilized would be determined by availability. For protection, items would be placed behind barriers.

No financial gain or benefit of any kind is sought other than to carry forward the preservation of diving history.

Thank you and safe diving to all,
Craig
 
what is the approximate dimensions required of a display space?
Thanks for the reply It's a great question with a tough answer. An approximately 100 sq ft space would be great, but things could be scaled up or down or rotated through, depending on the facility's needs and desires.
 
Do you have pictures of the existing display and the items in the display?


One possibility is to find a dive shop with extra space that could host it.
Do you have display cabinets or whatever you intend to use as barriers? How about item labels and explanations?
Many (or some) dive shops would like to host such a display, if they have the space, but they are not going to have appropriate display cabinets or the proper setup with labels, etc.
 
Thanks for the responses. We have some stands and placards, but not cabinets for everything. While a dive shop would be great, floor space costs money and sacrifices retail space, so we have not had any shops express interest. But if anyone knows of a shop, please let me know. Cheers!
 

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It sounds like you are looking for a temporary space while the renovation is occurring. I would recommend contacting Ryan Spence, ryan@flashbackscuba.com , who has the Flashback Scuba Museum in the Tacoma, Washington area. He also has a warehouse, I believe, as not all of his collection is being exhibited.

SeaRat
 

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