DEMOPOLIS &8212; Following the founding and creation of a mission statement for the Marengo County Archives and History Museum Foundation, group members have begun taking steps to bring their vision of a museum in the area to fruition.

Though the establishment of a museum that would highlight the history and house records from Marengo County is still something that will take time and effort to bring to bear, the group is working on several items that will help bring about such a structure. One of the first items the foundation has looked at is finding a suitable building to house the museum.

The group&8217;s desire to house a museum lead it to place an item on the agenda of the City Council in order to make a proposal on the building&8217;s use, because the building was previously donated to the city. The group suggested the city allow it to use the building transferring all cost to the group other than insurance and building upkeep.

Though a structure to house the eventual collection is a large item for the group, it is also persuading other interests that will also help the foundation reach its goal. Finding grant funding for the wants of the foundation is another item that&8217;s at the top of the group&8217;s list.

Gardner said community input would be crucial to the aims of the group as it looks to establish the museum. She said the large majority of the traffic the museum would eventually see would be from locals looking to peruse the records housed in the structure.

However, Gardner said she and the group hopes that by establishing the museum it, in conjunction with the other historical attractions in the area like Bluff and Lyon Hall and Gaineswood, will attract tourists looking for historically significant areas to tour.