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'Lost Colony' a key

Born in Dunn and raised in Wilmington, Howard graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill and later earned a law degree at Wake Forest University. He worked briefly in corporate law before getting involved in a company that computerized records for doctors' offices.

The short version of his story is he made a lot of money and decided to give something back to his home state. He targeted an institution that he always complained could be better than it was.

First, he tore down the decade-old health exhibition. Then he made plans to create a decorative arts gallery, using the museum's large collection of textiles, pottery, silver and and other objects, which will open in August.

Next year, the gallery will expand to feature the early 19th-century works of Thomas Day, an African-American cabinet-maker from Caswell County. In May, Howard breathed new life into a dormant military history gallery, which this fall will expand and coordinate a program with UNC-TV on the new Ken Burns series about World War II.

He has embraced and expanded one of Buford's final projects. In October, the museum will open its first blockbuster exhibition, "Mysteries of the Lost Colony," which will be built around a collection of watercolors loaned from The British Museum.

"Lost Colony" will mark the first time the museum has charged admission, and Howard is counting on a lot of interest from the general public. Besides the paintings by colony governor John White, the exhibition will incorporate aspects of "The Lost Colony" outdoor drama, include an Algonquin Indian village and offer what Howard calls a "C.S.I."-type exhibit, in which visitors sift through clues and try to determine what could have happened to the settlers who disappeared.

Howard said $1 million will have to be raised to cover the loan from The British Museum. That's in addition to several hundred thousand dollars being raised for the decorative arts gallery.

The final challenge is still ahead. Next year, Howard hopes to push through the signature exhibition that has been planned since the museum moved into its current building in 1994: a chronology exhibition that would trace the state's own history for the first time. At more than 19,000 square feet, it would be the museum's largest exhibition ever, taking up most of the first floor.

If the money comes through, the first phase, covering pre-history to 1850, would open a year from now, and the second phase, 1850 to the present, in December 2008. Howard said $6 million in state money is proposed, and the rest would have to come from donors.

Howard noted that a comparable amount of private money was raised to build the museum building on Bicentennial Plaza in 1994. He said that shows there is interest, but he lamented that major fundraising has been dormant since then. The "Lost Colony" show will be the first substantial push for funds.

"If we can make this a success and show we can compete and do the big exhibition, it will be easier to get support," Thomas said.

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