Nicholas-Beazley Museum now open

Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum official Bryan Berlin explains an exhibit to volunteer tour guides during an informational meeting in March. (Eric Crump/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

After much hard work and many long hours, The Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum is now open for business on a regular basis. Museum offiical Bryan Berlin is proud of the exhibits he and other volunteers have created, but he knows many people think the museum is just about planes.

"To say it's an airplane museum is rather generic," he said. "It's much more than an airplane story."

Visitors to the museum can first watch a 10-minute introductory film as they sit in chairs formerly in the Pettis County Courthouse.

Upon entering the exhibit areas, they will encounter memorabilia from World War I, as well as the Nicholas-Beazley factory and Marshall Flight School; photos and murals, painted by local artist Fallon Hamilton, of Marshall from the 1920s and 30s; and, of course, airplanes.

Ever wondered what it would be like to fly a DC-9 jet? Visitors to the Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum in Marshall can get an idea by visiting the DC-9 cockpit cut-away on display. The museum is now open every weekend, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays. (Eric Crump/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

The museum is home to an NB3 airplane, the last of its kind built in the Marshall factory.

"This was the inspiration for the building," Berlin said of the plane, which he and others bought in 2002 for about $60,000.

This model was one of the first to have full metal wings, Berlin said. Fabric painted yellow and black covers the plane's frame, now that it is mostly restored. When complete, the plane should be able to fly again, though Berlin isn't sure if that's a risk he wants to take.

After the NB3, there is an NB trainer and the experimental "flying flea," built by Jacob Van Dyke of Marshall in the 30s.

The second half of the museum is less finished than the first. An airplane lent to the museum is on display in what will become a rotating temporary exhibit, Berlin said.

There is an area for children to color and make paper airplanes, as well as a real jet airplane cockpit with passenger seats behind it to explore.

Berlin also hopes to make an exhibit about World War II in this area, he said. Other possible additions to the museum include better lighting and audio technology, which would allow for exhibit narrations by record-setting pilot Barney Zimmerly or a military pilot.

But for Berlin, the story the museum tells is what's most important.

"It's about two ordinary people that had grand ideas," he said, referring to Russell B. Nicholas and Howard Beazley.

And, he hopes all Marshallites, not just those with an interest in aviation, will come see the museum now that it's officially open.

"If I can get them through that door, they will like what's here and they'll appreciate it," Berlin said.

The Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum is open Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays 1 to 4 p.m.

Contact Sydney Stonner at marshallbusiness@socket.net