On November 18, WTAMU announced that the university cannot continue to provide long-term funding for the facilities that house the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum, ending the 93 year-long partnership between both organizations. This comes after the state fire marshal found significant safety concerns which led to the closure of the building in March of 2025. The total cost to update the building to rectify those issues, including installation of fire suppression systems and emergency exits, was estimated to be around $100 million. Since the closure of the museum, the Panhandle Plains Historical Society, the organization responsible for the care and curation of the collection housed in the museum, has presented selections of their collection at numerous events throughout the High Plains, with the hope that funding would eventually be secured to renovate the facility and allow visitors to return.
Now, just under a month after that announcement on December 15, the PPHS Board of Trustees released a statement in response to a letter they received from Wendler concerning the fate of the museum.
“President Wendler has asked Panhandle-Plains Historical Society to develop a plan to vacate the museum building on the WT campus and relocate our collection to another location. He has asked for a written plan by February 1. We are working on a timeline. Our focus right now is on the future and we are moving forward.”
More information on the museum’s closure and what the PPHS has done to continue their mission of promoting the stories of this region in order to build community, enhancing learning, and nurturing creativity, can be found on their website.
HPPR will continue to provide updates on this story as new information comes forward.
