The Atlanta Cyclorama and Civil War Museum has closed its long-time location in Grant Park, opening the way to move the historic painting of the Battle of Atlanta to the Atlanta History Center in Buckhead.
In addition to the 128-year-old painting, a locomotive, four cannons and other Civil War artifacts will be moved to a new facility at the history center. Construction on the new building to hold the painting is to begin in the fall and the new display is scheduled to open in 2017.
The locomotive, the Texas, will be displayed in a new breezeway being built at the history center between the current building and the new building that will house the painting, the history center said. The new display will allow the locomotive to be seen from West Paces Ferry Road, the center said.
The display also will allow the restoration of more than 3,000 square feet of the painting that was removed for generations, the history center said.
“The Atlanta History Center has the most comprehensive collection of Civil War artifacts at one location in the nation,” Mayor Kasim Reed said in a press release.
“The relocation of the Atlanta Cyclorama to the history center provides the opportunity to make new connections between the Cyclorama and other artifacts, archival records, photographs, rare books, and contemporary research, providing a unique opportunity to renew our Cyclorama – one of the city’s most important cultural and historic landmarks.”