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'Priceless' Civil War soldiers' hat believed stolen from Culpeper museum Date published: 6/30/2005
By DONNIE JOHNSTON A Union army hat described as a "priceless family heirloom" is missing and presumed stolen from the Museum of Culpeper History. "It breaks my heart," Museum Director Zann Miner said yesterday. The Civil War hat, which belonged to a soldier named Jeremiah Helleck and was loaned to the museum in 1978, was discovered missing from its still-locked glass display case Monday. Joseph "Rock" Hudson, a Culpeper builder and Helleck's great-great-grandson, informed Culpeper town police Tuesday that the hat was missing. According to the police report, the hat went missing sometime after June 11. Miner said after the hat disappeared, she called Hudson and asked if he had come and gotten it. He told her he had not. "It certainly wasn't an easy call for me to make, but my first obligation was to inform the family," Miner said. The museum director said she is not certain how the hat was removed from its display case, but suspects that two panels of glass were pushed apart to allow access with some sort of hook. "I think it would have taken two people to get it, and they would have had to scope the place out in advance," she said. Miner added that the only set of keys that will open the display case are kept in a secure place. She is the only person authorized to use them. The hat is a Union "kepi" bearing a red Maltese cross with the number 217. According to the police report, Hudson placed a $3,000 value on the hat, although he said that in sentimental terms it is "priceless." Miner said she was interviewing with museum staff members and volunteers to try and determine how the hat disappeared. "We're in the process of gathering information," she said, adding that the museum had not officially contacted town police about the incident. Miner said she initially thought some other museum staff member might have returned the hat to Hudson because in recent months he had discussed possibly removing some of his ancestor's artifacts from the museum. But with only a single set of keys to the case, she said that she doesn't think that was possible. Miner said the museum does not have the money to install a sophisticated electronic surveillance system. To reach DONNIE JOHNSTON:
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
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