Legendary British pop star Phil Collins has donated a large portion of his Alamo artifacts to The Alamo in San Antonio. It is the largest collection of Alamo memorabilia in the world.
Collins’ memorabilia collection was delivered to The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday. Collins was in attendance to watch the massive wooden crates being delivered.
“I’m not sad,” Collins said of turning over the collection. “I’m really happy that it’s going here, because this is the place where it should be. This completes a journey for me.”
The collection includes Jim Bowie’s knife which he carried in the battle, one of four rifles and a musket pouch said to be used by Davy Crockett, etters written by William B. Travis, cannoballs, and Santa Anna’s sword. The 200-piece collection is valued somewhere between $10 and $15 million, and most of these artifacts will be returned to The Alamo for the first time in 178 years.
Collins discussed his love for The Alamo as the artifacts were being delivered, claiming his obsession began when he was 6-years old and he watched Davy Crockett inn television. “From that moment, I was hooked on this story. It just stayed with me all the way through the music years,” he said. “I decided to spend my money on that instead of Ferraris.”
“I would have some sadness and maybe thinking it was a mistake if it were going to a museum that didn’t have any emotional contact … with the Alamo,” he said. “This is the best thing that could happen to it.”
Phil Collins and land commissioner Jerry Patterson have created a foundation which has collected over $100 million in order to create a museum and visitor center for the artifacts. The Alamo artifacts from Phil Collins’ collection will be shown a little at a time in the coming years.
[photo credit: www.ubikwit.net]