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Mid-19th-century watercolor street scene of Harrisburg with the German Reform Church as its central subject. Signed 'J.F. Messick 1857.' Auctioned on Jan. 5, 2007 at Pook & Pook. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Pook & Pook.

Harrisburg, Pa., to sell artifacts from museum project

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
Mid-19th-century watercolor street scene of Harrisburg with the German Reform Church as its central subject. Signed 'J.F. Messick 1857.' Auctioned on Jan. 5, 2007 at Pook & Pook. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Pook & Pook.
Mid-19th-century watercolor street scene of Harrisburg with the German Reform Church as its central subject. Signed ‘J.F. Messick 1857.’ Auctioned on Jan. 5, 2007 at Pook & Pook. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Pook & Pook.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Pennsylvania’s financially troubled capital city is preparing to auction some 8,000 artifacts bought by a former mayor who had had a grand plan to transform Harrisburg into a historical tourism destination.

The mayor’s office said Friday it has selected three finalists to appraise, market and auction the collection. Spokesman Robert Philbin said it spans three centuries of American history.

The artifacts cost millions of dollars in public money and were purchased by ex-Mayor Steve Reed as part of a failed plan to build museums dedicated to sports, the Wild West and African American history.

The three firms selected are Freeman’s in Philadelphia, Guernsey’s in New York and the Potomack Co., in Alexandria, Va.

Philbin says an auctioneer will be selected before the spring auction season.

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AP-WF-01-20-12 2233GMT

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Mid-19th-century watercolor street scene of Harrisburg with the German Reform Church as its central subject. Signed 'J.F. Messick 1857.' Auctioned on Jan. 5, 2007 at Pook & Pook. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Pook & Pook.
Mid-19th-century watercolor street scene of Harrisburg with the German Reform Church as its central subject. Signed ‘J.F. Messick 1857.’ Auctioned on Jan. 5, 2007 at Pook & Pook. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Pook & Pook.