Grenade donated to the Military Heritage Museum

The Military Heritage Museum in Punta Gorda got quite the scare Thursday morning.

“It was a grenade that was not properly disposed of at some point in time, which gave the police department the possibility of it being alive,” said Issac James, Interim executive director of the museum. “And so because of that precautions were taken and the building was evacuated.”

James says a grenade, unhollowed and unpainted, was donated along with other items.

With the help of the Punta Gorda Police Department and the Lee County bomb squad, they determined that the grenade did not have an explosive filler and was not dangerous.

And it was back to business as usual.

James says they get all kinds of items dropped off and he doesn’t want this to discourage people from bringing in items.

“But where we welcome all donations of artifacts minus the footlockers and the uniforms. We just asked that they would be safely dismantled before bringing them here,” said James.

With a place full of stories, the museum cherishes the past.

“Every artifact here at the museum has a story behind it. And all of them, if not most of them, are all local, they’re local stories,” said James. “You know, I have a couple of favorite artifacts of mine, one down in the hall of heroes. The actual bugle that was played at the John F. Kennedy’s funeral from a family in Naples where the uniform that was worn by a soldier that was detained in Illinois in Vietnam.”

And each item has its own history to tell.

So make sure before you bring in any ammunition donations, to check with your sheriff’s office or call a non-emergency 911 number to make sure it’s safe.