WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — The founder of the Winston Cup Museum in Winston-Salem announced it will be closed until further notice due to numerous lawsuits from the new parent company of Winston cigarette brand.
The museum, which opened in downtown Winston-Salem in 2005, chronicles NASCAR's history when Winston Cigarettes was a major sponsor, from 1971 until 2003. Winston's support ushered in what's known as NASCAR's modern era, sponsoring the Cup Series until 2003.
The Winston Cup Museum has dozens of race cars, as well as memorabilia and other artifacts from the Winston era of NASCAR. Now, the company that purchased the Winston brand wants the artifacts, saying they rightfully belong to them.
The lawsuit filed by ITG Brands LLC, which bought the Winston brand from R.J. Reynolds Tobacco in 2015, wishes to take ownership of the artifacts stored and displayed at the facility. According to the Winston-Salem Journal, the museum's owner claimed to have a storage agreement with R.J. Reynolds for physical copies and reproductions of Winston Cup images.
ITG said it believes there is "no written agreement" documenting such an arrangement between the museum or R.J. Reynolds.
Will Spencer, the founder of the museum, said Monday that fighting the lawsuits simply isn't worth the resources necessary at this time.
According to a lawsuit filed earlier this year, ITG claims that Spencer filed for several trademark applications for Winston and Winston Cup in 2022. The company claims these attempts show that Spencer is "attempting to use the Winston Cup artifacts for purposes well beyond the operation of a museum," the Winston-Salem Journal reported.
"I am incredibly proud to have had the honor of preserving this history for the past 18 years that we have been open to the public," a statement from Spencer says. "I believe I have helped keep the Winston Cup era alive for many racing fans. So it is with great personal sadness that the time has come for me to close the museum's doors to the public for now."
Spencer explained that ITG has filed multiple lawsuits against him, claiming his business "infringes on their ability to market their cigarettes to racing fans" and said two suits have been dismissed.
"After much contemplation, I have come to the realization that fighting with ITG is not worth the resources that it will take and the toll it has taken on me and my family," Spencer wrote.
News of the museum's closing drew the ire of NASCAR fans and media alike. Ryan McGee, a mainstay in the NASCAR industry since the 1990s, shared his displeasure on Twitter.
"Trying to ruin a family for creating a truly amazing - and harmless - shrine to the only awesome thing a corporation did during the same era they knowingly lied to and killed countless people is the most Big Tobacco thing ever," McGee tweeted.
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