- 15 -
along because he “[enjoyed] spending time with her”. Also
accompanying Mr. Gow on the hunting trips were Louis Schreiner and
his wife. (Mr. Schreiner was on the board of the Safari Club and
owned the Y.O. Ranch.) Upon returning from these hunting
excursions, Mr. Gow would hire a taxidermist to create the animal
mounts.
The planned animal trophy museum to be located on Powhatan
Plantation was never built. Nor was there ever a traveling display
of the mounts. Rather, the animal mounts were displayed at both
the Y.O. Ranch and Bob’s Gun & Tackle Shop (Bob’s) in Norfolk,
Virginia. (A total of 31 animal mounts were displayed at Bob’s and
more than 31 others were displayed at the Y.O. Ranch.) Initially,
the animal mounts at Bob’s were identified with note cards bearing
the name of Mr. Gow and certifying the animal mounts’ world record
status. Approximately a year later, and at the advice of their tax
preparers, petitioners sent Bob’s a letter indicating that the
animal mounts were the property of Powhatan Plantation.
Subsequently, the note cards were replaced with formal plaques
bearing the name “Powhatan Plantation”.
In 1991, Bob’s placed 18 of the animal mounts in storage. In
1997, Signature Resorts, Inc., purchased all the assets of WVI,
including the animal trophy collection.
In 1989, 1990, and 1992, WVI deducted all costs incurred for
the procurement and display of the animal trophy collection, except
Page: Previous 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 NextLast modified: May 25, 2011