The Locksmith's House at Willenhall in the West Midlands is to shut on 17 December ahead of a possible relocation to the site of its owner, the Black Country Living Museum.
The lock museum lost its £12,000 annual funding from Walsall council in April, as well as backing from lockmaker Yale. Visitor numbers have fallen sharply to fewer than 2,000 a year.
The Black Country Living Museum wants to move the house and its contents to its main site at Dudley, 40 miles away, which receives 300,000 visitors a year and is home to about 50 relocated buildings.
Black Country director Ian Walden said he was "pretty confident" of securing funds for the £500,000 removal costs that would involve the brick-by-brick demolition and reconstruction of the lock museum.
The museum has already had a planning application refused for the Grade II-listed building, but Walden said he would reapply in January.
"We have reluctantly concluded that we can't afford to operate it without support," he said. "There is a presumption against moving listed buildings, but I can't see a future for it where it is."
Walden said the museum was on a shortlist for a major award to cover the costs of moving the building. He declined to say where funds would come from, but confirmed it was not a Heritage Lottery Fund bid.
Meanwhile, a decision on the closure of North Somerset Museum in Weston-super-Mare is scheduled for early next year.
The museum is run by North Somerset Council, which faces a £17m deficit, and has cut spending and put many services under review. The museum levies a £4 charge and has suffered from poor visitor numbers.
The attraction costs North Somerset Council £235,000 a year to run and the authority is considering replacing it with a touring exhibition and a small "shopfront" near the promenade. It considers the current location "poorly situated".
If the museum is kept open, the council will cut its grant by £30,000 a year from 2009-10.
The museum currently houses a special exhibition featuring a scale model of Weston's 104-year-old Grand Pier Pavilion, which burned down in July.
A North Somerset Council spokesman said: "The museums service is being reviewed. There is a report due early in the new year."
The lock museum lost its £12,000 annual funding from Walsall council in April, as well as backing from lockmaker Yale. Visitor numbers have fallen sharply to fewer than 2,000 a year.
The Black Country Living Museum wants to move the house and its contents to its main site at Dudley, 40 miles away, which receives 300,000 visitors a year and is home to about 50 relocated buildings.
Black Country director Ian Walden said he was "pretty confident" of securing funds for the £500,000 removal costs that would involve the brick-by-brick demolition and reconstruction of the lock museum.
The museum has already had a planning application refused for the Grade II-listed building, but Walden said he would reapply in January.
"We have reluctantly concluded that we can't afford to operate it without support," he said. "There is a presumption against moving listed buildings, but I can't see a future for it where it is."
Walden said the museum was on a shortlist for a major award to cover the costs of moving the building. He declined to say where funds would come from, but confirmed it was not a Heritage Lottery Fund bid.
Meanwhile, a decision on the closure of North Somerset Museum in Weston-super-Mare is scheduled for early next year.
The museum is run by North Somerset Council, which faces a £17m deficit, and has cut spending and put many services under review. The museum levies a £4 charge and has suffered from poor visitor numbers.
The attraction costs North Somerset Council £235,000 a year to run and the authority is considering replacing it with a touring exhibition and a small "shopfront" near the promenade. It considers the current location "poorly situated".
If the museum is kept open, the council will cut its grant by £30,000 a year from 2009-10.
The museum currently houses a special exhibition featuring a scale model of Weston's 104-year-old Grand Pier Pavilion, which burned down in July.
A North Somerset Council spokesman said: "The museums service is being reviewed. There is a report due early in the new year."
