RALEIGH – The man responsible for picking through yard sales and antique auctions, literally saving thousands of unique artifacts in the process, has died in Raleigh at the age of 96.

However, his life-long passion of collecting items once popular to the masses survives his death and remains on permanent display in Murfreesboro.

Brady C. Jefcoat of Raleigh passed away on Thursday April 11 at Morningside Nursing Home where he had been a resident for the past several years.

Jefcoat became known to many Roanoke-Chowan citizens as the donor of the huge collection of early American artifacts now housed a museum on High Street, a three-story structure that once served as Murfreesboro High School. The Brady C. Jefcoat Museum of Americana displays the largest collection in the state of North Carolina and is the result of over 40 years of collecting by him. Old phonographs, BB rifles, agricultural work tools, washboards, antique washing machines, irons, butter churns, clocks, and jukeboxes are just some of the items of yesteryear on display in the museum. All totaled, there are more than 13,000 items filling each and every inch of the 17,000 square feet of floor space.

Jefcoat led a very active life of building, collecting and speaking to groups about his collection and his Lord.  Several years ago he suffered a debilitating stroke and has been confined to a nursing home since that time.

According to information provided by former museum director Brinson Paul, funeral services for Jefcoat are tentatively planned for 11 a.m. on Monday April 15 in the church that he founded, Western Blvd. Presbyterian Church, located at 4900 Kaplan Drive in Raleigh.  Funeral arrangements are being handled by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, located at 300 St. Mary’s Street in Raleigh.