 In 2003, after conducting a comprehensive two-year study to plan the foundation’s future mission and goals, the board of directors of the Terra Foundation for American Art decided to expand the reach of the foundation and to close the Terra Museum in Chicago at the end of October 2004.Before the museum closed, Judith Terra, the founder's widow and his second wife, plus several board members, attempted to relocate the museum to Washington, D.C., but a 2004 legal settlement required the Foundation to stay in the state of Illinois for 50 years.The works formerly displayed at the museum continue to be owned by the Terra Foundation for American Art, and the Foundation continues to expand the collection.