This has been on my mind for a while now.
NASA had 5 space shuttles in their fleet that had actually been in orbit.
Two of them had "rapid unexpected disassembly" during their lifetime:
Challenger was lost in an accident 1986
Columbia was lost in an accident 2003
Leaving 3 to find homes after the shuttle program wound down. I'll get to those in a moment.
There were also 4 other vehicles that were not used in space, and which require a little explanation because they "look like" a real shuttle.
Ambassador was a scale model built to get an idea of the size of the vehicle before they built any "real ones." The exterior looked right, but it had no other features. This model was dismantled in the early 1990s and its whereabouts are unknown.
Inspiration was the first full scale mockup built. It was a prototype of sorts, and had all the dimensions - interior and exterior right, and even had some simulated control panels. It was sold, and is privately owned. There is a plan for it to go on display in Downey, CA "soon"
Enterprise was an airworthy mockup. It was used as a prototype in its flight characteristics and ability to land it on a runway. While it didn't go into space, it was as close to the real thing you could get. It was sold to the intrepid museum in New York.
Explorer This was a full scale replica, which I believe was built by Ringling Brothers (or perhaps it was only owned by them at some point). It used all the blueprints and plans in its design. It had a flight deck with controls, a fabric covering, and some faux heat tiles. It was on display at Kennedy space center until 2000, and I got to get the complete tour of it. It LOOKED like a shuttle. There was nothing about it that made it feel incomplete. It just wasn't designed to go into space. But if you didn't know, you might not know. In fact, I remember people seeing it and thinking it was real.
When Kennedy Space Center's visitor center was enhanced, this mockup was moved to Johnson and renamed Independence. I'm not sure of its ownership but NASA has it on display there, even today. It is not a shuttle that flew in space, but, again, you wouldn't know unless you know.
And then we have the remaining three that flew in space:
Atlantis - was left at Kennedy space center after its last mission and is housed in an exhibition building.
Endeavor - after a bidding process, this vehicle was sold to the California science center (in Los Angeles), where it is on display.
Discovery - was "donated" to the Smithsonian
In summary, of the 9 total shuttles that were created from mockups to actual flight worthy machines, you have 3 that are no longer around, 3 that were sold to private organizations, 1 that is part of the Smithsonian collection, and the remaining 2 are owned by NASA.
Some politicians would like a "real one" at the Johnson Space Center, which is weird because they have one there that is as close to real as you can get. The only other one they control is the one at Kennedy Space Center.
The Smithsonian is not under the purview or control of NASA, and congress has no authority over their collection, so in a way its like its in a private collection.
So all of this rhetoric and angst is a big show about literally nothing. Its stupid and makes no sense at all. The time to have this discussion was a decade or more ago when they were deciding what to do with the shuttles.
The cost to move any of these at this point is off the charts and serves no purpose.
