Pamela,
I would suggest reading the National Park Service Museum Handbook, Part II,
Appendix D: Museum Archives and Manuscript Collections. I also would
suggest something that is repeated over and over in the handbook, consult
with a trained archivist. Here is the link:
http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/publications/MHII/mh2appd.pdf
Luck,
Robert
*******************************************
Robert Applegate, CA
Archivist
Nez Perce National Historical Park
Big Hole National Battlefield
39063 US HWY 95
Spalding ID 83540
phone: 208-843-2261 x142
fax: 208-843-2124
*******************************************
Pamela Elbe
<[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask]
Sent by: Museum cc: (bcc: Robert Applegate/NEPE/NPS)
discussion list Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Accessioning archival materials to museum collection
<[log in to unmask]
.LSOFT.COM>
07/06/2005 05:24 PM
AST
Please respond to
Museum discussion
list
I’m looking for suggestions on how to handle a significant amount of
archival materials (personal memoirs, military records, correspondence) and
photographs donated to my museum over nearly a decade (late 1980s to
mid-1990s) from hundreds of individuals. The then-archivist had the donors
sign deeds of gift giving title and applicable rights to the museum, but he
never assigned accession numbers for these donations (but he did assign
accession numbers for 3-D objects). In some cases where the donor gave
both archival materials and three-dimension objects he obtained two
deeds—one for the archives and one for the 3-D collection.
Here’s my problem: there is no good way to keep track of what we have deeds
for and what we don’t as far as the archives are concerned. I currently
have my accession files for the museum collection (all of which are in our
collections database) and then boxes of deeds and correspondence for all of
the stuff that was never formally accessioned (none of which are in our
database). We use PastPerfect for the 3-D collection and plan to
(eventually) have all of museum collections—3-D, archival, photographic—in
PastPerfect. This won’t be a problem for all of the material that was
acquired mid-1990s to present because everything has been assigned an
accession number and there is only one deed of gift per donation, but I
need to figure out how to handle all of the material that wasn’t formally
accessioned.
My instinct is to assign accession numbers as I work through these files,
but this will end up being a couple of hundred accessions when all is said
and done. Is this a good or bad idea? Any suggestions? There are so many
little, tangential problems (never having had a complete database, multiple
files, no clear policy… you name it) in addition to the big problem
mentioned above that it makes my head hurt.
Pamela Elbe
Collections Manager and Archivist
National Museum of American Jewish Military History
1811 R St. NW, Washington DC 20009
p: 202.265.6280 x201
f: 202.462.3192
http://www.nmajmh.org
Don’t miss our new exhibition, Reconnaissance and Recollection: Military
and Civilian Photographs from World War II—the photographs of Sy Weinstein.
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