John Martinson of the Fort Walla Walla Museum had a question about the
number of museums in the U.S. An AAM publication, "Museums Count," states
that in 1989 there were approximately 8,200 museums in the U.S. This
figure merits a caveat or two: the publication is based on data from a
national survey completed 8 years ago, so the data are getting old; the
definition used by the committee of museum professionals who conducted
the survey was limited to nonprofit institutions that care for, own or
use tangible objects, animate or inanimate, exhibit them on a
regular basis, have at least one professional staff member (paid or
unpaid) and are open to the public at least 120 days a year.

A broader definition--i.e., for-profit institutions or ones that don't
have the equivalent of one full-time staff person--would increase this
total figure.

Also, Doug Lantry of the Univ. of Delaware asked whether AAM's
newsletter Aviso were available on-line. It isn't, at present, although
information regarding Aviso and other AAM publications, programs,
services, etc., can be found on our Web site: www.americanmuse.org/AAM


John Strand
Director of Publications
American Association of Museums
202-289-1818
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