I always ask for
information about their gift, along with any other possible supporting
documents, photographs, etc.  I add their information (sometimes in my
handwritten notes, though occasionally a donor is happy to write a page or
two of history _as they perceive it_ ) to the object file for curatorial
purposes.

I think that anyone involved in receiving gifts for an institution must include
in their routine doing all possible to get, and carefully save, ANY information
that they can get about an object, specimen, artifact.  This includes sales
slips, even shipping bills,in addition to written and oral data. ANY notes that
you can add to a file about that object may someday be important.
Just because your institution now thinks that it owns something does not mean
that later you might need to have all kinds of pertinent data available.
The 1990 Native American Grave and Repatriation Act implementation is a very
good example of why, later, your institution may need every bit of information
available about a donation or purchase.

Carole S. DeFord
Collections Manager
Cranbrook Institute of Science
Bloomfield Hills, MI