Well, I only hope my advice is of some use.  Collectively, I'm sure you are
receiving a good range of ideas and suggestions.

Keep the talk line open as your project rolls along, for support and/or
progress reports.

Kim

On Mon, Sep 22, 2014 at 2:25 PM, William Denius <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Thanks, Kim! I'm so appreciative of all of this advice, since I am but one
> lonely professional in this museum where the administration is begging for
> help.
>
> On Mon, Sep 22, 2014 at 1:14 PM, Kim Hanninen <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> Hi -
>>
>> I first want to commend you for taking on this monumental task.  Reading
>> about what the museums in Katrina's wake had to go through to not only
>> survive, but to rebuild is way beyond the everyday registrar duties.
>>
>> Our museum was built 30 years after the college's collection began.
>> There was very minimal paperwork relating to when works were acquired, and
>> the numbering system duplicated itself from one collection or type of work
>> to the next.  The only difference in accession numbers was when it was a
>> sculpture it had the letter "S" before the number.
>>
>> We had just acquired Past Perfect and in talking with their tech support
>> we came up with a system using the year all works were transferred to our
>> building as the starting number - so that was 1991. The next set of numbers
>> related to type of collection.  Inuit prints were 001; Inuit sculptures
>> were 002, etc.  As I am still finding objects and we are still receiving
>> gifts, there comes a time when you have to go back and forth as to the
>> numbering systems, but you get used to it.
>>
>> I agree with Lucy and the others and would not begin with 2014.
>> Hurricane Katrina is your benchmark and I would use that year as your
>> starting point.  The "old number" idea from John is also a good thing to
>> follow. Past Perfect has a location for "old numbers" which is handy for
>> cross referencing.  If your program doesn't have that, then be consistent
>> and make note somewhere in your data entry of any old and/or partial
>> numbers you might find.
>>
>> Take pictures of each numbered piece and be sure to save a copy somewhere
>> offsite....just in case.  And be patient.  A friend from The DIA in Detroit
>> gave me some advise when I first began, telling me that I don't have to
>> complete each object to it's fullest before going on to the next object.
>> Just get a number on them, take a photo, some description, and a location,
>> and then move to the next.  It won't seem so overwhelming.  You can always
>> go back.
>>
>> Best of luck
>>
>> Kim H. Hanninen, Registrar
>> Dennos Museum Center
>> 1701 East Front Street
>> Traverse City, Michigan 49686
>> p 231.995.1574 (direct)
>> p 231.995-1055
>> f 231-995-1597
>> [log in to unmask]
>> www.dennosmuseum.org
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Sep 22, 2014 at 11:31 AM, William Denius <[log in to unmask]>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>
>>> I recently began volunteering for a museum that lost all of its
>>> accession records and many artifacts from Hurricane Katrina. In all
>>> honestly I'm at a loss for where to begin.  I know I should start with the
>>> exhibited items, but I'm not sure what to do with accession numbers since
>>> many identifying tags and all of the records are lost.  Should I begin with
>>> the current year, as in 2014.xx.x? How should I make groups for items?
>>> Should they be grouped as similar items or grouped by exhibit?
>>>
>>> The issues go deeper than accessioning, but this museum has been told
>>> that they have a minimum of 5 years of work ahead just to get organized.
>>> Basically, this museum is starting over and the whole place is a MESS. I'm
>>> writing a collections management policy, accession forms, loan agreements,
>>> condition reports, etc. for this museum.  I also plan to work on a disaster
>>> management plan.
>>>
>>> Needless to say, I'm a bit overwhelmed.  Any advice would be greatly
>>> appreciated!
>>>
>>> William Denius
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
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>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Kim H. Hanninen, Registrar
>> Dennos Museum Center
>> 1701 East Front Street
>> Traverse City, Michigan 49686
>> p 231.995.1574 (direct)
>> p 231.995-1055
>> f 231-995-1597
>> [log in to unmask]
>> www.dennosmuseum.org
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>>
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-- 
Kim H. Hanninen, Registrar
Dennos Museum Center
1701 East Front Street
Traverse City, Michigan 49686
p 231.995.1574 (direct)
p 231.995-1055
f 231-995-1597
[log in to unmask]
www.dennosmuseum.org

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