For one of our old loans that was resolved we had each of five heirs sign
a different deed of gift signing over his/her portion of ownership to the
objects in question.  From what I understand, I think this is pretty
standard procedure when something is an old loan.

Beau Harris



> We recently had an odd situation along these lines. We had a collection
> donated by woman about 20 years ago. She has since died and a few weeks
> ago
> one of her sons called and wanted to know about the collection and if it
> was
> still here. Long story short....he wanted to take the collection on behalf
> of the family. Of course we weren't going to let him and his brother
> stopped
> him before it went any further but my question was do any of you have at
> your facility a form that all of the heirs to an estate sign (and have
> notarized) handing over their rights to another? We've never had a
> situation
> like this come up but I would like to be prepared in case it should happen
> again.
>
> Diane
>
> Diane Hutsell
> Executive Director
> McMinn County Living Heritage Museum
> PO Box 889
> Athens, TN 37303
> www.livingheritagemuseum.com
> [log in to unmask]
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Friday, September 07, 2007 12:35 PM
> Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Deaccessioning
>
>
> Good Morning All,
> Put a dozen museum collections folks, from a dozen different
> museums -- into a room with a large pot of coffee and endless plates of
> cookies (preferably chocolate chip...or, oatmeal cookies with raisins
> and pecans)......and I will guarantee you an afternoon of horror stories
> on such issues.
> Here is just one of many: I know of a museum, many years
> ago, which had, on long-term loan, a collection of Civil War artifacts
> from a lender who died....and several years had transpired since the
> lender's death.  At which point, the children of the deceased came forth
> to "claim" the collection.  The museum's "excellent" staff asked to see
> the probated will of the deceased, proving that the children were in
> fact entitled to "claim" the collection.  The children said they didn't
> have to "prove" to the staff their right to the claim the
> collection....they were his kids!!!!  In fact, it was discovered by the
> "excellent" staff that the deceased lender had two families (he was
> divorced) and when the probated will was finally examined, the original
> "children" (1st wife), who were "claiming the collection were NOT
> bequeathed title to those Civil War artifacts.  Ironically, the deceased
> lender gave those artifacts to the children of the 2nd wife.
> Eventually, when the "excellent" staff contacted the "rightful" owners
> of the collection (the children of the 2nd wife), they -- in turn --
> happily transferred the title of that significant collection to the
> museum.  The lesson of this is....be like the "excellent" staff and be
> mindful of the details, do things legally, with care and
> diligence.....and take your time.....and consult an attorney.
> And remember that LOAN is a four letter word!!!!!...and if you are
> trying to deaccession an old loan,...before you do....please invite a
> dozen museum collections folks to come over to your museum....put on a
> large pot of coffee and bring on the cookies......and......
> I hope this helps....
> Best Wishes and have a Wonderful Weekend!
> Wesley
> Wesley S. Creel
> Administrator of Programs
> Pink Palace Family of Museums
> Memphis, TN
> www.memphismuseums.org
> 901.320.6370
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
> Behalf Of Zickuhr, Kristine
> Sent: Friday, September 07, 2007 10:17 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Deaccessioning
>
> I wouldn't consider a note by an employee enough to make it your
> property.  Even if you can prove the daughter gave verbal permission,
> you can't be sure it was hers to give.  The lender may have died and
> left the property to someone else.  The lender may be alive and have an
> ongoing dispute with the daughter.  The first step in obtaining clear
> title is to be sure the donor has a legitimate right to give it away.
> If you had the lender's word you'd have a stronger, though still not
> solid, case.
>
> The correct way to do this would be to follow abandoned property law.
> It varies by state but typically involves publishing a notice in local
> papers and waiting a period of 7-10 years.  After that time you can
> claim it as your own and dispose of it. In the meantime you can go ahead
> with removal from the permanent collection (you really shouldn't have
> accessioned it without clear title either), but you'll still need to
> physically maintain it.
>
> Another alternative would be to try to contact the original lender or a
> family member to verify that it was a donation.  The problem you'll run
> into there is they'll want to know what you're up to and may be offended
> if they learn you're getting rid of it.
>
> The best alternative is probably to treat it as a loan, contact the
> original lender or legally entitled family member and return it.  It may
> cause hard feelings but at least you'll be covering yourself.
>
> If you go ahead and get rid of it, you might be fine, but you might not.
> You'd be surprised at how many donors and relatives pop up over the
> years looking for their "stuff".  It's bad enough if you disposed of a
> donation.  If they whip out paperwork proving it was a loan you'll have
> all kinds of trouble.
>
> If you do decide to go ahead anyway, at least carefully document why
> you're removing it and what exactly you're doing with it.  You'll be in
> a better position if you can prove it was in extremely poor condition or
> something like that.
>
> Kristine Zickuhr
> Registrar
> Wisconsin Veterans Museum
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
> Behalf Of George Harris
> Sent: Friday, September 07, 2007 9:26 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Deaccessioning
>
> Hello,
> I was wondering about deaccessioning objects from the permenant
> collection
> to be disposed of that were at one time an old loan.  There is a note
> that
> says the objects were made a gift by the daughter of the original
> lender,
> but no deed of gift or any other information indicating that they were
> made a gift.  I was told at one time that a note like that from a
> previous
> employee is enough to make it the property of the museum and it is
> alright
> to consider it so.  Is this really the case or do you actually need a
> deed
> of gift or some other formal paper work to make it the museum's
> property?
>
> Thank you.
>
> Beau Harris
>
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