> I am curious to know what the procedure is for new
> acquisitions at other institutions.
>
> Do you have a committee?
At Historic Rock Castle, new acquisitions are under the jurisdiction of the
Collections Committee.

Who is on it?
At the invitation of the Chair of the Committee, the Director is involved,
however he holds no vote. The Committee is composed of Board Members.

> Who has the final authority to accept or reject an
> possible donation? The Collections Committee.

What is the size of your institution?
In terms of items, about 2000.

> Which staff member handles new acquisitions?
The site employs only a Director and a custodian and relies heavily upon
Board and volunteer support. As such, the Chair of Collections deals
primarily with new acquisitions.

> How often do you hold meetings?
The Board requires at least two meetings of the Collections Committee a
year, however, in practice, the Committee will be called to meet as and when
needed both for policy matters and for acquisition opportunities through
donations or prospective purchases.

Considering over 75% of museums in the US are designated by the AAM as a
"small museum", I thought that you may wish to know about a small, historic
house museum in Tennessee. As a former docent and occasional volunteer, I
offer this information.

WARNING!!! SHAMELESS PLUG TO FOLLOW!!!
If you are ever in the Nashville area, I highly recommend that you visit
Historic Rock Castle, the Federal plantation home of General Daniel Smith,
gentleman, statesman and surveyor of the State of Tennessee (also so named
by him). Some exciting acquisitions have been made in the past few years! It
is well worth the trip!

Kind regards,
Laura Petznick, Ph.D.

______________________________________________
FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com
Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).