You ask, “Would the Museum like to have this?”
A Guide To Donating Items To The Cedar Falls Historical Society
In an effort to focus our
collecting, we offer the following guidelines for people
considering gifts to the collection.
The Cedar Falls Historical Society
mission statement directs the collecting efforts: “to
preserve for research and educational purposes, artifacts and
information about the life and times of the people of Cedar
Falls, Black Hawk County, Iowa, from its pioneer origins to
present day times.”
We are looking for items that document our community’s history.
The items
should be:
* Directly related to Cedar Falls history; and
- in good
condition; and
- strengthen
the collection.
What We Collect
The following
is an example of what the Society collects.
Including, but
not limited to:
-
Domestic Life: journals/diaries, letters and photographs
up to the present day; men’s clothing before 1900 and c.
1925; Victorian era household objects; toys.
-
Business and Industry: advertising; business records;
materials on women in business; photographs; ice industry
photograph and objects.
- Social
Issues: signs, banners, buttons, memoirs.
- Farm &
Rural Life: journals/diaries, letters, and photographs
up to the present day.
-
Military: materials on home front activities and life;
Civil War-related items, official documents.
- Women:
photographs; manuscripts; objects related to women in
non-domestic roles; minority women’s groups; women’s
movement.
-
Transportation: materials on local trolley lines and
railroads; maps; photographs.
-
Immigrants: letters; diaries; oral histories; artifacts.
- Books:
by Cedar Falls authors; about Cedar Falls and Iowa history;
reference books on Victorian life; the 1920-30s; general
reference on Iowa history; Cedar Falls city directories;
county atlases; Cedar Falls and Black Hawk County
genealogies.
-
Schools: materials on Cedar Falls schools and one-room
schools; classroom materials; photographs; yearbooks to the
present time, and athletic memorabilia.
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Consider
- The
Society cannot accept all donation offers.
- Donations
cannot be accepted with conditions. Written materials and
manuscripts may be accepted with certain restrictions placed
on them.
- The
Society cannot place a value on gifts to the collection.
- “Permanent
loan items” will not be accepted into the collection.
- Donors
will receive a receipt and copy of the gift agreement.
You Can Help
Preserve Cedar Falls History
There are many stories to tell
about our community and one of the best ways is through
items residents have used in their everyday lives. These
often give us the most vivid glimpse into our history.
We are seeking to collect a wide
range of items relating to our past. These items may be
used in exhibits; as part of research projects by staff,
authors, students; and some will be made available for
hands-on activities for children so they may experience
touching and handling objects of an earlier time.
Our staff is trained to care for
the collection. Through grant monies and the annual Society
budget, we are striving to provide storage areas and exhibit
facilities that meet current museum standards.
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How to Make a
Donation
- Call us at
266-5149 and describe in detail the item or items.
- Please do
not bring your potential gift to the Society without
contacting a member of our staff; they are not available on
weekends. Volunteers (hosts/hostesses, docents, council and
board members) are not authorized to accept gifts into the
collection.
- If
necessary, a member of our staff will come to your home to
look at the item or items.
- The
Society will arrange for transferring items when necessary.
- The
Society will not accept gifts that we cannot care for
properly.
Financial
contributions to support the Society’s collections are always
welcome.
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Policy as of March
21, 2006
