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Historic house museums can be found in nearly every city in the United States and Canada. These are the homes of the earliest settlers, statesmen, frontiersmen, great writers, artists, architects, and industrial magnates. These are the places, carefully saved and preserved, that represent a cultural heritage. Despite their popularity, it is not uncommon to find museums that are in poor repair, their collections neglected and their staffs grossly overworked. Many are run by well-meaning and hard-working volunteers who have little or no professional training. Often they survive on shoestring budgets and are able to present only limited programs. Serving both as a hands-on guide and reference, this book examines these problems, offering practical advice and solutions which can be easily implemented. Its useful "lessons" include governance, where to find help, care of collections, conservation, security, and interpretation--all designed to increase the professionalism of the historic house museum.
History from Things explores the many ways objects—defined broadly to range from Chippendale tables and Italian Renaissance pottery to seventeenth-century parks and a New England cemetery—can reconstruct and help reinterpret the past. Eighteen essays describe how to “read” artifacts, how to “listen to” landscapes and locations, and how to apply methods and theories to historical inquiry that have previously belonged solely to archaeologists, anthropologists, art historians, and conservation scientists. Spanning vast time periods, geographical locations, and academic disciplines, History from Things leaps the boundaries between fields that use material evidence to understand the past. The book expands and redirects the study of material culture—an emerging field now building a common base of theory and a shared intellectual agenda.
A definitve guide to best practice in museums, at a time in which all museums require ever more innovative solutions to processes of interpreting the world's cultural and scientific heritage.
Handbook for Museums is the definitive guide of need-to-know information essential for working in the museum world. Presenting a field-tested guide to best practice, the Handbook is formed around a commitment to professionalism in museum practice. The sections provide information on management, security, conservation and education. Including technical notes and international reading lists too, Handbook for Museusms is an excellent manual for managing and training.
This brief manual is designed specifically for people running the thousands of small museums and historic sites across the U.S. and Canada. These smaller institutions tend to lack funding and professional staff, so this book is meant to help the busy administrators perform their job of fundraising better and more efficiently.
Proper collections care, planning, and conservation is an essential responsibility for a museum of any size, but funding for these obligations often falls to the bottom of funding priorities because its constituencies are the quietest. Small museums need affordable ways to provide basic care for their collections and the tools to lobby for additional funds for the long-term health of collections. Small museums often do not have staff expertise on the maintenance and preservation of these large and expensive pieces of history. This book offers practical tips for collections care, including preservation strategies for historic properties and a primer on managing potential harms to your artifacts.
"As a small museum staff person, you are responsible for a lot, including areas outside of your expertise or training. You need a quick reference that makes the process of becoming a sustainable, valued institution less overwhelming. The Small Museum Toolkit is a collection of six books that serves as a launching point for small museum staff to pursue best practices and meet museum standards. These brief volumes address governance, financial management, human resources, audience relations, interpretation, and stewardship for small museums and historic sites." --Amazon.
This books describes the process of research and development that changed the Fortress of Louisbourg from ruins to a reconstruction of the original that provides a living history experience to many thousands of annual visitors.
Creating tours that are interesting and educational for visitors (and guides!) is a challenge every historic site faces. Great Tours! helps you focus clearly on the material culture and significance of your site and then shows you how to use that focus to train and energize your guides. You will be able to move your tours to a fresh new level that is engaging and educational for visitors of all ages and abilities. Readings and workshop activities frame the process throughout and allow you to develop what is most appropriate for your site, while working to strike a realistic balance between ideals and every day reality. Great Tours! offers a unique combination of theoretical guidance and practical activities, supplemented by reproducible forms and a bibliography and index, that make it an invaluable resource for anyone involved with planning tours and training guides. Published in cooperation with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Visit their web page.