Introduction

Not sure what to do with old photographs, magazines, memorabilia or souvenirs?

Donate them to the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project!

Introduction

This collection policy is a system of mandatory guidelines for the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project defining the responsibilities of collections management and establishing the conditions for acquiring, loaning, maintaining and deaccessioning collections. 

While there is no universal law for management of collections held by archives, all professionals within the field acknowledge that the preservation and appropriate, respectful interpretation of collections placed in their care is a moral responsibility.

We adhere to the standards for collection management established by the American Association of Museums and other professional groups. 

Mission Statement

The following mission statement has been approved by the Board of Directors:

The primary function of the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project is to research, document, preserve, celebrate and elevate Wisconsin's hidden LGBTQ history and heritage.

The Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project has no physical address, office, or museum location.  As a result, physical materials -- once evaluated, processed, indexed, scanned, and incorporated into our digital collections -- are donated to the University of Wisconsin Archives for safe-keeping, preservation and onward use. This partnership, forged in the earliest days of the History Project, ensures continuous access to materials by researchers, students, historians, journalists, and academic professionals.

Types

The Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project accepts all historic materials for consideration.  Our acquisition priorities include artifacts, archival materials, and lived experiences.

Artifacts are objects acquired for exhibition and/or research, to provide documentation of a historic person, place or moment of progress, or to enhance our understanding of Wisconsin LGBTQ history.  These may include photographs, magazines, bar guides, matchbooks, apparel, artwork, or any other physical materials.

Archival Materials are primary source documents, original photographic prints and negatives, original motion picture material (film, videotape or digitized), paper ephemera, and/or electronic files.   These may include personal papers, scrapbooks, organizational histories, or the curated collections of an individual or group.

Lived Experiences are oral histories, testimonials, interviews and insights donated to the History Project through outreach and education.  These valuable stories reinforce the greater framework of Wisconsin LGBTQ history.

Delegation and Responsibility

Board of Directors: The role of the Board is to elevate the community through historic celebration.  The legal authority for the approval of collection management policy, acquisition, and deaccessioning rests with the Board of Directors. The Chair of the Education & Outreach Committee oversees policy implementation, as well as the sourcing, acquisition and processing of all collection items.  All acquisitions are to be done on behalf of the History Project, not the individual. Board members are expected to advance the Project's mission by actively identifying priorities and opportunities for content acquisition, preservation, and exhibition.  

Education & Outreach Committee: The Committee is led by the Program Director, and currently includes the Program Director, community advisors, and volunteers. 

The committee:

1. Implements and manages collection policies for the organization.

2. Networks with agencies, organizations, and individuals to source new materials, as the curator of collections.

3. Reviews and recommends new ways to exhibit our existing collections, as well as any newly acquired content, for the organizations, partners, and communities.

4. Serves as connector to Archivist and external Archive partners.

5. Advocates, champions, and fosters ongoing memorial donations from elders, survivors, and families.

The Program Director is liaison between the Education & Outreach Committee and the Board. The committee should meet quarterly, or as often as deemed necessary by the Program Director.

Archivist  New collections will be received, processed, indexed, scanned and incorporated into our digital collections by the archivist, announced through social and digital communications, and routed to external archive partners.

Archive Partners Archive partners are responsible for maintaining the physical care of collection objects, creating collections records, and registering, accessioning, and cataloging all artifacts.  Archive partners may apply additional guidelines based on their own organizational policies.

Acquisition

Objects may be acquired by the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project at any time. Ongoing donations improve the educational value of our organization and enhance our programs and services. The Board accepts these items into the collection upon the professional recommendation of the Education & Outreach Committee, taking responsibility for stewardship only after establishing ownership.

Effective January 1, 2025, every acquired object is subject to a Donation Contract, which may be customized to support the creative or legal expectations of the original owner.

The History Project may acquire collections through donation, bequest, purchase, and exchanges. The Education & Outreach Committee will recommend the acquisition of artifact and archival collection items to the Board. The Board reviews the objects and recommends approval.

Criteria

The Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project will consider items for acquisition and accessioning if the following conditions are met:

1. The item falls within our scope, range, mission and purpose, i.e., the LGBTQ history of Wisconsin;

2. The History Project can properly care for or develop a plan for the care of the item in accordance with professionally accepted standards'

3. The item is in reasonable and presentable condition and will not adversely affect other items in the collections;

4. The original owner, History Project and archival partner(s) have agreed upon a Donation Contract that serves the needs of all stakeholders;

5. The item meets collection needs by filling a gap in the collection;

6. The item does not represent an unnecessary duplication of artifacts in the collections;

7. The History Project intends to keep the item in the digital collection indefinitely;

We will not knowingly accept materials of illicit origin or doubtful title into the collections. If donations prove to be of questionable origin, we will contact the appropriate authorities and make reasonable efforts to resolve the problem ethically and in accordance with the law.   

Once the History Project receives a donation, with signed Donation Contract, the donor surrenders their total ownership claim to the object. All items in our collections fall under the jurisdiction of the Board of Directors and if unrestricted, may be displayed, loaned, retained or disposed of in the best interests of the History Project and the public it serves.

Ownership of an object is separate from ownership of copyrights under Title 17, U.S. Code (copyright law), therefore we will attempt to obtain exclusive copyright, when applicable, for new acquisitions to the historical collection. Appropriate language will be included in the muniment to insure conveyance of all copyrights, including all rights necessary for electronic distribution of work through present or future technology. If the donor does not own the copyrights, we will make a reasonable effort to locate the owner and obtain these rights. For purchases, we will ask the vendor to supply the names of previous owners or descendants of the originator in an attempt to obtain copyrights. These procedures will be followed until, under the law, such artifacts fall into the public domain.

The lack of copyright ownership will not preclude acceptance of an item for the collection, but the records for such an item will be clearly marked regarding its copyright status and the object’s use will be limited. Borrowers and researchers will be responsible for obtaining permission from copyright owner(s) to reproduce these items.

Donations

Items may be acquired by donation for historical structure, artifact, archival and library collections through the transfer of ownership from an individual, corporation, or institution. Artifact and archival collections require committee review and board approval.

We will generally not accept restricted gifts. Exceptions may be proposed for board approval.

Potential donors will be informed of the unrestricted nature of all donations. A Donation Contract, executed by the donor and the History Project, shall be obtained for all donations after January 1, 2025.

In compliance with the Internal Revenue Service code for non-profit institutions and to avoid possible conflicts of interest, we  may not appraise items for donors, institutions, or members of the general public (see IRS Publication 561 Determining the Value of Donated Property and Publication 526 Charitable Contributions).  Donors must arrange and pay for these independent appraisals on gifts for tax purposes. We will promptly complete any Internal Revenue Service forms for a donor seeking tax deductions. The completion of such forms does not necessarily imply our concurrence with the appraised value.

Bequest

Collection items may be acquired through bequests in which the History Project is named as beneficiary in a will. Bequests of personal property shall be referred to the Education & Outreach Committee, which will recommend acceptance or refusal. Bequests may be accepted into the collections in total or in part. Items that do not become part of the collections may be disposed of in accordance with board policy and state law. Any proceeds resulting from such disposal are to be used for the benefit of the non-profit organization.

A Donation Contract, executed by the donor or agent of the donor and the History Project, shall be required for all bequests accepted into the collections after January 1, 2025.

Purchases

As a volunteer-led non-profit, the History Project generally does not pay to acquire materials for its collections.  However, with approval of the Board of Directors, the History Project may occasionally purchase a collection through honorarium, stipend, or in-kind agreement. 

Purchased items must be accompanied by a bill of sale (purchase order or vendor’s invoice). If a third party is involved in the purchase, the original bill of sale is to accompany the document recording the transfer of ownership of the item(s). These documents, or copies, will be placed in the permanent acquisitions file.

Exchange

Historical artifacts may be acquired through exchange with another not-for-profit educational institution only if the History Project and the other institution believe the transfer to be the best interests of both repositories. The institutions will follow proper deaccessioning procedures as outlined by their respective collection policies, and will fully document all aspects of the exchange. Formal appraisals may be required to ascertain the equality of the transfer, and all exchanges will require approval by the Board of Directors.

Undocumented

Since the History Project began in 1994, numerous objects have been donated to the organization from sources that may or may not be documented. If an ownership dispute arises, the History Project will first try to determine the source of the items. If the source cannot be confirmed, the dispute will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

The History Project operates on a Creative Commons approach, requesting only accreditation for all sourced materials. The History Project does not charge for secondary educational usage of its content.

Deaccession

Subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, items may be deaccessioned from the collections of the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project.

Deaccessioning is exercised after careful deliberation and with caution. The History Project will consider the needs of the collection, the best interest of the public, the donor’s wishes, the clarity of title, the tax status of the item, and the fiduciary responsibilities of the board. Once a decision to deaccession is made, the method of disposal also is considered carefully.

Criteria

An object can be considered for deaccession if any of the following conditions are met:

1. The object fails to fall within organizational scope
2. The object constitutes an unnecessary duplication of other collection materials.
3. The object’s condition has deteriorated beyond usefulness, the item has been damaged beyond repair.
4. The authenticity of the object has been refuted because it is not what it was purported to be or is a fake, or the item’s research or intrinsic value has been significantly altered due to poor restoration.
5. The object lacks provenance.

Considerations

Title: We must have clear title for any item it may consider for deaccession. Any legally binding restrictions contained in the original terms of the gift or bequest regarding disposal will be followed. In cases where no gift agreement or other documentation of acquisition exists or can be found, the material is considered unclaimed, undocumented, abandoned property, and deaccessioning may proceed.

Responsibility: The recommendation to deaccession an item will originate from the Archivist, Program Director, or Board of Directors. The Board must approve all final decisions.

Disposal: Deaccessioned items will be disposed of in a manner most beneficial to the public should the original donor not wish to have the object returned.

Methods of disposal may include: donation or trade to a nonprofit education institution, public sale, or destruction. Private sales or gifts to individuals are not permitted. 

Proceeds: All proceeds from the sale of deaccessioned collections will be reinvested in the non-profit operation. 

Records: The History Project shall maintain a file of all deaccessioned items, including a description, the circumstances of its removal, means of disposal, and photographs. All catalog records pertaining to deaccessioned items will be updated indicating the method and date of disposal. Accession numbers, files, or other documentary references to deaccessioned objects will not be reassigned.

Reproduction

Reproductions may be made of History Project photography, under the Creative Commons license.  All reproductions should be accredited to the History Project.

Public access and disclosure

The History Project holds its collections in trust for the public. The collection exists for the benefit of all for the advancement of knowledge and will be as accessible as possible while maintaining proper security and environmental conditions for the objects. The collections are open to researchers or interested members of the public under the supervision of appropriate staff members.  

Collections will be available to the public through exhibitions, publications and digital/social media.

Exhibition 

The History Project interprets Wisconsin LGBTQ history in both online and offline presentations, so the public can experience the content in an immersive, interactive, and accessible environment.

The History Project will exercise a special responsibility to care for and exhibit the collections placed in its trust in a manner which ensures the preservation of the objects and respects the objects and the traditions of the peoples who produced them.

All attempts will be made to protect exhibited collections from physical harm, disaster and natural agents or deterioration. Guidelines and procedures will be established for exhibition, monitoring and maintenance, disaster preparedness and environmental control.

Code of ethics

We recognize our accountability to maintain public confidence in and support for the purposes of this institution.  As a result, we shall adhere to a high standard of professional and personal conduct. The institution will follow the ICOM Code of Professional Ethics (1974, 1983, 1986) and the AAM’s Museum Ethics (1978) as guidelines for ethical behavior. Several sections in these works deal directly with collections and, therefore, deserve to be mentioned in this Collection Policy.

The History Project must make every effort to avoid conflict of interest. Active board members, community advisors, and volunteers should not compete with the institution in any collecting activity,  present a third party organization as competition, or divert assets or artifacts to a personal collection.   

Institutional collecting should not be a competitive activity. Museums must co-operate with other institutions with similar interests to ensure that important artifacts and documents are placed in the repository best able to care for the pieces. The History Project will not collect any artifact unless it fits within the scope of this collection policy and can be documented and cared for according to professional standards. After careful and thorough evaluation, artifacts that do not meet these guidelines will be routed to outside organizations.

Review and revision of collections policy

In acknowledgement that this policy will require revisions to meet the ongoing needs of the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project and that professional standards for collections management will continue to evolve, the collections policy will be reviewed on a regular basis.

At least every three years, the Education & Outreach Committee will review the policy and prepare revision recommendations. The final draft will be presented to the Board of Directors. Once approved, the revised policy will govern all collection management actions.