[MSN] How Museums and Libraries Lose Stuff ("Materials Missing at Library of Congress")

[Museum Security Network Mailing list]

How Museums and Libraries Lose Stuff
By Samuel J. Redman 

Mr. Redman is a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley.
He studies the history of museums in the United States. As a museum employee
in Chicago, St. Paul, and Denver, he was frequently asked to find missing
objects. 

On Wednesday, October 24th, the Washington Post published a story with the
headline, "Materials Missing at Library of Congress."  Like many readers, I
dashed to my computer mouse, thinking that an Oceans 11 style heist had
taken place in our nation's capital.  Perhaps a robotic device remotely
operated by terrorists had stolen Thomas Jefferson's handwritten draft of
the Declaration of Independence.  Or maybe a machine gun wielding Russian
spy had lifted Alexander Graham Bell's lab notebook.  

No such luck for excited museum geeks, lovers of action-adventure movies, or
Washington Post beat writers hoping to sell more newspapers.  In fact,
museums, libraries, and archives in the United States lose items in their
collections on a regular basis.  Why?  The simple answer is that many of
these institutions are grossly underfunded and understaffed.  The more
frustrating answer for those of us who care deeply about these collections
is that they are cared for by human beings who are capable of making
mistakes.  Though certain members of congress would love to blame the
incompetence of museum and library administrators, it is more likely that
the incompetence of congressmen is to blame.

The congressional hearing which examined the results of the inventory at the
Library of Congress, which examined books, monographs, and bound
periodicals, noted that 17 percent of the materials requested could not be
found.  Many in Congress would perhaps love to pin these results on poor
management, holding the librarians themselves directly and fully accountable
for the status of the collections.  Indeed, the Washington Post article
notes that the ranking Republican on the committee, Rep. Vernon J. Ehlers
(Mich) said in a statement that the number of missing objects, "is
unacceptable, and a clear indication that we must reassess how we manage
this Nation's priceless collection that exceeds 130 million items."

Those working outside of museums, libraries, and archives, have been shocked
at similar findings in the past.  In 1990, when the Native American Graves
Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) passed, it required that museums in
the United States conduct an inventory of collections potentially falling
under the guidelines of the law, which included sacred objects and human
remains.  This was, however, essentially an unfunded mandate. Museums
struggled to complete their inventories on time (many applied for
extensions).  Upon the completion of these massive inventories, many learned
for the first time what those working with collections already knew, a
significant number of museum objects had gone missing.  

Often 100 years plus of poorly designed filing systems, constant movement of
collections, and a trail of human errors had taken their toll on museum
collections.  An intern in 1980 could place a Cheyenne necklace on the wrong
shelf, and nobody would notice the error until a scholar twenty years later
arrives at the museum to conduct a study on Cheyenne jewelry.  Perhaps the
object was traded to another museum and the appropriate curator forgot (or
neglected) to write it down.  These things happen, unfortunately.  Computer
filing systems, even the most advanced, can point a librarian, archivist, or
collections manager in the wrong direction if the original data is entered
incorrectly in the first place.

Government officials need to understand the monumental task assigned to
those caring for collections in museums, libraries and archives.
Collections managers, librarians, and archivists are often combating a long
history of limited funds, in addition to a long history of human error and
outmoded systems.  Before pinning the blame on the librarians and archivists
who work at the Library of Congress, congressional officials themselves
should examine their own record of caring for our nations' heritage. 

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