From: Jason Tish <jason.tish@gmail.com> Date: Mon, 30 Sep 2019 16:55:52 -0500 Message-ID: <CAMxN_vFsUyFNABOJ8BH5fUx+hFE5Xm-S6K-9vjAjOvTZaiPnpA@mail.gmail.com> Subject: advice for starting a local history center
Hi everyone-
I'm involved with a small energetic group working on a plan for a local
history center for Madison. Local history in Madison is a unique
situation. We have only a narrow niche that is not covered by the State
Historical Society, the UW Archives, the Madison Public Library's local
history collections, and the Dane County Historical Society. We have a
solid handle on that niche.
What we really need advice on is how to actually plan for, and create the
physical space for a history center/museum/research facility. Our current
model entails a small exhibition space, and archival facility, and space
for an office, a reading room, and presentations. We expect it to be an
iterative process where we start out in a space that may not have all of
that. Our priority is to bring together a collection of documents and
artifacts in order to demonstrate the need for a permanent facility. We can
do do that initially in a facility that doesn't;t meet all of our needs,
and later move to facility that does (unless fund-raising proves more
successful than we expect)
If you have ever been involved in developing a local history facility, what
is the one piece of advice (or two) that you wish someone had given you
before you started?
-- - Jason