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Two years after the opening of the United States National Museum in 1881, its Sections of Foods and Textiles submitted this report of activities along with thoughts on the focus to which efforts should be directed in the year to come, such as the work on Indian Foods. It includes a monthly report for November 1883. Please help us transcribe this first in a series of Foods and Textiles reports and make the contents easier for researchers to access.
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How do you get someone to appreciate the significance of your accomplishments? R. Hitchcock, curator of Foods and Textiles, recalls the state of affairs in 1880 "at which time there was a large accumulation of material ... which was stowed away in drawers and boxes." From these humble beginnings, he goes on to outline the work accomplished in 1884. Please join us and other digital volunteers in transcribing his account of the curation, research and other activities of these Sections of the United States National Museums.
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Understanding foods and textiles isn't quite complete without also considering the equipment used to plant, process or produce these items. The first semi-annual curators report of 1885 begins with the acquisition of a Whitney cotton gin by the Foods and Textiles Sections of the United States National Museum. Please help us transcribe these reports and learn about the growing museum collections in curator R. Hitchcock's own words.
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How does one go about changing popular opinion? Graphic Arts curator S. R. Koehler begins his annual report by describing how the general public viewed graphic arts in the 1880's and the educational opportunities the United States National Museum had to expose Americans to a different perspective. Join us as, together with digital volunteers, we transcribe Koehler's annual report to make it more accessible to scholars and other researchers.
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What would you collect if you were building your own collection of materials relating to the graphic arts? Would you include Japanese chromoxylography or wood block printing? Curator S. R. Koehler describes the progress his section of the United States National Museum is making in building a comprehensive collection and making it available to the public. Join other digital volunteers and learn more about the work of the Museum in its early days.
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Summarizing the work of the Graphic Arts Section of the United States National Museum for 1891-1892, curator S. R. Koehler was concerned that museum managers might undervalue the section's accomplishments. Help us transcribe his report and learn how he handled this situation.
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No matter which organization you are in, when funding is scarce sacrifices must be made. Help us transcribe Honorary Curator S. R. Koehler's reply when asked to submit his annual report.
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By 1891, the United States National Museum had entered its second decade. Its curators have consistently submitted annual, and sometimes more frequent reports to the Director of the Museum describing the work of their various sections. The Materia Medica Section continues its work to seek out new acquisitions, review collections proffered by other individuals or nations, conduct experiments, and present the growing collection in a way that the public and the medical profession could learn from its contents while being sensitive to the differing depths of interest. Join other volunteers to transcribe the 1890 - 1891 report of the Materia Medica Section.
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The curators of the Materia Medica Section of the United States National Museum had shepherded their collections through rapid growth over the first decade of the Museum by the time this annual report is filed. Responsibility for filing annual and sometimes more frequent reports has shifted between curators James Flint and Harold Beyer. For 1891 - 1892, the responsibility was passed to William S. Dixon of the U. S. Navy. Join other volunteers to transcribe the 1891 - 1892 report of the Materia Medica Section.
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How you might go about sharing the wealth of information you and your colleagues had worked for years to develop? In the 1892 - 1893 annual report of the Materia Medica Section of the United States National Museum, the curator outlines options the section is considering for the Director of the Museum. Join other volunteers to transcribe the 1892 - 1893 report of the Materia Medica Section.
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One strategy for staying on top of rapid growth is standardization. Every group gets asked the same questions, and well-constructed questions provide a reliable means of assessing the activity of the organization as a whole. For the Materia Medica Section of the United States National Museum, 1894 saw the introduction of a questionnaire format for the Curators Annual Report. Please join us in transcribing this report.
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If you were a museum director, what might you make of a curator's annual report that amounts to a handful of brief sentences? Help us transcribe the Materia Medica Section's 1894 - 1895 annual report to the Director of the United States National Museum.