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92 Total pages
29 Contributing members
USNM CURATORS ANNUAL REPORTS - Department of Prehistoric Anthropology: Annual Report, 1883
Did you know that some of the items in the Smithsonian’s Department of Prehistoric Anthropology collection in 1883 were casts of objects? When items were sent in that were currently on exhibition at another museum, casts were made of the originals by the U.S. National Museum staff. Learn more about this process in the department’s 1883 annual curator’s report and help other digital volunteers in transcribing!
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57 Total pages
16 Contributing members
USNM CURATORS ANNUAL REPORTS - Department of Prehistoric Anthropology: Annual Report, 1884
The Smithsonian’s Department of Prehistoric Anthropology had a large and diverse collection in 1884—items ranging in location, era, material, and scope. How was such a distinct collection arranged and displayed for the public? Get a look at the process behind organizing this collection with the department’s annual curator’s report. Join in on transcribing a unique behind-the-scenes look at Smithsonian history!
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19 Total pages
11 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Department of Reptiles: Annual Report, 1894-1895
It’s 1895 and you just received a small amount of fluid from the Smithsonian’s Department of Reptiles. Don’t panic. It’s probably just formalin, a liquid the department was experimenting with to preserve specimen as a substitute for alcohol. The department was so pleased with the results that they mailed small samples to their correspondents. Help us transcribe the report and transport back to 1895 to explore the new accessions and practices of the Department of Reptiles.
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14 Total pages
9 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Department of Reptiles: Annual Report, 1895 - 1896
What happens to a division when its curator leaves for a period of time to investigate an international crisis? This was the case during the 1896 fiscal year when Leonard Stejneger traveled to the Behring Sea to help investigate a dispute between the United States and Great Britain about seal fishery laws in the area. And the result was that a whole lot less work was done in Smithsonian’s Department of Reptiles. Assist researchers by transcribing a report about how such a time-consuming mission, outside of a curator’s typical duties, can stall a department’s progress.
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29 Total pages
7 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Department of Reptiles: Annual Report, 1896 - 1897
You know that dreadful feeling when you wait too long to start an assignment just before the deadline? Well, the curator of the Department of Reptiles may have had that same feeling in 1897 when filling out the division’s curators' report. Some of the answers are so brief and vague that Smithsonian clerk J.S. Sessford asked for a revision. Help the Archives transcribe the brief summaries that just didn’t cut it.
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89 Total pages
21 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Dept. of Birds, Annual and Monthly Reports, 1890-1891
What does a new museum do with the thousands of specimens and artifacts it collects? The United States National Museum was only ten years old when curator Robert Ridgway of the Birds Division submitted these reports to the museum director. The collections and exhibits were located in one building, what is now the Arts and Industries Building. The taxidermists were hard at work, but how fast could they prepare the newly acquired bird specimens for the museum? Help us transcribe these reports that show us what this division head thought was important for the Smithsonian senior leadership to understand.
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27 Total pages
14 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Foods and Textiles, 1885 - 1886
Have you ever worked on a project that you knew needed a specialist's input to get it moving? Curator R. Hitchcock expresses his gratitude for the assistance a Dr. E. Palmer gave in February 1886. Having received a collection of Mexican food specimens from the New Orleans Exposition, Hitchcock discovered the specimens to be poorly labeled, to say the least. Dr. Palmer's expertise in this area made a world of difference in the progress even though he was only there for ten days! Learn more about the work of the Foods and Textiles Sections of the United States National Museum between 1885 and 1886 as you join other volunteers in transcribing these monthly reports. Watch out for the 1694 spinning wheel they acquired!
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5 Total pages
5 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Foods and Textiles, 1887 - 1888
What would you do if you were the Director of the United States National Museum and a curator submitted this report on "Preparing Microscopical Mounts of Vegetable Textile Fibers" instead of the customary annual report? Curator R. Hitchcock of the Foods and Textiles sections did just that for the period of 1887 - 1888. Join other volunteers transcribing this brief report accepted as a substitute.
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69 Total pages
18 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Foods and Textiles, 1888 - 1889
After substituting a brief paper on the preparation of microscopical mounts for the previous year's report, acting Foods and Textiles curator Romyn Hitchcock provides a lengthier summary for the period of 1888 to 1889. Could this be related to how the previous year's report had been received? Please join other digital volunteers and help us transcribe these submissions for 1888 and 1889. A typewritten version of the annual report is included with an attached paper and other monthly reports.
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19 Total pages
11 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Graphic Arts, 1892 - 1893
Transporting museum artifacts can be a risky business. In his annual report on behalf of the Graphic Arts Section, curator S. R. Koehler notes the the impact suffered by some of the Section's specimens as they were transported to Chicago for the World's Columbian Exposition. Join other digital volunteers to transcribe Koehler's account.
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14 Total pages
7 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Graphic Arts, 1893-1894
While the Smithsonian was participating in the Columbian Exposition, otherwise known as the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, the different sections of the United States National Museum also continued to work acquiring specimens and artifacts, preparing them for research and education use. Please join us and other digital volunteers in transcribing the annual report of the Graphic Arts Section's curator. Your work help researchers and scholars delve deeply into these historically valuable reports.
100% Complete
7 Total pages
3 Contributing members
USNM Curators Annual Reports - Graphic Arts, 1894
What does a curator think about if he has to leave his collections in the hands of someone else for a year. Graphic Arts curator S. R. Koehler submitted this report to the Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian at the end of 1894 for this very reason. Join other volunteers in transcribing his brief on the eve of a year-long absence.
