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ARTIFACT COLLECTION
The museum's permanent object collection contains over 20,000 items. These objects range in size from thimbles to the county's first Iron Lung machine. The collection began in 1972 when the museum was founded at its original home, the Wilber Mansion. At the time, our house museum was dedicated to showcasing life in earlier periods. The collection grew to include significant pieces of furniture from notable Champaign County families and large amounts of textiles in clothing and accessories. When the museum moved to our current home, the Cattle Bank, the museum's collection evolved to focus on more artifacts that tell the unique stories of our residents and the events that have shaped the county.
Donating Artifacts
Our museum is tasked with collecting and preserving historic objects from Champaign County's history. These objects come in all forms, from tiny buttons to large popcorn trucks! We continue to seek out items that relate to major landmark events in the county and those that tell the story of its citizens.
Today, we have over 20,000 items in our permanent collection, and we continue to accept items every month. Our collections policy governs the decision to accept an item into our collection. This document outlines the types of objects our museum holds and the process by which we acquire them. Each item must be accepted into the collection by our Board of Trustees and must be accompanied by the proper documentation.
DONATION PROCESS
Step 1. Photograph the Object
Please complete the enclosed form with an uploaded photograph of the item(s) to receive a preliminary assessment of the item and the museum's interest in accepting the collection.
Note: if the donor skips this step and instead sends the items along with a signed deed of gift to the museum, we reserve the right to reject the item. In this case, the item may be transferred to another institution, sold to benefit our overall collection, or otherwise discarded in accordance with our collection policy.
Step 2. Complete the Object Information Forms
If the museum wishes to proceed with acceptance following the preliminary photographic review, you will be asked to provide detailed information about each object in the collection through the "Object Information Form." This form is critical and must be filled out for each item. The Object Information Form tells us the history of the item(s) or provenance. Without this story and documented connection to Champaign County, the object has little value in our collection.
Step 3. Sign the Deed of Gift
This step formally transfers ownership of the object to the Museum and places the object in our "trust." That means this is a permanent transfer of ownership with no expectation that the donor will receive the item back. The museum will do everything possible to maintain the item in perpetuity. All future decisions regarding the object will be made per our adopted collections policy.
Step 4. Cataloging and Storage
There is no guarantee that the object you donate will be on display. Many of our items go into storage for potential use in future exhibits or future research. The museum is working hard to create an online repository of these items. However, we also place the items online for the public to view.