Museum Receives Conservation Grant

Treasured objects and artifacts held by the Ypsilanti Historical Museum will be preserved for future generations with help from the IMLS Connecting to Collections Bookshelf, a core set of conservation books and online resources donated by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). IMLS has now awarded almost 3,000 free sets of the IMLS Bookshelf, in cooperation with the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH).

“When IMLS launched this initiative to improve the dire state of our nation’s collections, we understood that the materials gathered for the Bookshelf would serve as important tools for museums, libraries, and archives nationwide,” said Anne-Imelda Radice, Director of IMLS. “We were both pleased and encouraged by the overwhelming interest of institutions prepared to answer the call to action, and we know that with their dedication, artifacts from our shared history will be preserved for future generations.”

The Ypsilanti Historical Museum received this essential set of resources based on an application describing the needs and plans for the care of its collections. Our successful application was written and submitted by Pamela German and Veronica Robinson, Masters-level students in the Historic Preservation program at Eastern Michigan University. The IMLS Bookshelf focuses on collections typically found in art or history museums and in libraries' special collections. It addresses such topics as the philosophy and ethics of collecting, collections management and planning, emergency preparedness, and culturally specific conservation issues.

YHM is incredibly excited about this initiative and are already putting the resource materials to good use! To learn more about the Institute of Museum and Library Services, visit www.imls.gov.