Program

Preservation and Access: Preservation Assistance Grants

Period of Performance

9/1/2020 - 8/31/2021

Funding Totals

$9,145.00 (approved)
$9,145.00 (awarded)


Improving Storage Capacity for Collections Preservation

FAIN: PG-271776-20

Alice Austen House Museum (Staten Island, NY 10305-2002)
Victoria Munro (Project Director: January 2020 to January 2023)

The purchase of equipment to improve climate control in the upstairs storage room, creation of additional space for storage, Preservation 101 training for staff provided by the Northeast Document Conservation Center, and implementation of inventory management practices identified in consultation with the Historic House Trust. The Alice Austen House holds a collection of objects, letters, photographs, and audio recordings related to the life and work of Alice Austen, part of the first generation of women photographers in America; Gertrude Tate, her partner of 53 years; and their friends and family. The collection consists of correspondence, objects, photographs, and oral history recordings: 15 archival boxes of letters, one binder of calling cards, household objects, photographs, and 25 cassette tapes of oral history recordings. These offer a unique window into Victorian social norms, New York City history, LGBTQ history, and early twentieth-century life.

Friends of Alice Austen House requests funding to support improvements to storage capacity in its second floor collections room in order to house more objects, prioritizing accessioned items found in the inventory of our basement collections room. To ensure that collections best practices are in effect as the project is implemented and after, this proposal includes training in preservation basics for the Alice Austen House Collections Associate.





Associated Products

Air conditioner (Equipment)
Name: Air conditioner
Description: Air Conditioner for the collections room to keep temperature stable
Location: Installed in 2nd floor collections room
Year: 2021

Dehumidifer (Equipment)
Name: Dehumidifer
Description: Dehumidifier to keep moisture levels stable
Location: Installed in the 2nd floor collections room
Year: 2021

Modern Office Systems shelving units (Equipment)
Name: Modern Office Systems shelving units
Description: Modern Office Systems created custom shelving units to fit the unusual attic dimensions of the 2nd floor collections room. This maximized the small space for additional storage, allowed for air flow and permitted room for a table and chair as a work station.
Location: 2nd floor collections room
Year: 2021