Geneva Historical Society Museum

Purpose: Sustaining Cultural Heritage Geneva, New York, is located at the north end of Seneca Lake, in the Finger Lakes region. Though far from major metropolitan areas, the city has pockets of urban poverty and the highest percentage of low-income families in the county. The Prouty-Chew House and Museum is the only museum in the city; annual attendance is approximately 19,000 people, with most coming from New York state. Outreach activities serve almost 6,000 people annually. In this project, the museum will inventory more than 7,000 artifacts. The computerized database will include the correct object name for each artifact, its description, location, condition, materials, label or inscription information, additional notes, and digital images. Gaining inventory control of its three-dimensional artifact collection will allow the museum to enhance staff and public access, streamline the collecting process, and strengthen the use of the collection in interpreting local history. To accomplish these goals, the museum will hire a full-time project assistant (an intern or museum studies graduate) to conduct the inventory. The project will begin October 1, 2004, with the recruitment of the project assistant and volunteers. The assistant will begin work in January 2005. The curator of collections will train volunteers and supervise the assistant. It is anticipated that the inventory will be completed by December 2005.