[BCMA] Looking for advice: private library collection donations

Wed May 13 13:39:19 PDT 2026

Hi Michael,

I'll second what Gwyneth said - avoid accessioning things and making
decisions later. You'll just end up causing yourself more work and a bigger
headache by having to deaccession things down the road. Weeding is all part
of the archival process, so if there isn't a justification for the entire
collection to be accessioned, I would weed what wasn't relevant and keep
what was. Your collections policy has been developed for a reason and
should be the guiding principle in deciding what gets entered into your
permanent collection and make the most of limited space, resources, and
staff time to care for the items.

While I would love to keep everything from every Rosslander ever - it's not
possible. So while a collection of say American stamps is cool and
collected by someone in Rossland, it wouldn't fully meet my collecting
mandate of preserving Rossland specific history and I wouldn't be selecting
it as something to be accessioned into our archive. We have an
education/display collection that gives me a little bit of flexibility to
keep some things that don't exactly meet our mandate, but for the most part
I try to keep that collection aligned with our permanent collection.

If there is ever something that I can't make a decision on, I take it to my
Collections Committee (made up of staff from a different department and
board members) and get some outside perspectives.

Hope this helps and would be happy to talk more if you would like.

*Sara Wright *(she/her
<https://equity.ubc.ca/resources/gender-diversity/pronouns/>)
*Collections Manager*
*Rossland Museum & Discovery Centre*
PO Box 26 - 1100 Hwy 3B
Rossland, BC V0G 1Y0

*250-362-7722 (888-448-7444)*
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On Mon, May 11, 2026 at 11:29 AM Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv <
listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca> wrote:

> Good morning Michael,
>
>
>
> We have also dealt with a very large book collection at the Museum &
> Archives of Vernon, and based on our experience, I would be cautious about
> accessioning all of the books unless there is a compelling reason to
> preserve the collection as a whole for contextual or provenance purposes,
> as Petra mentioned.
>
>
>
> We recently completed a major book deaccessioning and weeding project that
> took over two years, including substantial volunteer time. Many of the
> books had never been fully catalogued with DDC numbers or added to our
> library database, and with a large portion stored on back shelves, they
> were not easily discoverable or actively used. Over time, the library
> became quite unwieldy and occupied space that could otherwise have been
> used more effectively.
>
> Our approach was to retain books with strong local relevance, significant
> provenance, or clear research value connected to our mandate.
>
>
>
> In your case, I wonder if keeping a representative selection tied to the
> donor as a collection may be more practical than retaining the entire
> library intact, unless there is a particularly strong reason to do so.
>
>
>
> We were fortunate to work with a local rare books dealer who accepted
> materials outside our collecting priorities in exchange for a donation to
> the institution. Depending on the terms of the original donation, there may
> be a similar option available locally that could help reduce the burden of
> storage and processing while still benefiting the Sidney Museum & Archives.
>
>
>
> Best,
>
> Gwyneth Evans (she/her)
>
> Archives Manager
>
> BAHons, MLIS
>
> I would like to respectfully acknowledge that I am sending this email
> today, as well as working, living, and playing, on the Traditional,
> Ancestral, and Unceded territory of the syilx People. As a visitor on this
> land, I strive to deepen my understanding of the local Indigenous
> communities, including the syilx and secwepemc People, and I commit to
> reframing my responsibilities to land and community.
>
>
>
> *From:* Listserv <listserv-bounces at lists.museum.bc.ca> *On Behalf Of *Moderated
> BCMA subscriber listserv
> *Sent:* May 6, 2026 1:49 PM
> *To:* listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca
> *Subject:* Re: [BCMA] Looking for advice: private library collection
> donations
>
>
>
> Hi Michael,
>
>
>
> Ouf, I empathize with your situation.
>
>
>
> It sounds like your peers think the entire collection tells a story that
> should be kept together. However, I get the impression that the
> collection's provenance is questionable.
>
>
>
> Some things I am wondering about the collection: Do you know much about
> the donor? Was it donated by a prominent community member? (Ie. someone
> with specialist knowledge who utilized these books in their work.) Does
> removing some titles negatively impact the context? Is the context known or
> just assumed? Is the donor still alive and can they review it with you to
> contextualize the seemingly irrelevant titles?
>
>
>
> It's a complex issue, but I think you are right to turn to your
> collections policy. Every item we accept into our collections requires
> time, space, and materials - precious resources that ultimately cost money.
> If the material does not fit the criteria laid out in your policy, is it a
> responsible decision to retain it?
>
>
>
> Best of luck,
>
> Petra
>
>
>
> On Wed, May 6, 2026 at 11:58 AM Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv <
> listserv at lists.museum.bc.ca> wrote:
>
> Good morning BCMA colleagues,
>
>
>
> Sidney Museum has for a while now been tasked with processing a large
> collection of books, donated several years ago by a single donor that was
> evidently their personal library collection.
>
>
>
> We now need to decide how we want to approach dealing with this
> collection,which consists of at least ten bankers' boxes filled with books
> ranging from Canadian history to old Sears' sales catalogues. We don't have
> an abundance of available storage space, either in our museum or
> archives collections rooms. What's more, many of the books have no direct
> connection with our collecting mandate in and around the Saanich Peninsula.
> So, as per our Collections Policy, we don't have a concrete justification
> to accession them even if we did have ample room.
>
>
>
> There are some misgivings among our collections personnel on breaking up
> the collection (i.e. accessioning those that are relevant, and transferring
> the rest) vs. accessioning it all and then reviewing later.
>
>
>
> If anyone has run into a similar challenge and found a workable solution,
> I would love to hear from you!
>
>
>
> Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.
>
>
>
> Best,
>
> Michael Goodchild
>
>
>
> --
>
> Michael Goodchild, BA, MMST.
> Executive Director,
> Sidney Museum & Archives
>
> He/His
>
>
>
> [image: Image removed by sender.]
>
> *Address*: 2423 Beacon Ave L-3, Sidney, BC V8L 1X5
> <https://www.google.com/maps/place/Sidney+Museum/@48.6487465,-123.3993606,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0xb4d51ead688151b7?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjdsI_Wmav4AhUtD0QIHRhkAVYQ_BJ6BAhCEAU>
> *Tel*: 250-655-6355
>
> *Mobile*: 1-403-585-7938
> *Email*: director at sidneymuseum.ca
> *Web*: https://sidneymuseum.ca/
>
>
> *We respectfully acknowledge the Sidney Museum & Archives has been shaped
> by the colonial history of Canada, and is located in Sidney/SETINES on the
> traditional territory of the W̱SÁNEĆ People, including the BO**ḰEĆEN
> (Pauquachin), S**ȾÁ,UTW**̱ (Tsawout), MÁLEXEŁ (Malahat), W**̱JO**ȽE**ȽP
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> territory acknowledgment is just one part of Reconciliation, and the museum
> continues to work towards other ways that we can participate in
> Reconciliation alongside Indigenous communities.*
>
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>
>
>
>
> --
>
> [image: Image removed by sender.]
>
> *Petra Höller **(They/She)*
>
> Curator
>
> *Summerland Museum and Archives*
>
> (250) 494-9395
>
> *curator@*summerlandmuseum.org <archives at summerlandmuseum.org>
>
> The Summerland Museum and Archives respectfully acknowledges
> that we are situated on the unceded and ancestral territory of the Syilx
> Peoples.
>
>
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