Why Donate?

The Archives and Special Collections collect the papers and records of individuals, institutions and organizations associated with Mount Holyoke College. The records are maintained as primary resources for teaching and research. The manuscript collections document the social history of this country and other countries primarily as seen through the eyes of women and the educators of women. The collections also document the social history of Mount Holyoke College through the letters, diaries, photographs, scrapbooks and course records of faculty and students. Each year these collections are consulted by thousands of researchers from around the world. With the donation of each new collection, we are able to the increase the breadth and depth of our resources to better serve the educational needs of the College and of scholars who are drawn to our collections due to Mount Holyoke's prominent place in the history of women's education. Each donation helps to enlarge the documentation not only of the effect of Mount Holyoke on the world, but of the effect of individuals on the institution itself.

What Should I Donate?

While the Archives and Special Collections is always looking for large donations that document the life and work on an individual or the history of an institution/organization associated with the College, we are also happy to receive single items as well. In general the Archives and Special Collections staff prefer to work closely with donors to determine what records or documents within their papers have continuing historic interest prior to the donation of a collection. The importance of records and documents diminish if they are removed, reordered or rearranged. Donors are encouraged to contact the Archives and Special Collections prior to sorting or rearranging materials they wish to donate.

Below are two lists of some types of materials that are usually of historic value. Please note that this list is not definitive and there may be other types of documents or records not included here that may have continuing research value.

How Do I Make A Donation?

The first step in making a donation is to contact the Director of Archives and Special Collections. In cases where the records are relatively local or are large in quantity, the Archives Special Collections staff may wish to see them before they are physically transferred. In such cases it is best that the records not be rearranged prior to inspection by the Archives and Special Collections. Arrangements can then be made for the physical transfer of the records.

Ownership of the records is transferred when the donor signs a deed of gift. While the deed of gift is a standard document, it can be customized to suite the needs of individual donors. In most cases the Archives and Special Collections will not accept gifts unless the ownership and copyright are transferred to Mount Holyoke College

Restrictions on Access

The Archives and Special Collections encourage full access to all manuscript collections. On occasion access to certain materials within a collection may be restricted for a set period of time. In these instances the Archives and Special Collections staff will discuss with the donor reasonable restrictions on access in accordance with the policies of the Archives and Special Collections.

Copyright

Copyright usually belongs to the creator of the records (letters, diaries, photographs, etc.). The Archives and Special Collections strongly encourage donors to consider transferring copyright of their papers to Mount Holyoke College. Transfer of copyright greatly assists researchers who might wish to quote or cite references in the collection.

Monetary Appraisal for Tax Deductions

Donors may be able to take a tax deduction for the donation of personal papers. Donors wishing to have more information on this matter should speak with either a tax consultant or an attorney. College policy prohibits the Archives and Special Collections from providing monetary valuations of collections. Donors wishing to hire an appraiser can contact the Archives and Special Collections for a list of for-hire manuscript appraisers.

Care for Collections

The Archives and Special Collections is managed by professional archivists and librarians whose first priority is preservation of and access to historic materials. The Archives and Special Collection staff arrange, describe and catalog collections to ensure ease of access by researchers.

Should a collection require repair or other conservation work the Archives and Special Collections will consult with professional conservators. All materials are stored in acid-free containers in secure, climate-controlled areas. No primary source materials circulate and only Archives and Special Collections staff may retrieve materials for researchers.

Monetary Donations

The cost of caring for, describing and giving access to rare and historic materials is extremely high. Donors are encouraged to consider making a monetary donation toward the arrangement, description and preservation of their donation.

Further Information

For further information on donating your papers or records to the Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections, please contact the Director at:

Significant assistance with the text for this section came from A Guide To Donating Your Personal or Family Papers to a Repository, Society of American Archivists, 1994