Andersonville National Historic Site manages a wealth of objects and information in its museum, archives and library collections. The collections are maintained by the Cultural Resources Division. Park rangers, volunteers, and the museum curator use these collections to prepare temporary exhibits and interpretive programs.
Potential Donations to Andersonville National Historic Site, National Prisoner of War Museum
We would like to present some information about the park, National Park Service museum policies and guidelines on how to donate objects to Andersonville.
Andersonville National Historic Site is the only unit in the National Park System that commemorates the experience of the American Prisoner of War. The focus of this mandate is the National Prisoner of War Museum dedicated on April 9, 1998. It has permanent exhibits that use an unusually large number of objects for a museum this size. These objects are, however, only a representative sample of the park’s entire collection. The portion of items in the park’s collection not on exhibit serves an equally important purpose in the history of the American Prisoner of War. These objects are preserved for future generations as representations of life as a POW. Without an object, the information and history of the Prisoner of War experience may someday be lost. The museum collection was established to preserve this history – for scholars and researchers; children; visitors to Andersonville National Historic Site: and anyone who wants to learn about this important part of the country’s history. Objects donated to Andersonville are documented, cataloged, and preserved in perpetuity according to National Park Service museum standards.
Because of this mandate to preserve the history of American Prisoners of War, as well as the availability of storage and exhibit space, the National Park Service and Andersonville have developed a policy to aid in choosing what objects to accept into the collection. Above all else, the park would like to acquire items that were made, used, carried, or otherwise kept by Prisoners of War during captivity. This includes items given to a prisoner by his or her captors, other prisoners, and neutral organizations such as the Red Cross. These are things that most directly document the experience of being a prisoner. Each possible donation is reviewed by the collection acquisition committee (CAC) to determine if the collection meets the scope of collections statement for the park.
One other important policy consideration regards exhibition. The National Park Service does not accept conditional donations. This means that Andersonville cannot guarantee that a donation will be placed on exhibit. This is not intended to be an insult to the donor or an indication that the item is less valuable than those on exhibit are. Rather, the park must be free to design exhibits and its interpretive programs based on its needs and resources. As noted above, the museum collection has great value beyond exhibits. Moreover, this policy does not mean that new donations will not be exhibited; it merely states that the park must have flexibility in carrying out its mandate to interpret the American Prisoner of War.
With this explanation of Andersonville’s museum collection guidelines, we invite potential donors to contact the park. We give each potential donation careful consideration. The Andersonville CAC will evaluate the offer and determine if it contributes to the park’s mission and meets collection policy requirements. We request that donors contact the park in advance, rather than shipping or bringing an item to Andersonville unannounced. This will reduce confusion and ensure the potential donation is given the greatest care and consideration. Ideally, a potential donor can provide a photograph and/or detailed description of the object when contacting Andersonville.
In addition to the museum collection, Andersonville maintains a Prisoner of War research library. Occasionally, items that do not meet museum collection needs are placed in this library. These items include privately published books, copies of documents, and copies of research done by members of former Prisoner of War organizations.
All donations to either the park collection or library will be well cared for and preserved. Collection and library items are available to park staff and qualified researchers. Donors and/or their families are welcome visit the park and view their donations after making an appointment with the curator in advance of your visit.
We encourage those wishing to donate items to the park to contact the park’s Museum Curator, Bridget Beers. This can be done by phone at 229-924-0343 extension 113, by fax at 229-928-9640, by email e-mail us, or by mail at Andersonville National Historic Site, 496 Cemetery Rd, Andersonville GA, 31711.
Researchers may request an appointment to use the park's research library or museum collections.
