Duluth Children's Museum records
Scope and Contents
The collection contains articles of incorporation, by-laws, minutes, annual reports, budgets, policies, newsletters, newspaper clippings scrapbooks, photographs, Chisholm family genealogy and photographs, museum programming materials and photographs, American Alliance of Museums museum assessment, strategic plan.
Dates
- 1901-2007
- Majority of material found in 1930-2007
Creator
- Duluth Children's Museum (Duluth, Minn.) (Organization)
- Wing, Mabel M., 1897 December 02-1966 May 30 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use in the Kathryn A. Martin Library, Archives and Special Collections.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection may be protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials. Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision of the copyright law.
Biographical / Historical
The Duluth Children’s Museum, the fifth oldest children’s museum in the nation is a collections based organization. It was founded by Mabel Mackinney Wing in November, 1930 as a learning resource and housed in an unused classroom offered by the Board of Education, at the Salter School. Furnished with “paper-covered packing boxes and two old school tables”, Mabel Wing along with Indianola Willcutts, head of the Duluth State Teachers College art department, opened the “museum” with Wing’s objects of art and souvenirs of travel, her grandfather’s Mexican curios, nature displays from other schools, and Willcutts’ South American collection. The collection supported the curriculum of the Duluth schools and Mabel Wing was added to the Board of Education payroll in 1931 at $50 per month. Display cases from an old candy store replaced apple crates. A board of directors was formed in 1934 to promote the museum.
In 1936, Mrs. A. M. Chisholm presented her home, 1832 East Second Street in Duluth, to the Board of Education for a museum, and Wing became the curator of the A. M. Chisholm Museum. It was open year-round and two Sundays each month. Initial collections came from George S. Barnum (Oriental collection), Mrs. A. M. Miller (art), Mr. and Mrs. John A. Stephenson (Egyptian and Near East), Ward Ames (natural history), and Bertha Richards (early American furniture). Two wings were added to the house in 1960 with funds from the 1956 Duluth Centennial. Wing retired from the museum in 1965 due to ill health.
Extent
3.50 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The collection contains articles of incorporation, by-laws, minutes, annual reports, budgets, policies, newsletters, newspaper clippings scrapbooks, photographs, Chisholm family genealogy and photographs, museum programming materials and photographs, American Alliance of Museums museum assessment, strategic plan.
Physical Location
This collection is located at the University of Minnesota Duluth Archives. For more information about this collection or to make an appointment, contact us at libarchives@d.umn.edu or 218-726-8526.
- Annual reports Subject Source: Local sources
- Articles of incorporation Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Associations, institutions, etc. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- By-laws Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Children Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Duluth (Minn.) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Duluth (Minn.)--History Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Duluth (Minn.)--Social life and customs Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Duluth Public Schools (Duluth, Minn.)
- Education Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Exhibitions Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Financial records Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Minutes Subject Source: Local sources
- Newsletters Subject Source: Local sources
- Newspaper clippings Subject Source: Local sources
- Photographs Subject Source: Local sources
- Publications Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Scrapbooks Subject Source: Local sources
- Students Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Teachers Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Women Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Title
- Guide to the Duluth Children's Museum records
- Author
- Finding Aid Authors: P. Maus.
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Collecting Area Details
Contact The University of Minnesota Duluth Archives and Special Collections Collecting Area
Kathryn A. Martin Library
University of Minnesota Duluth
416 Library Drive
Duluth MN 55812-3001
(218) 726-8526
libarchives@d.umn.edu
