Conservation Assessment Program
Spotlight Archives
CAP 10th Anniversary Spotlight
CAPabilities, Fall 2000, Vol. 5 Issue 2
Since 1990, the Institute of Museum and Library Services has funded general conservation surveys through the Conservation Assessment Program for 1,703 museums in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Mariana Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands. All museums received funds for a collections assessment, and 70% were funded for an additional assessment of historic structures or living collections. In a final celebration of CAP’s 10th anniversary year, we tour the United States to show how three museums leveraged their CAP reports to improve the care of their sites and collections.
We begin at Stenton in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This historic home, designed and built in the early 18th century by William Penn’s secretary, James Logan, is owned by the City of Philadelphia and operated by The National Society of Colonial Dames of America in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In 1997, Stenton had assessments funded through CAP. Architectural assessor Samuel Y. Harris identified site accessibility and structural moisture abatement as two top priorities. The report brought these needs to the attention of the City, which funded the $45,000 improvements. Stenton’s accessibility projects included a handicapped parking space, sloped walkways, and moveable ramps for building entrances. To reduce moisture problems in the historic buildings, the museum reset brick areas to redirect rain runoff away from the structures, set in-ground drains to control rising damp, and redesigned landscaping around the buildings.
To the west in St. Louis, MO, the Campbell House Museum has diligently addressed preservation issues since its 1991 CAP. The collections and architectural assessment reports educated the Board of Directors, spurring them to adopt the AAM Code of Ethics, write their first Collections Policy, and develop long range collections care plans. CAP recommendations were also the catalyst for raising $30,000 in foundation support for a Historic Structures Report, which has in turn directed preservation efforts and fund-raising. This 19th century National Register site has recently embarked on a "Living Landmark Restoration" of the building’s interior that has already uncovered the original paint and wallpaper. In 2000, the museum finished a 10 year undertaking to restore and conserve its collection of Campbell family portraits and gilt frames. Funding from the Regional Arts Commission and private donors made this project possible, and past director Jeffrey L. Huntington recognized that citing the CAP reports strengthened the museum’s case.
Further west is the Wyoming Frontier Prison in Rawlins, WY, which participated in CAP in 1996. The museum interprets the buildings that served as the state penitentiary from the early days of Wyoming statehood in 1901 until 1981. When the prison transitioned from its original use to a cultural institution in the 1980s, the organization needed a long-range maintenance plan to preserve this important piece of state history. The CAP process helped identify that the 13 structures, the museum’s primary artifacts, required immediate care. The number one priority in Long Hoeft Architects’ CAP report was to make much needed repairs to roofs. Persuaded by this recommendation, the Rawlins City Council, Carbon County Commissioners, and local voters approved a capital facilities tax that provided $300,000 over six years. The museum has now completed roof replacement and repairs on six buildings.
Thanks to Margo Burnette (Stenton), Jane Courter and Jeffrey L. Huntington (Campbell House Museum) and Tina Hill (Wyoming Frontier Prison) for their help with this article.
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