Please contact the TR Site’s Collections Manager by phone at (716) 884-0095 or via e-mail with detailed information about the objects you wish to donate. The Collections Manager will schedule an appointment with you to bring the objects in, or will make other arrangements to view them.

All items submitted undergo a review process before a final decision is made by the TR Site’s Collections Committee, which meets several times each year.

If you have material that meets the TR Site’s collecting priorities, please contact the Collections Manager by phone at (716) 884-0095 or via e-mail to schedule an appointment. Please do not bring or send any donations of material without first contacting the Collections Manager.

If you are contacting us on behalf of a friend or relative, we will need to communicate directly with him or her regarding the donation process.

The TR Site does not accept long-term loans. While it does accept loan materials on a short-term basis in conjunction with exhibitions and other programs, the museum prefers to commit its resources to the storage and preservation of collection materials.

Federal (IRS) regulations prevent TR Site staff from providing identification services or monetary appraisals of items offered for donation. However, professional appraisers will perform this service for a fee. One of the following organizations may be able to help you find a licensed appraiser in your area:

• American Society of Appraisers (800) 272-8258 or at www.appraisers.org
• International Society of Appraisers (312) 981-6778 or at www.isa-appraisers.org
• Appraisers Association of America (212) 889-5404 or at www.appraisersassoc.org

Donations to the historic collection may be tax-deductible. Please consult your tax advisor and refer to IRS publications 526 & 561, as well as form 8283.

While the TR Site values all material accepted into its collection, it cannot guarantee when/if objects will be displayed. Only a fraction of the collection is on view at any given time; objects not on exhibit are carefully preserved in our storage area.

The TR Site may, after careful review and with approval from the Board of Trustees, remove objects from the collection through a process called deaccessioning. Artifacts that are damaged beyond repair, have condition issues that put other parts of the collection at risk, duplicate other items in the collection, or are outside the scope of the collection may be considered for deaccessioning. If materials are deaccessioned, they may be donated to another museum or cultural/educational organization, destroyed, or sold. Proceeds from the sale of these materials are placed in a restricted collection acquisition fund.

The TR Site cannot return accessioned collection materials to the donor. Once the Collections Committee accepts your donation, you will be asked to sign a Deed of Gift, which legally transfers ownership of the materials to the museum.

Collections stewardship requires considerable resources of space, materials, and personnel. We are very grateful to donors who understand this “big picture” and contribute funds to support the preservation and accessibility of collections.

Please contact the TR Site’s Collections Manager if you would like to make such a gift.