Arcanum Wayne Trail Historical Society

As we are about to start the 2025 New Year off we would like to remind our supporters about our acquisition or donation policy to AWTHS in regards to items for the research library and displays.

We certainly appreciate our supporters because without you, our collections would not be shareable with our guests and the community. However, AWTHS only has so much space and room. Similar to your home and storage. So here are the guidelines from our acquisition chair, Annette Stewart, who also chairs the research library.

1. Items need to pertain to Southern Darke County. Exceptions are at the discretion of the chair regarding Darke County items, state of Ohio items or other counties.
2. One of the most important is check with the chair prior to donating. This saves everyone time and effort. That way items can be “pre-screened” in regards to duplicates or items not relevant to history or our area. Our contact is [email protected] or through messenger.
3. Donors are welcome to check the Reference Materials List on our web site at awths.org to see if the particular yearbook, book, or item has already been donated.
4. Clothing needs to be Southern Darke County Military or School uniforms such as Arcanum or FM.
5. Business items and memorobilia needs to be local community items. Same for school items.
6. Families should be from the Southern Darke County or have ties with the community. Same for photos, books, histories and similar items.
7. Photos need to be 8 X 10 or smaller, without frames. Larger items by prior approval. We accept local quality originals, good copies, and digital copies.
8. Please do not drop off current family vacation photo books or scrapbooks. These are not relevant to local history. Same with your recent photo collections unless its a reunion picture or generational photo. Photos need to have names. Years are helpful and location. If no names, hard to file to find.
9. We receive many duplicate yearbooks. Please check before dropping off.
10. Items need to be clean and in good condition. We can’t use brittle, old rolled newspapers.
11. We are changing the “on loan” policy. This will be by selective items only at the discretion of the chair and board. If fail to pick up within specified time upon loan, the items become the property of AWTHS. We have items on loan that have not been picked up from previous years. If one of your items, please make arrangements by appointment to pick up.
12. All items, after donation, become the property of AWTHS to display and archive as they seem fit. This also includes donating or selling items that are duplicate, not southern darke county history OR as deemed appropriate by the chair or AWTHS board. By signing the acquisition card and donating, you and your family are agreeing to these terms.

Again thank you for your support, donations and following our guidelines. Which, in turn, helps us maintain a good quality historical society and research library of high standards.

If you have questions regarding appointments or our policies, please contact Annette Stewart through AWTHS Messenger of [email protected].

Here are some photos of acceptable items

Thank you

Annette Stewart

[email protected]

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