Manchester Museum Archive
Date range: 1821-2001
Medium: Archive
Manchester Museum traces its origins to the Manchester Natural History Society,which was founded in 1821. In 1868, the Society was dissolved and its collections were transferred to Owens College. The College established a museum in the 1870s, which was used for both research and public viewing. The Museum remains part of the University of Manchester and it continues to serve both academic and public audiences.
The Museum has substantial collections for botany, zoology, geology, anthropology, archaeology, Egyptology, numismatics and archery. It runs an extensive exhibition and public engagement programme.
The Museum's archives include the records of the Manchester Natural History Society including the minutes of its Council, curators' meetings and the Natural History Club. Manchester Museum's archives include committee minutes, financial records, visitors books, cuttings and Director's files.
The archive is significant for the study of museology, the history of collecting, and the connections between museums, academic research and public engagement.
See also:
Further information:
Catalogue available online via ELGAR.
See also: Samuel Alberti, Nature and Culture: Objects, Disciplines and the Manchester Museum (Manchester University Press 2009).
Other information:
Manchester Museum website
Location:
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