Compact shelving installation!!

I am super excited right now!!  We are having our high-density compact shelving installed this week in the Conservation Gallery! 

These rolling shelf units maximize storage space by creating an aisle that "moves" rather than leaving a space for an aisle between every single static shelf.  This means you can store more in a smaller space, without overcrowding.

We will be using the bulk of this new storage system to store our textile collection -- both hanging and boxed.  Because the shelves seal shut when you move them, we will no longer need to house the hanging collection in muslin bags.  This will drastically improve access to that collection because we will be able to easily see all of the garments, rather than search for something inside a bag.

The new system will also have room for us to grow.  Currently the hanging textiles are housed on a long bar (really a series of bars that run one into another) in chronological order.  However, there is no space in between decades.  With this new system, we will be able to leave space at the end of each decade for future growth.

The perimeter wall will be reconfigured with deeper shelving units that will accommodate the large items that were previously stored in the space where the new shelving is being constructed. 

This process has been a ton of work for our Maintenance Department, with a lot more work to come!  Thank you to Steve Secrest and Freddie Payne for all of their help.

A Secret Gift exhibit coming soon!!

Now that the summer is winding down, I'm focusing on what's coming up this fall.  The biggest thing planned for my department is the new Keller Gallery exhibition based on Ted Gup's book A Secret Gift.

After his book came out, Ted donated all of the "B. Virdot" letters, the canceled checks, any thank you notes Sam Stone received, and his research materials to our library.  Since this year marks the 80th anniversary of this amazing act of generosity, we are honoring Sam's legacy by telling his story in a 3D way.

But in order to do that, we need to have some STUFF!

If you or anyone you know is a descendent of a letter writer, please call me at 330-455-7043!  I am interested in finding artifacts that connect to the letter writer or their lives, even if it is something that they used years after the Great Depression ended.

This exhibit is part of a wonderful community partnership with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, the Stark County Educational Services Center, and One Book, One Community.  Look for details soon about all the wonderful programming we have planned this fall!

Here are the things we are doing here at the Museum:

• November 14 -- "Soup at Six: A Secret Gift."  Meet the composer who has written a piece for the Canton Symphony Orchestra, inspired by A Secret Gift!  Guests at this special Soup at Six event will get a preview of the new Keller Gallery exhibit.  Cost is $15 per person.  Pre-paid reservations are required.
• November 15 -- EXHIBIT OPENING for A Secret Gift.  This event it is free and open to the public.  6:00 - 7:30 PM.
• December 8 -- Dinner with Author Ted Gup.  Ted will be in town for a series of events relating to the One Book, One Community selection of his book.  The Museum is hosting a dinner with him after the Canton Symphony Orchestra's concert earlier in the day.  Details to be announced soon!

We hope you will join us for one of the above events.  The exhibit will be on view November 15 through February2, 2014.

Highlights of Movie Camp -- DAY FIVE!

It's a wrap!  This is one of the best -- if not THE BEST! -- groups of kids we've ever had for Movie Camp!

If you want to see some video clips of our filming, head on over to our Facebook page!

THANK YOU to Nightwine Productions for volunteering their time this week to give these kids the experience of a lifetime. We couldn't do this without you!!

Highlights of Movie Camp -- DAY FOUR!