Objects in the Reading Room: Centralizing Museum Collection Access through the Library, Archives, and Special Collections

This case study focuses on using a museum’s library, institutional archives, and special collections spaces and staff to provide unified intellectual and physical access to all museum collections for research purposes (i.e., not for exhibition, conservation, or other curatorial functions). The case study describes the circumstances for this operational shift at the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture (MAC)/Eastern Washington State Historical Society in Spokane, Washington from 2009 to 2014, how the model was implemented and differed from previous practice, and examines advantages and disadvantages for implementation and sustainability.