Mojave National Preserve: Museum Management Plan

Museum Management Planning Team

This Mojave National Preserve Museum Management Plan identifies a series of collections management issues facing the Preserve and presents corresponding actions to address them. The Preserve is currently managing a museum collection, according to the 2006 Collections Management Report, of a little over 800 items. Based on observations during the plan team’s visit, however, the object collection on site is probably closer to 2,000 items. An unknown number of permanent records exists which might be transferred to the archives, and the library contains about 500 items. In addition, because of the administrative history of the Preserve, collections are located in a number of institutions throughout the American West, and perhaps elsewhere in the United States. Finally, the Preserve has a very active Research and Collecting Permit program as well as large collections at two partners’ locations within the Preserve. The museum program is in its infancy and this is the first plan for the museum collection. But the Preserve does have a “Letter of Agreement Concerning Museum Collections Management” (June 15, 2005) with Joshua Tree National Park to carry out a cooperative program to provide oversight and accountability in the storage and treatment of cultural and scientific collections for the two parks. Collections are stored in a secure air-conditioned room within the Preserve headquarters building, a GSAleased structure in Barstow. The new program lacks status and definition, which should be corrected by an overall program identity, supported by internal protocols for collections development, preservation, and use. This effort should then be followed by the necessary planning and programming for the projects, funds, and staff to move the program forward.