Within the first twenty years of the Chicago History Museum’s establishment in 1856 (then the Chicago Historical Society), the building burned down twice. Since then, it has relocated, expanded, and experienced other minor emergencies, as can happen with any building over time. As an institution that actively collects and preserves Chicago history, however, it’s in our best interest More
Just as it’s impossible to keep insects out of our homes, it’s impossible to keep them from entering museums as well. While insects in general are not harmful to humans, many of them can severely damage the very collections that museums seek to preserve. In order to prevent this, many museums, including CHM, have instituted More
Senior collection manager Britta Keller Arendt explains how the collections staff keeps track of our artifacts. One question that Museum staff are frequently asked is “How many artifacts do you have in there?”, which is quickly followed by “How do you keep track of them all?” Senior collection manager Britta Keller Arendt and collections technician More