Thank you to everyone who responded to my request for insight on historical collection policies! Your help and suggestions are greatly appreciated! We got a lot of great ideas! Thanks again!

Below is a compilation of the responses I received for anyone else who's interested:

Hamburg Township Library

While we don’t have a historical room or many historical materials, we do have a security system. We put tattle tapes in every item. People have to exit through the security gates to leave the library. If an item was not checked out properly the gates will sound an alarm. I would suggest you investigate a similar system (they are common) as it will protect not only your historical materials, but all library materials.

Bayliss Public Library

History & Genealogy Judge Joseph H. Steere Room Access: Rules

1. All researchers must show their Bayliss Public Library/Superior District Library card or Driver’s License at the Circulation Desk, sign the register, and record their research purpose. Library cards will be checked, updated, and any fines $5.00 or over must be paid.
2. Briefcases, notebooks, and large purses may be stored at the Circulation Desk. Coats may be hung on the nearby coat rack. Researchers may take a pad of paper and a pencil into the room.
3. Pencils only are permitted. They are provided, if needed.
4. Care must be taken in the handling of materials and clean hands are encouraged. Cotton gloves are required when viewing photographs and manuscripts.
5. No material may be taken out of the room.
6. Library staff will do photocopying, unless patron is given permission to do so.
7. All locked cases and cabinets will be kept locked. Library staff will provide the requested material.
8. Use of the room is restricted to adults or students who have made an appointment and are supervised by library staff and a parent. No more than four people may use the room at one time.
9. Appointments are recommended for in-depth research projects.

Genesee District Library

Normally, archives control theft by:

1. Having the items viewed in a room with a staff attendant;
2. Requiring researchers to leave coats, backpacks, briefcases outside of the room, such as in a locker, or at least at the desk;
3. Researchers are limited to one archival box at a time;
4. Researchers record their name, etc., and what part of the collection they are using.

Even with these controls, things disappear. So if you have any valuable items, limit the access to them.

Warren Public Library

I don't have any specific written policies, but I do know of two different approaches to historical collections.

When I was a page years back, the library I worked at had a small historical collection in a room they could lock and they would hold a patron's ID while they were using the room. Since the staff wasn't watching the whole time or could spare the time to look things over after patron use, I'm not sure this method would keep all damage and theft at bay, but at least it gave the patron the idea that there might be some accountability.

Now my husband works at a library with a local history center in their basement and it is only open specific week nights and Saturdays and is always staffed by a librarian. The librarian can fetch materials and help the patrons use Ancestry or other databases, but this also means there's a watchful eye anytime people are using the center.

Tamarack District Library

This may not help you very much but I hope it encourages you a little. We used to have a dingy little library downtown and a very small local history collection. I worked there for 5 years and I swear we lost so many items. Our town's centennial books went flying out the doors. We had a checkpoint system but that didn't stop them. We built a new building 10 years ago and as we were preparing to move into it, I made copies of stuff and put RFID tags on things in preparation of people wanting to steal them. However we have never had another item stolen. I have copies in 3-ring binders that are the "working" copies that they can take to the machine and make additional copies. I also have the originals, right there in the room. Nothing has walked out since we moved to the building. To my knowledge no one has even tried - no RFID tags have been ripped off, no one tried to leave with one. It not only seemed that people were more respectful of the new surroundings, but it also prompted people to donate additional items. Three of our rare local items that had been stolen from the old building have been donated back to us - and we didn't even ask for them or let on to the public that they were missing.

Dexter District Library

In Dexter, we keep the irreplaceable things in a locked cabinet. Patrons wishing to use items from this part of the collection must leave their driver's license with the reference librarian. Staff notes what is removed from the cabinet and items are inspected when the patron is finished. We have a smallish collection and benefit from the Dexter Area Historical Society and Museum having additional materials.

Loutit District Library

LOCAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY ROOM USE POLICY

STATEMENT OF POLICY

Loutit District Library maintains a separate collection of local history and genealogy materials in the Local History and Genealogy Room. In order to preserve the materials, ensure their safety, and guarantee access to researchers, persons using the Room must follow these regulations.

REGULATIONS

1. Researchers using the collection and department resources have precedence over those using the Room for purposes unrelated to genealogy and/or local history. If space is not available for those wishing to use the Room or study room for their intended purpose, staff may ask patrons to relocate to another part of the Library.
2. Food and drink is not permitted in the Room or in the study room.
3. Bags, purses, or briefcases are not permitted in the Room or the study room. They must be placed in or at the lockers provided.
4. Pens are not permitted; only pencils may be used in the Room and study room.
5. Computers in the Room are for genealogy and local history use only.
6. The Library’s use of this Room for Library programs and meetings shall have priority over another individual or group’s use of the Room.
7. Library staff cannot be responsible for the personal property of patrons. Do not leave items unattended.
8. Use of the Local History and Genealogy Room’s study room shall comply with the Library’s Study Room Use Policy.
9. Users shall comply with the Library’s Rules for Persons Using the Library Facility and Services, the Wireless Internet Policy, the Internet Policy, and all other applicable library policies.

Lapeer District Library

Access:

The library holds these materials in trust for future generations, and therefore, collection items that are not on display can only be examined in the meeting room by appointment and only under direct supervision of library staff. Archival records are never to be altered or defaced by any markings whatsoever. A small portion of the collection has been digitized and can be viewed through the link to the collection on the Lapeer District Library’s website.

Items cannot be taken out of the de Angeli Branch Library without written approval from the Lapeer District Library’s director or the fiction department head. Under special circumstances, items from the Marguerite de Angeli collection may be loaned to other institutions for exhibition. See Appendix B for the Marguerite de Angeli Collection Loan Agreement."

Albion District Library

In-library use of materials only; pencils only, not pens; no food or drink while working with materials, etc.… We keep most of our local history collection in staff-only areas, bringing them out for patrons to use upon request and with a staff member present. This is especially important with items like yearbooks, which are vulnerable to theft outright, or to patrons cutting out specific photographs that they want.

Thanks again everybody!

Sincerely,

Audrey Glass
Programming Assistant
Fowlerville District Library