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Re: I think the writing is on the wall for many collections?
Author: wsabo
Date: 07-02-2015 - 11:05
BOB2 Wrote:
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> All of these museum and operating groups are in
> various states of "trouble" due to an aging
> population of contributors and volunteers, to
> maintain and operate an aging equipment roster.
>
> Many of these organizations are or have been
> poorly managed, with disparate and unfocused
> missions, or missions that are unobtainable with
> the resources available. Lack of business plans,
> poor performance in getting grants and long term
> financial support, factionalism among members or
> boards, and a failure to develop a strong public
> or private donor base of support are all too
> common in these organizations. Many of these do
> not own a permanent facility, either.
>
> Many of these groups will fail in the next decade
> as the current leadership dies off, if they have
> failed to develop and empower a new generation of
> leadership. The controversies over Feather River,
> Niles, and GGRM are an examples of this problem
> among RR museums and collections. Many of these
> groups need to merge, since they don't or shortly
> won't have the resources or personnel necessary to
> maintain or operate these collections.
>
> Several of these collections will need new homes,
> and new relationships with the agencies that own
> and operate the lines they operate on, or reside
> on. Factions of old geezers whining about the
> other factions of old geezers is not conducive to
> that relationship building.
>
> Lesson learned: Change of die.
Bob2
Your comments hit the nail on the head... or the spike on the rail to put it another way.
All these groups started out with good intentions of saving historic rights of ways and equipment but unfortunetly most took on more than they could afford to restore and preserve. Now they have a lot of panful choices about what can be saved and what must be scrapped.
It seems like the Pacific Railroad Society is doing the right thing by donating some of it's collection to other museums like the one in Montecello IL
Since most are so far apart I don't know how a merger would work
-------------------------------------------------------
> All of these museum and operating groups are in
> various states of "trouble" due to an aging
> population of contributors and volunteers, to
> maintain and operate an aging equipment roster.
>
> Many of these organizations are or have been
> poorly managed, with disparate and unfocused
> missions, or missions that are unobtainable with
> the resources available. Lack of business plans,
> poor performance in getting grants and long term
> financial support, factionalism among members or
> boards, and a failure to develop a strong public
> or private donor base of support are all too
> common in these organizations. Many of these do
> not own a permanent facility, either.
>
> Many of these groups will fail in the next decade
> as the current leadership dies off, if they have
> failed to develop and empower a new generation of
> leadership. The controversies over Feather River,
> Niles, and GGRM are an examples of this problem
> among RR museums and collections. Many of these
> groups need to merge, since they don't or shortly
> won't have the resources or personnel necessary to
> maintain or operate these collections.
>
> Several of these collections will need new homes,
> and new relationships with the agencies that own
> and operate the lines they operate on, or reside
> on. Factions of old geezers whining about the
> other factions of old geezers is not conducive to
> that relationship building.
>
> Lesson learned: Change of die.
Bob2
Your comments hit the nail on the head... or the spike on the rail to put it another way.
All these groups started out with good intentions of saving historic rights of ways and equipment but unfortunetly most took on more than they could afford to restore and preserve. Now they have a lot of panful choices about what can be saved and what must be scrapped.
It seems like the Pacific Railroad Society is doing the right thing by donating some of it's collection to other museums like the one in Montecello IL
Since most are so far apart I don't know how a merger would work
