Dale Jones Wrote:
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> This subject comes up now and again.
>
> As for historical photos - when they are donated
> to a museum or historical society. They are
> usually given to the establishment for free. This
> means they have no financial deficit in receiving
> the collection. Here’s where the trouble starts –
> let’s say the photo collection is just a shoebox
> of random photos or slides with none or just basic
> caption info. These photos will take a lot of work
> to be usable to the museum or historical society.
> Granted they will be “saved” – but in reality, it
> would take a lot of effort, either volunteer or
> paid labor to get them ready for public display.
>
> So…understandably, they may need to charge some
> money to recoup their time investment.
>
> How much is too much?
>
> I know of one county library in Montana which has
> dozens of excellent historical railroad photos
> that will probably never see the light of day.
>
> Why?
>
> They want in excess of $25.00 per photo – then if
> you want to put it in a book it’s $50.00 per
> photo. There are no exceptions between profit &
> non-profit publications. Do the math – at $75.00
> per photo, as an author, I’ll guarantee you that
> these photos will never be seen. It’s just too
> expensive.
>
> I understand that there is a certain amount of
> money involved with proper storage of slides and
> photographs, but – I honestly believe that many of
> these museums, libraries or historical society’s
> use historical photos as “cash cows” to fund the
> general operating budget of the establishment. I’m
> not saying that that is right or wrong – that’s
> just the way it probably is.
>
> So, it comes down to the individual, where do you
> want your photos to reside after you are gone. I
> think it would be wise to check into various
> organizations and see where they would be best
> cared for and just how much they plan on making in
> $$$ off your stuff.
>
> If you want them to use your images for
> fund-raising for the general budget, then let them
> know that it’s okay with you. If you just want
> them to be used for research – let them know.
> Make sure your goals are the same as theirs. They
> may have a different view of historical material
> than you do. Remember – they are your photographs
> until you give them away. You can make them more
> valuable by having an accurate cataloging system –
> maybe have them already indexed into a computer
> database. Have them stored properly in photo or
> slide boxes If the staff has to spend hundreds of
> hours and dollars going through your stuff – then
> they will probably want to get that investment
> back somehow.
>
> If your photos are buried in the basement of some
> museum, library or historical society, uncataloged
> in random boxes, chances are they will never be
> seen and a photo that is never seen never was.
> So…..you might as well have the family just burn
> them up, because they never really existed anyway
> – right?
>
> Talk to ya later,
> Dale Jones
> [www.railroads-of-montana.com]

"Dale Jones" is referring to the "Museum of the Rockies" in Bozeman, MT (part of the University of Montana).. The collection he alludes to is that of the famous NP photographer "Ron Nixon" whose 20,000 images were sold to the museum by Ron's family.
Bet they made a nice nest egg. The Museum's prices are astronomical and copies are simply printed on paper. What kind of paper ?

A lot of families could care less about history. They want whatever "loot" they can garner from a quick sale. To them, railroad collections are simply "gold" waiting to be mined!

Union Pacific charges plenty if you want to get a few prints for a BOOK you might be working on.
Where do a lot of famous collections disappear to, never to be seen again ? Here are a few I personally know of:
Western Pacific negatives (Will Whittaker) to "Walt Ainsworth".
Warren Wing Collection to "Walt Ainsworth"
Marvin Maynard Collection to "Walt Ainsworth"
John Illman Collection to "Dick Dorn"
Misc Will Whittaker negs/prints to "Martin Hansen"
Southern Pacific audio/visual library to "Michael Clayton"
Will Whittaker motion picture library to "Michael Clayton"
Misc Guy Dunscomb negs/prints to "Martin Hansen"
Dave Joslyn Collection to "Martin Hansen"
and the sad lists go on and on... Rare and wonderful stuff never to be seen ...

For myself, I'm trying to get rid of as much pictorial stuff as possible. In May-2011, my wife and I are having a big two-day Yard Sale. Yes, that's what I said ! RR photos, books and models will be for sale. When the time gets closer, I'll post the dates!
Cheers.

KRK