The Historical Society has acquired the collections of items, memorabilia and artefacts in its museums over many years, and in a number of ways.

By far the most common way is through a donation or a bequest.

While the Society is always grateful for offers, it happens sometimes that a museum will already hold an example of an item, or will find it not suitable in terms of its own collection policies.

So, if you are considering donating a particular item to any one of the Society’s four museums, it can be a very good idea to contact and have a general chat with the museum’s coordinator before you do so.

When an item is accepted for donation you will be asked to fill out, usually with the relevant museum coordinator, the ‘Deed of Gift’ form that is downloadable below — as it is important to know as much as possible about the origins, age and history of an item.

The form shows the kinds of details museums in NSW need  in order to properly record their acquisitions of historical items.

Deed of Gift Form