The museum maintains 16,212 artifacts. The largest categories are tools and equipment (5,118); personal artifacts (3,428); and building models, components and furnishings (1,116).

CVM also manages three historic structures: the Anderson Log House, 1860s; Sunnyview School, 1882-1960; and the Schlegelmilch House, 1871-1906.

Among significant subcollections:

Farming and Farm Life. CVM has 1,049 tools and implements associated with agriculture and animal husbandry as well as approximately 400 personal artifacts, furnishings, vehicles, building components, and archival collections which can be associated with particular farm or rural families. S.O. Lund was a farmer before becoming a decorator and landscape painter in Eau Claire. Five Lund paintings reflect his memories of Norway as well as the herds and countryside of his new home. We have recently acquired a highly documented collection of tools and equipment used on the Erickson family farm in Dunn County from the 1930s through the 1950s. Forty-seven examples of farm machinery (and other machines closely associated with rural life) were the subject of a recent Detailed Conservation Survey.

Gillette/Uniroyal Collection. From 1917-1992, Gillette (later known as U.S. Rubber, Uniroyal, Uniroyal-Goodrich, and owned by Michelin at the time of closure) was the largest employer in Eau Claire. CVM maintains tools and equipment used in tire production (including two tire molds used in the 1980s), work clothing, safety equipment, union materials, advertising and other documents associated with this large rubber manufacturing plant and its workforce. Products are primarily tires, but also horse collars and ice cream shippers from the 1920s. The final product--a mini-spare tread--was delivered to CVM when the plant closed in 1992. Documentation of the collections has increased through an oral history program with former employees.

Schlegelmilch Collection. CVM owns the Schlegelmilch House, a brick home built in 1871 by immigrants Herman and Augusta Schlegelmilch located in downtown Eau Claire . Furnishings, hats and needlework created by family members, tools and gadgets from the family's hardware store, photographs, correspondence, and documents saved by four generations offer insight into middle-class life during a period of civic growth and transition.

Collections Development

At present, our primary goals for collections development are balance and refinement. We no longer accept generic artifacts whose significance and use cannot be documented and are seeking recent materials while they are still readily available and in good condition. We have identified key themes and subjects which need better representation, including

a) development of regional high-technology industries;
b) changing character of retailing and retail areas;
c) changing character of health care and hospitals;
d) changing nature and activities of women’s organizations;
e) changes in the lives of children;
f) changing character of farming and rural life;
g) growth of the Hmong community, cultural persistence and change; and,
h) Ojibwe history and culture.

Curatorial personnel assess one or two subcollections annually, identifying gaps, redundancies, conservation needs, and potential contribution to interpretive programming. We invite specialists to assist in this process. Consultants and members of tribal communities reviewed American Indian collections during planning for the long-term exhibit Paths of the People. They added information on current holdings, suggested additions and assured that we were not unwittingly holding sacred objects inappropriately. (CVM is in compliance with NAGPRA regulations.)

Uses

The Permanent Collection is used primarily for exhibition and programmatic research. Seven percent is incorporated into long-term exhibits. The remainder is available for rotation or short-term exhibition. The Schlegelmilch House Collection includes 1,365 objects with 165 accessioned in the permanent collection. The remainder is available for use.

Study Collections consist of duplicates or replicas intended for use in educational programming. Schoolchildren use Ojibwe tools and folk art objects in one Hands On History unit, household tools in another. Objects from study collections are incorporated into a dozen circulating school kits, which also contain information, reproduced photographs and documents.

Management Practices

Approved by the Board and reviewed periodically, the General Collection Policy guides all collections work. The policy details record-keeping requirements, ethical standards for staff and Board, deaccession procedures, and conditions governing loans. "Permanent" loans are prohibited. There are two levels of collections: permanent and study. Items accepted for the Permanent Collection must have a regional association, be in good condition or restorable at reasonable expense, and have potential for use in exhibits, education, or research.

The Collections department can always use volunteers who are detail-minded and like to work in a relaxed, friendly environment. To volunteer in any part of the museum, call Annette Truitt, volunteer coordinator, at (715) 834-7871, or email her at annette@cvmuseum.com

For questions about the collections or about donating items, call Carrie Ronnander, curator of collections, at (715) 834-7871, or email her at carrie@cvmuseum.com