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Yellowstone National Park’s Collections:

Wonderland’s Least Known Wonder

Anne L. Foster, Acting Curator/Archivist

National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

Yellowstone National Park

Collection History

1903: First donation 1933: Founding of the

Yellowstone Library and Museum Association

1976: Archives becomes National Archives Affiliate

2004: Construction of the Heritage and Research Center (HRC)

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What comprises the collection?

Museum Collection Over 1 million cultural and natural history objects

Historic photographs, souvenirs, artwork, archeology, ethnography, geology, paleontology, natural history specimens, furniture, textiles, historic vehicles

Archives Over 1,600 linear feet of records

Yellowstone National Park Archives Affiliated Archives (National Archives and Records

Administration - NARA)

Research Library Over 20,000 volumes

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What is the collection’s purpose?

Documentation To document the cultural and

natural history of the world’s first national park

Preservation To preserve that history for

present and future generations

Accessibility To make that history accessible

to all researchers (public, park staff, scientists, scholars, school children).

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How do we decide what goes into it?

Scope of Collections Statement Details what we collect based on Yellowstone’s enabling

legislation and mission, scientific goals, long-range interpretive goals and park’s management plan.

Acquisitions by donation, bequest, transfer, loan or purchase

Collections Committee Meets monthly Involves key park personnel

Education/Interpretation Collection Not part of formal park collection; administered by Division of

Resource Education and Youth Programs for its public programs.E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R A M E R I C A

How do you access the collection?EXHIBITS Heritage and Research Center: temporary lobby displays Park Museums and Visitor Centers: long term displays 35+ repositories, museums, educational/scientific institutions

worldwide Park hotels and lodges

TOURS Memorial-Labor Day, Wednesdays at 2pm. Free. Reservations

required: 307-344-2264

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How do you access the collection?

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ONLINE Montana Memory Project (http://montanamemory.org/): Superintendent's Annual and

Monthly reports, maps and drawings, oral histories, and photographs. Open Parks Network (https://openparksnetwork.org/yellowstone-photo-albums/)”

Historic photographs by Park photographers and gathered into thematic albums. Historic Slide File (https://www.nps.gov/features/yell/slidefile/index.htm): Historic

photographs from the museum collection organized by era and then by topic. NPS Technical Information Center (https://pubs.etic.nps.gov/): Maps and architectural

drawings, and related construction reports for all parks in the National Park Service. Use the Search Filters button to select Yellowstone

Wyoming Library Database (http://wyld.sdp.sirsi.net/client/en_US/yrl/): Book catalog. Many items may be obtained by Interlibrary Loan from your local library.

IN PERSON Heritage and Research Center, 20 Old Yellowstone Trail, Gardiner, MT Contact us before you plan your trip!

Museum Collection: Cultural History

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Museum Collection: Historic Vehicles

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Museum Collection: Natural History

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Museum Collection: Highlights

Significant collections Moran watercolors Wolf skulls Historic vehicles Architectural elements

Unusual items Coated specimens Research permit collections Bacteria

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Archives

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Archives: Highlights

Significant collections Army Era records Yellowstone Park Company records 1988 Fire records Maps and [especially] Drawings collection NPS Resources records

Unusual items Complaints (and compliments) Yogi Bear correspondence Bigfoot sightings

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Yellowstone Research Library

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Library: Highlights

Significant materials Superintendent’s Annual and Monthly reports The Landrigan Music Collection Vertical Files

Unusual items Nathanial Langford’s annotated copy of The

Vigilantes of Montana Star Trek: the Movie Bachelor Father

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Heritage and Research CenterYellowstone National Park

www.nps.gov/yell/historyculture/collectionsAnne L. Foster, Acting Curator/Archivist

National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior