Documents appropriate for WHMC include, but are not limited to,

• Papers of individuals and families: personal, family, and professional correspondence; diaries and journals; memoirs; scrapbooks; speeches and lectures; reports; flyers and pamphlets; and identified photographs.
• Records of organizations or businesses: articles of incorporation, constitutions, and bylaws; organizational charts, directories, and personnel policies; files of boards and committees; correspondence; minutes of meetings; newsletters, news releases, and other publications; annual reports; financial and legal documents; planning documents; architectural records; and identified photographs.

We are committed to documenting as fully as possible the history of our state and its people in all their diversity. In addition, we collect on a national basis in several fields that mirror the interests of University of Missouri faculty. The strength of our holdings adds to the reputation of the University of Missouri and the State Historical Society of Missouri as major research institutions. Your papers may contribute another unique piece to the mosaic we are trying to assemble.

WHMC offers both a secure environment and a professional staff to process and provide reference to your papers. In addition, the institutional context of the University and the State Historical Society assures that they will be located with related collections and secondary sources that will enhance their value, and placing them with a research institution insures that they will not be lost from view; rather, they will be used and appreciated by a wide audience. Finally, making papers available so that those who come after can learn about and understand their contributions is one of the finest and most long-lasting tributes that can be paid to either individuals or groups.

No. WHMC cannot invest public resources, including staff time, supplies, and space, to processing, housing, and providing reference to materials that do not belong to the University or Society.

Perhaps. If a collection includes sensitive materials, it may be restricted for a period of time. There must be a date or situation at which the restriction will be lifted, however. WHMC reserves the right to restrict sensitive materials at our own discretion should such items come to light during processing.

Copyright refers to ownership of the contents of a document rather than ownership of the physical item itself, and resides with the creator of the document unless he or she has legally transferred it to another person or institution.

• Donors sign a deed of gift transferring to the University of Missouri or the State Historical Society of Missouri any copyrights they hold in materials given to WHMC, with the exception of copyrights to published works from which they may still derive income.
• Copyright is important in terms of making documents fully available to researchers to quote from or publish.
• Copyright law is subject to change.

Yes and no. You relinquish your rights of ownership and copyright, but have the same right to use the materials that everyone else enjoys.

Not necessarily. Approximately half of our holdings are stored off-site at the University of Missouri Records Center. It is a secure, restricted-access building with controlled environmental conditions, and provides daily pick-up and delivery service. In addition, our collections may be loaned to the WHMC branch offices on the other three campuses of the University of Missouri for patrons to use at those locations.

Yes. The WHMC stacks, like the Records Center, are restricted. While we are eager to make our holdings accessible to researchers, they are used only on WHMC premises under staff supervision. All researchers must present identification, complete various forms, and state their research topics before being given materials. They must abide by rules governing their use.

Perhaps. Tax law is subject to change, but currently it may be possible for you to take a deduction for materials that are not self-created. Consult your tax accountant and refer to IRS publications 526 and 561 and form 8283.

No. WHMC cannot legally perform appraisals for tax purposes, due to potential conflict of interest. You may wish to obtain the services of a professional appraiser, as indicated on IRS form 8283. The appraisal fee itself may qualify as a tax deduction.

Materials may be sent through U.S. mail or via UPS. In some cases, WHMC staff will go to pack and transport collections.

If you wish to help by pulling duplicate and extraneous items, by all means do so. However, we prefer to make the final decision on what to keep so that we can evaluate items within the context of the entire collection and our other holdings.

Not necessarily. We will not retain duplicates. Some published materials may be more appropriately housed in the reference library of the State Historical Society or in Ellis Library, and will be transferred. Some items may be photocopied or microfilmed, and the originals disposed of.

If you wish to have us return duplicate or inappropriate items or those we do not retain in their original form, you may stipulate in the deed of gift that they be offered back to you at the time we are ready to dispose of them.

No, there is no charge to the donor for processing or storage. We do, however, gladly accept donations to our gift and endowment funds and for special projects sponsored by our office.