Three vernacular travel albums : a case study in the accessioning process at George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film

This thesis project considers three vernacular travel albums from 1899-1900 donated by Donald Weber to George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in 2008. The objects are not clearly attributed to any one person. The objective of this project was to make these objects available to staff and researchers. This process consisted of condition reporting, collection description writing, cataloguing and, potentially, properly housing the objects. The thesis includes an analytical paper and examples of the practical work done, such as condition reports and cataloguing worksheets. The analytical paper includes all aspects of the process and decesions made to execute this project. It also includes historical information on travel albums in American history. The primary focus of this thesis was to accession these objects to make them available for staff and researchers. While this thesis concentrates on only three objects, it is intended to serve as a case study in the accessioning process at one particular institution.