PRM: Loans

I spent my morning in Washington, IL choosing objects from Ron Dupree's collection. I gathered a couple of joke books about Ford as well as various examples of the sale literature used by Ford salesmen. I also have parts and labor price lists for display.Mr. Dupree also graciously loaned a few parts for display: an ampmeter with ignition switch, a motometer (temperature gauge), gas gauges, and even an original toolkit that came with the 1926 Model T!

An early directions manual proved to be my favorite find. Instead of maps, early drivers relied on written directions that utilized landmarks, i.e. "turn left at the red barn." The only problem with that is when the farmer who owns the red barn paints it white!

When I got back to the museum, Kristan showed me how to process a new loan. First the loan must be itemized on the entry log. The loan agreement form also contains the itemized list, as well as the lender's information and the length of the loan. Learning this process was interesting because while some of these procedures are the same across the board, some of them are specific to the organization and the curator's preferences.