Smithsonian to Share Some of its Treasures

The Smithsonian Institution announced a new initiative Friday to make parts of its vast collection available across the country as long-term loans to local museums, Smithsonian Secretary I. Michael Heyman announced Friday.

The action is part of a larger Smithsonian strategy to make more of its artifacts, 97% of which are always in storage, available outside Washington.

The Smithsonian announced that the first of its partnerships is with Bethlehem Steel Corp., a Pennsylvania-based company. Bethlehem Steel will receive hundreds of objects to display in a proposed National Museum of Industrial History in Bethlehem, Pa.

“This is the beginning of our nationwide program to share the vast Smithsonian collections with cities across America,” Heyman said. “The Smithsonian holds more than 140 million objects in trust for the American people. I want them to see these treasures where they live, not just in our museums.”

Heyman called the cooperation with Bethlehem Steel the “first of many such cooperative agreements” and announced that the Smithsonian is negotiating with several other groups to set up similar arrangements. Heyman declined to give details about the potential partners.

“The [industrial history] museum would be independent, but it would have an affiliation with the Smithsonian and rely upon it as the major source of industrial artifacts,” said Curtis “Hank” Barnette, chairman and chief executive officer of Bethlehem Steel.

The Smithsonian will assist in setting up the Bethlehem museum but will not help fund its construction or operation.

The Smithsonian has not decided which artifacts will be transferred, but several objects are under consideration, including the Jupiter Locomotive built for the Santa Cruz Railroad of California. This type of locomotive was typical of designs throughout the 19th century.

The agreement between Bethlehem Steel and the Smithsonian will be a model for future agreements, but the Smithsonian does not have established guidelines for future partnerships.

“We’re willing to do as many of these as possible,” said David J. Umansky, director of communications at the Smithsonian. “The plan is to partner with museums and cultural institutions around the country to find places where significant portions of the Smithsonian collection can be displayed.”

The Smithsonian is not actively seeking specific museum sites, but it will listen to offers from any cultural or corporate group that is willing to meet its standards for storage and handling of artifacts.

The Smithsonian is also making its collections more available to the public through a home page on the World Wide Web and the traveling exhibit “America’s Smithsonian,” which opened in Los Angeles in February of last year.

But the traveling exhibit, which visited six cities in 1996, has encountered financial difficulties. The Smithsonian was unable to raise the $100 million necessary for the tour from its corporate sponsors and has asked cities to underwrite the cost. The exhibit drew huge crowds during its Los Angeles stay but may not complete all of the stops scheduled for 1997.