State Historical Society breaks faith with document donors

Some 40 years ago, my mother donated a 1915 landscape plan to the State Historical Society of Iowa’s library in Iowa City. The plan, a rare surviving hand-painted sketch by landscape architect Joseph Krieger for Waterloo architect Howard Burr (1885-1964), was part of their design of what later became my family’s home in rural Charles City.

Burr embraced the Prairie style of architecture that emerged in the early twentieth century. His designs are evident in homes, churches, schools, and public libraries across Iowa and the Midwest.

His papers, including my mother’s gift, are housed at Iowa City but face an uncertain future following the recent decision by state officials to close that facility in 2026. The administrator of the society claims that an agency budget shortfall of $800,000 leaves her with no choice but to close the library. The amount in question accounts for 0.00008% of the state’s overall budget.

My church’s historical records, dating to its founding over 160 years ago, are also housed at the library, records which were donated to SHSI with the understanding that the State of Iowa would provide proper stewardship of these and other collections. The state kept this promise — until recently.

Now, people who have donated to this long-established repository are rightfully concerned — alarmed, really — about the fate of their gifts. Researchers who have used or plan to use these unique records have been questioning the state’s ill-advised decision and where they should turn as they continue or commence their research.

Historian Mary Bennett, whose nearly 50-year career at SHSI came to a close upon her retirement in 2023, has, with other dedicated staff, curated and cataloged extensive collections documenting Iowa’s rich and contentious and fascinating history.

Among her noteworthy accomplishments is extensive documentation of the Meskwaki Nation, Iowa’s only federally-recognized Indian tribe. The Iowa Labor History Oral Project brings together interviews with those who have participated in Iowa’s workforce across generations. The library houses records pertaining to the woman suffrage and civil rights movements, to businesses, to churches. And the list goes on.

So what will happen to these collections? So far, state officials have only said that the Des Moines SHSI facility can accommodate just 40% of the Iowa City holdings. The rest, they say, will likely be dispersed elsewhere: perhaps returned to donors, perhaps transferred to other repositories, perhaps discarded.

This careless and unconscionable decision should alarm anybody with an interest in Iowa and Midwest history. The potential ramifications are serious.

The fragile, century-old hand-painted landscape plan, for example, requires conservation care prior to and during its transit. Thousands more of individual documents and collections, deserving of such care, will be at risk of damage if not handled properly. It is not known if provision, if any, has been made to adequately prepare these materials for transfer.

Access to these holdings will be compromised during what promises to be a long and arduous transfer process. One would hope that there will be at minimum a paper/digital trail documenting these transfers so that researchers will be redirected to their new destinations. So far, however, no assurance of such accountability has been forthcoming by those who made this decision.

There is no guarantee that other repositories in Iowa or elsewhere will be able to absorb those collections not destined for Des Moines. County historical societies, for example, dependent for the most part on dedicated volunteers, may not be able to accept and properly administer these holdings.

The decision also undermines trust. Those who have donated to SHSI’s Iowa City library likely feel betrayed by state officials. Considering the planned closure, these individuals and prospective donors will likely not be inclined to give to the society in the future. Goodwill between donor and repository is cultivated over time, but it can disappear when that trust is violated.

David Mearns (1899-1981), a Lincoln scholar and longtime curator of manuscripts at the Library of Congress, wrote of the solemnity of the donation of historical records. He described it as an act of faith, trust, and wise judgment exercised by both parties: The donor, who entrusts their treasured papers to a repository for preservation and for the public to use, and the receiving institution, which is responsible for honoring the covenant of stewardship.

Those who made the decision to close the SHSI Iowa City library would do well to heed Mr. Mearns’ admonition. Surely the state can come up with a 0.00008% solution.

David McCartney is University of Iowa Archivist Emeritus.