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A major part of the work of the Stockton Museums Service is the care of its large and varied collections. These range from a plastic hairbrush that belonged to the singer Lonnie Donnegan to Georges de la Tours 1640s masterpiece 'The Dice Players'.
The foundations of the collections are two bequests made to the people of Stockton in the early part of the last century. These are the Spence Collection of historic weapons and militaria, and the Clephan Art Collection (including the Dice Players).
The main themes of the collections focus on domestic and working life over the last two hundred years, supporting the main street and room displays at Preston Hall Museum. Particular areas of interest include craft tools, toys and costume.
Staff are currently transferring all of the collections records onto a new software package (MODES from the Museums User Association), giving much better access to the information. They are also working to improve the way the collections are stored. Pressure on storage space currently limits the services' ability to accept donations to the collections, particularly of large objects. Copies of the Collecting Policy adopted by Stockton Museums Service can be loaned to the public on request.
Different areas of the collections require different solutions to care for them. These range from a recently established store for our extensive costume collection to the large space needed for the three fire engines. The service is also exploring the possibilities of new technology, particularly for the thousands of photographs in the collections.
Another aspect of the collections are the papers, plans and photographs that go to make up the local history resources. These are used to support exhibition work and assist public enquiries for family research and other projects. The service is exploring ways of improving access to local history resources. In the meantime staff will be happy to help with any enquiries and allow access to collections by appointment.
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