ARTIFACT DONATIONS
When the museum is able to accept donations, artifacts can be donated to one of two museum collections: the permanent collection or the swap meet inventory. Please be sure to read the information below and familiarize yourself with the donation process before contacting our Curator of Collections. We look forward to hearing from you.
SDMRM is grateful to accept donations made directly to the swap meet inventory. Donations to this collection are used by the museum to raise additional funding for the collections department. The museum is able to accept a wider array of engines, coaches, and freight cars to this collection. However, all artifacts must be in operational condition and preferably in their original boxes. To donate to the swap meet inventory, please email our Curator of Collections at esmock@sdmrm.org.
Donation for the PermAnent collection:
At this time we are NOT accepting donations of model trains and railroads at the museum, we apologize for the inconvenience. Please see our list of additional resources and locations for donations.
Before pursuing a donation to the permanent collection, there are a few things to consider:
This process is far more restrictive than donating to the swap inventory and will take longer.
The trains that run daily in the museum are property of our club members. Any donations made to the permanent collection will be stored for research, future generations and exhibits in our Pacific Beach room.
It is not guaranteed the entire donation will be accessioned into the permanent collection.
Donations to the permanent collection are tax deductible, but the museum cannot provide an appraisal.
Drop off donations will not be accepted. You must follow the procedure outlined below.
How to initiate a donation to the permanent collection:
Please read the summarized collections policy below and determine whether or not your artifacts will fit in our collection. A full length collections policy is available upon request.
If you would like to move forward with your donation, please fill out and submit the form at the bottom of this page. Following your submission, our Curator of Collections may reach out to you for photographs.
Our Curator of Collections will then inform you of which artifacts the museum is interested in accessioning. At this point the donor may decide what will happen to those artifacts not accessioned. They may be either kept by/returned to the donor, or moved to the swap inventory.
At this point, an appointment to exchange the artifacts will be scheduled and the corresponding paperwork will be filled out. To file a tax deduction, the donation must be appraised prior to this appointment. The museum cannot appraise the collection.
Please contact the museum's Curator of Collections with any questions:
Emily Smock
esmock@sdmrm.org
DONATION POLICY
Donations to the museum’s Curatorial and Library collections are by appointment only. To schedule an appointment please contact Emily Smock, the Curator of Collections. Unsolicited donations or donations dropped off at the museum will be returned to their owner or disposed of as stipulated in our Collections Policy.
Donations to the Museum’s curatorial collections must meet the following requirements:
1. The donation contains:
A. Accurate models of G-,O-, HO-, N-, and Z–scale trains, including freight, specialty, and passenger cars;
B. Historic (pre-war) tinplate toy trains, buildings, and accessories;
C. Photographs, maps and drawings of significant events relating to the railroads;
D. Railroad clothing, uniforms, equipment, insignia, and memorabilia;
E. Books, manuals and manuscripts relating to the model railroad hobby and railroads;
F. Art related to prototype model railroads and trains.
2. The Donation is not already well represented in the permanent collection.
3. The Donor provides a full inventory list of the donation including any information regarding historical significance and ownership history. If the donation contains trains, then we request the donor provide information regarding the scale, manufacturer, engine or car number, and year made if possible.