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The Harlem Museum and Welcome Center are not accepting loans at this time. Once we do start accepting loans again, all future loans will last a term of one year and must be renewed each year to be on loan to the museum. 

Regarding donations, the Harlem Museum is not accepting donations at this time, unless it is an artifact of high significance (i.e. not mass-produced memorabilia). We are running low on collection storage space and we have to take into consideration the preservation of the potential donation. The Harlem Museum no longer accepts any film donations as we cannot properly store and preserve more films. Our cold storage is filled to capacity. Please, contact the UCLA Film Archive or another film museum to inquire about donations. 

The Harlem Museum and Welcome Center only accepts donations that fit within our collections scope: that means only artifacts relevant to Harlem, Georgia and/or Laurel & Hardy. If the offered object is something we already have in our collection, that means we do not need another and you will need to find another location to donate. 

According to the International Council of Museums (ICOM):

In Prague, on 24 August 2022, the Extraordinary General Assembly of ICOM has approved the proposal for the new museum definition with 92,41% (For: 487, Against: 23, Abstention: 17). Following the adoption, the new ICOM museum definition is:

“A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage. Open to the public, accessible and inclusive, museums foster diversity and sustainability. They operate and communicate ethically, professionally and with the participation of communities, offering varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.”

The staff and museum professionals at the Harlem Museum and Welcome Center understand that we have visitors and patrons that come to the museum from far away - including our international visitors. However, our first duty is to protect the artifacts and preserve them to the best of our ability. By rotating the artifacts, we allow them to take a break from the lights, humidity, and temperature differences in the main exhibition/gallery space versus the more stable environmental conditions in our archive and collections storage. Sometime soon, a link to our database will be available so our long-distance visitors can see our collections online.

Your skin alone produces oils that may not harm you, but they are acidic and can cause damage to the artifacts. The staff at the Harlem Museum and Welcome Center requests that visitors not reach out and touch anything on display that is within reach. We understand the temptation, especially with the 1924 Ford Model T and the 1938 Home Comfort Model DA Range on display. Still, by opening the doors, picking up, and touching the artifacts, you can potentially cause irreparable or expensive damage to the object or, even worse, cause the artifact to lose its historic identity, meaning the artifact has been changed or altered in such a way that it can no longer be used as an accurate representation of the past. Please remember future generations of museum visitors when you consider touching an artifact on display. 

Yes, you can take as many photographs and videos as you wish. However, please do not use flash photography as it can damage the photos on display. All light can cause damage to artifacts, ultraviolet light is the worst, but too many flashes produced by phones and cameras over time cause the photographs to fade. This damage is irreversible. 

The Museum welcomes scholars, academics, federal employees, and members of the public to study Laurel and Hardy history or City of Harlem history. To learn more about the collection or to schedule a research visit, please call the Harlem Museum and Welcome Center at (706) 556-0401. All researchers are subject to the director's approval to enter the collection storage room and archive and will be supervised at all times while within that space.