Museum Collections Manager
About the Organization
Founded in 1823, the New Hampshire Historical Society is the fifth-oldest historical society in the nation and one of New Hampshire’s leading cultural organizations. It is the only institution devoted to saving, preserving, and sharing all aspects of New Hampshire’s history.
The Society has saved and preserved the most extensive collection of objects, archives, books, and research resources related to New Hampshire history that can be found anywhere. Headquartered in the state’s capital city, the Society uses its vast resources to serve thousands of adults and children each year through its library, museum, websites, publications, exhibitions, public programs, and youth and school educational programs. In recent years the Society has undertaken major initiatives to serve more people and expand access in three focus areas: increased public programming; accelerated digitization of the collections and expanded access through an integrated online collections catalog; and increased support of New Hampshire social studies teachers and education.
The Society’s key priority programmatic and organizational goals are: to enhance the lives of residents and visitors by fostering a greater appreciation of our common history and culture; to improve the quality of history, civics, and social studies education statewide; and to continue to strengthen the organization’s financial sustainability.
The New Hampshire Historical Society is an independent nonprofit organization that receives no financial support from state government. It is financially strong and has a growing statewide membership. The Society is governed by a 22-member board of trustees and employees a professional staff assisted by volunteers. For more information, visit nhhistory.org.
About the Job
The museum collections manager is responsible for the safety, security, documentation, preservation, storage, and accessibility of object collections owned and borrowed by the New Hampshire Historical Society, adhering to accepted professional standards and the Society’s standards, policies, and procedures. Top candidates will be efficient and practical; have precise attention to detail; superior planning, analytical, problem-solving, organizational, and project management skills; and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously.
The position requires an understanding of principles, ethics, and standards governing collecting institutions; broad knowledge of collections care and management; minimum, a bachelor’s degree in history, art history, American Studies, museum studies, or related field; and at least 5 years of collections care and management experience, particularly museum registration; use and management of collections database software; object handling, housing, and imaging; loan processing; and exhibition installation. Proficiency with PastPerfect software is preferred.
A complete job description is available at nhhistory.org. The salary range for this position is $46,000 to $54,000 annually, commensurate with experience. The New Hampshire Historical Society’s employee benefits include paid vacation, holidays, and personal time off; health insurance; short and long-term disability coverage; life insurance; and a matching 403b plan.
Please send a cover letter, including salary expectations, and resume as a single PDF file to Jonathan Olly, Director of Museum Collections, at jolly@nhhistory.org. Subject line of the email should read: “Museum Collections Manager: [Your Last Name]”