Mary,
My first inclination is to say that you do not have any obligation to give up the collections in question. We have several collections of papers from local organizations that are still alive and well. Sure. They would love to hold on to their "stuff" for posterity. Several of them, however, have decided that we were the better repository to keep them, as we have much better capabilities of preservation and access. The other question is, what claim do these potential collection grabbers have? Can they prove that these collections rightfully belong to them? That's where the provenance paper trail can be a lifesaver. I've discovered that sometimes I have to hunt in some not so logical places to find gift paperwork. Unless they can provide proof that the papers do indeed belong to them, they don't have much of a case. Good luck!
Christine
===================================================
Christine A. Dumoulin
Assistant Curator
Outer Banks History Center
P.O. Box 250
Manteo, NC 27954
V:(252) 473-2655 F:(252) 473-1483
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