To say that the collections of the Morrison County Historical Society are precious would be an understatement. The vast majority of them are irreplaceable. With the goal of MCHS being to preserve these irreplaceable artifacts, photos, and documents far into the future, we take the safety and security of our collections very seriously.
The Charles A. Weyerhaeuser Memorial Museum has been the home of the Morrison County Historical Society and its collections for the past 40 years. A number of safety and security features were built into the museum from the beginning, including a burglar and fire alarm system. If motion is detected in the building after hours, including the motion of a periodic mouse that gets into the building, our security company alerts local law enforcement to check things out. Smoke and fire are, for obvious reasons, anathema to our collections. Along with having smoke detectors throughout the building to alert us of these hazards, we also have fire extinguishers at numerous locations should fire break out while someone is on-site.
While we have thankfully never received a fire alarm call, we have been notified of low temperatures in the building. Did you know we have a low-temp alarm, too? This has come in handy a few times when the furnace has unexpectedly shut off during Minnesota’s frigid winter nights. Not only are temperature extremes bad for the collections, they aren’t good for the plumbing, which, if the pipes burst, could cause water damage to the building and artifacts.
Another security feature at the museum is our camera system, which was added in 2005. When you are visiting the Weyerhaeuser Museum, be sure to look up and smile periodically. Staff will see you on their monitors. 🙂
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Celebrating the 40th anniversary of The Charles A. Weyerhaeuser Memorial Museum.