Center for Dubuque History & Loras College Archives: Donations

Donation Policy

The Loras College Center for Dubuque History CDH welcomes donations that support its mission:

The Loras College Center for Dubuque History (CDH) collects, organizes, preserves, and makes accessible primary and secondary sources related to the history of Dubuque and the surrounding area; provides instruction, research assistance, and experiential learning opportunities to anyone engaged in the study of history; and guides individuals in the exploration of vocations related to archives and public history. 

Specific details about what we collect can be found in the Collection Development Policy linked below, but in general, we accept two-dimensional and digital materials related to:

• residents
• buildings 
• businesses 
• organizations, both secular and religious
• events
• Dubuque city and county government
• mining in the driftless area

Donated materials will be:

• held in a secure, archivally appropriate storage location
• available to any researcher who requests access to the materials
  • time-limited access restrictions can be placed on sensitive material
• owned by the Center for Dubuque History
• held and preserved in accordance with institutional and best practices

Your donated materials may be:

• used in both physical and electronic displays
• digitized for both preservation and access
• removed from the collection if they no longer meet the guidelines set forth in future versions of the Collection Development Policy
  • every effort is made to locate a new home for any materials slated for removal
  • within the Deed of Gift, you will be able to indicate how you would like us to handle materials we remove

The Deed of Gift below contains all of our terms and conditions for donations.

Please note, tax laws prohibit Library personnel from providing an estimate of the value of the donated materials. If a gift is monetarily valuable and the donor wishes to deduct the gift for tax purposes, the donor must have the gift appraised by a certified appraiser, complete IRS Form 8283, and send a copy of the form to the Library Director. 

Monetary donations are also welcome and help support:

• the cataloging of materials,
• the creation of displays,
• community outreach,
• preservation, conservation, and digitization of materials, and
• equipment and software to support the activities of the CDH.

Donations can be made at alumni.loras.edu/cdh or by check sent to the address to the right. To discuss specific projects or activities you would like to fund, please get in touch with Heidi at heidi.pettitt@loras.edu.