Collections

The Mendocino County Museum collection contains over 60,000 objects chronicling and celebrating the peoples, communities, culture, and history of our county. Our collection represents a range of objects and topics including: agriculture, rolling stock, fine art, baskets, tool, archaeology, and textiles. We are dedicated to preserving and interpreting our collections for the education, benefit, and enjoyment of County residents and visitors. 

Search the Collection

We are pleased to offer a searchable database for our collections. Making our artifacts and archives accessible online is an ongoing project; check back regularly to discover newly added records.

Collections Policy

Mendocino County Museum has both Permanent or Accessioned Collections and Use or Non-Accessioned Collections. The Mendocino County Museum Collections Policy identifies what items are collected, professional museum management standards used to care for the collection, and respective roles and responsibilities of staff in regard to the care and management of the Museum’s collections. Please see the full Collections Policy for more details. 

Donations 

Mendocino County Museum accepts selected donations for its artifact and archival collections. Potential donations are reviewed to determine suitability by Mendocino County Museum's curator and the Cultural Services Director; not all proposed donations are accepted.

Please read the FAQ: About Donating to the Museum's Collection for more details.

Research and Access

Mendocino County Museum often receives requests for the use of images, recordings and research. The museum endeavors to make our collections accessible through the use of our online database, Past Perfect, and to make learning and sharing efficient. Basic research requests are conducted in response to all formal requests. Submit a Research Request.