2026 Hands Up

Every year the Hart Cluett Museum chooses a specific project to fundraise for as part of our gala- something that transforms our space and enhances our ability to bring the past to life in new, innovative ways!

In the past you have helped raise funds for projects like the Hart-Cluett House parlor carpets and upholstery and last year for our new collection management system. This year we ask for your support in shoring our foundation for a strong future. As we look to our centennial in 2027, and to the next 100 years as an organization, we know that a stable footing is essential to living out our mission of recognizing every face and every story. Outside of our organizational structure, this also includes our physical buildings- making sure they are safe, accessible and available for our programming and events.

We are excited to share we recently completed an update of the Historic Structure Report of our 1827 Hart-Cluett House with assistance from the Preservations League of NY and John G. Waite Associates. We have identified key areas regarding the historic house that need attention, including the foundation and courtyard due to water damage to the masonry, and have met with engineers and contractors to determine our next steps. We estimate the initial work to cost over $100,000, and while we have identified grants and are preparing for those opportunities to help offset these costs, we need your investment to take the next step!

Donate to our Hands Up Initiative

Your support will provide the essential funding needed to begin this project so that we can use the historic house and courtyard to their full potential:

1.      We look forward to hosting events in the courtyard as well as educational programming. We will again be able to rent the space for events and weddings

2.      This project means making use of more space within the basement of the house for both interpretation and storage

3.    Mitigating threats from the elements ensures our collections and exhibits are safe

 
 

2025 Hands Up Project - PastPerfect

We are one step closer to sharing our collection with the world!

This new collection management system will not only allow us to provide online access to our collections, with pictures and descriptions, but also extend our impact regardless of a person’s location or time of day, and truly be able to share our integral history far beyond these front steps.

With your support of this project we will be able to:

  • fund the cost of transitioning entries from our current software,

  • support hiring a photographer to document our collection,

  • and cover annual costs of the program for 10 years!

Watch the video below to learn more!

 
 

Thank you to Victoria Kereszi for video production and editing!

PastPerfect Project Update from our Archivist, Elliot Gnirrep:

For a museum of our size, The Hart Cluett Museum is and has been a pioneer in embracing technology - even being one of the early adopters of the internet. In the early 1990s, our institution took a big step in digital collections management.

With the intent to have a better hold on our growing collections, HCM launched FileMaker Pro, a collections management software that could be accessed from any museum computer and ideally, would give staff and researchers a detailed look at every item in our collection. Over the years, data was entered by an array of users from professional curators to untrained volunteers. While the information entered was crucial to understanding our collections, many of the records were incomplete and difficult to work with. FileMaker Pro failed to modernize with our institution and a change was needed.

Last year, you, our generous donors, raised enough money to launch us back to the front line of museum technology. We raised enough money to transfer our data from FileMaker Pro to a new collections management system, PastPerfect Web Edition. More info here: https://www.hartcluett.org/2025-hands-up

Since then, I have combed through our over 20,000 records, deleting blanks and duplicates, and determining if a shared accession number was a mistake or not. By mid-February, the PastPerfect crew had our data and by the first week of March they set up our demo website to review. Our team, Kathy, Jack, and I, have been reviewing the transferred records. There are still many sloppy entries, however, all of our data has been successfully transferred. Because of your support, HCM's PastPerfect website will be ready this year and we cannot wait to share the unveiling with you!

We decided to go with PastPerfect Web Edition for several reasons:

  • Staff will have access to our collections regardless of using a museum computer or not, allowing us to work offsite or deep within our storage rooms.

  • The software provides functions for exhibit management, allowing us to keep track of which items have been pulled for display and easing the dismantling process once the exhibit closes.

  • PastPerfect also allows images to attach to every record, increasing accessibility and understanding of each item.

  • They provide donor management for a broad and holistic understanding of each contributor. (To streamline our digital workspace, we may decide to switch over our current donor management system to PastPerfect at no additional cost.)

With ambitions of a museum wide inventory this year, PastPerfect could not have come at a better time. Through the work of our curator, archivist, interns, and trained volunteers we hope to clean up the data we have, gain a full understanding of what’s in our collections, and continue to make history accessible to all. Thank you for your generosity and continued support of the Rensselaer County Historical Society!

2025 Hands Up Project - Parlor Upholstery

Of the many furniture collections the museum has, our Elijah Galusha parlor suites are some of the best examples of his work. Betsey Hart was an avid purchaser of not only parlor suites, but side tables, bedroom furniture, window cornices, mirrors, and frames.  There are many bills in the Hart Papers from Elijah Galusha for furniture for the many Hart daughters as they married and furnished their homes. 

The Hands Up funds raised in 2024 to restore the front parlor furniture led us to contract with conservator Sarah Stevens who will investigate previous upholstery fabrics on the suite in the hopes that a snippet of the original c.1850 fabric showing the color/pattern will be discovered. The potential sample can then be matched to reupholster the suite. This is a work in progress and we look forward to reporting back as Sarah peels back the layers on these incredible furniture pieces!