Collection Policy

The Jamaica Plain Historical Society adds items to its collections through gift, purchase, and transfer. The JPHS Archivist determines whether materials meet our basic guidelines for accession. All items are not guaranteed accession, and the JPHS Archivist may decline to accept items based on condition, relevance, space, or other considerations. Items not considered for inclusion in the JPHS Archives may, with the permission of the donor, be offered to another institution, returned to the donor, or offered for sale with proceeds going to the JPHS.

The Jamaica Plain Historical Society is actively seeking the following materials:

• Papers, photographs, drawings, records, correspondence, and other 2-D items related to the history of Jamaica Plain

• Yearbooks and class photos from public and private schools in Jamaica Plain

• Photographs, maps, and drawings that show the physical layout and transformation of Jamaica Plain over time

• Any photograph showing people must have the information about who they are along with a date of when it was taken

We are particularly interested in collecting items related to underrepresented communities including BIPOC, Latinx, LGBTQ+ and immigrant groups who have called Jamaica Plain home.

There are some materials that are not appropriate for donation to the JPHS archives. These include:

• 3-D objects and artifacts (JPHS does not have a location to store or exhibit artifacts)

• Family photographs that do not add to the historical record of Jamaica Plain (one family around a Thanksgiving table looks much like any other - important to the relatives but less informative for historical purposes)

• Public records that can be retrieved from other sources (ex: military records, naturalization papers, voter registration, census data)