Celebrating 25 Years of Excellence: The Legacy and Future of Harvard's Weissman Preservation Center

by Erin L. Murphy, James Needham Chief Conservator
Weissman Preservation Center and Collections Care

Twenty-five years ago, a visionary initiative was set in motion by the late Jan Merrill-Oldham, then Head of Preservation, and Harvard College alumni Paul Weissman, class of 1952, and his wife Harriet. They foresaw a future where Harvard Library's vast array of special collections—ranging from rare books and photographs to historical maps and manuscripts—would benefit from a collaborative conservation program. Their vision paved the way for the establishment of the Weissman Preservation Center, which celebrated its 25th anniversary on March 20th, 2025. 

At the time, Harvard had a newly developed centralized lab to care for circulating books and general collections (Collections Care in Widener Library), but other conservation activities appeared only in pockets throughout the library system. By looking holistically at the needs of all the special collections and acting programmatically, our visionary colleagues created a center that allowed all libraries at Harvard, big and small, to have access to trained conservation and preservation experts with specialized skills.   

To understand the significance of this milestone, let’s journey back to the year 2000, to remember how different our world was just 25 years ago. We were welcoming a new millennium, our Y2K anxieties had just been put to rest, and the world had not yet witnessed the profound impacts of September 11th or the COVID-19 pandemic. YouTube, Snapchat, Facebook, and Google were either non-existent or not yet mainstream. Mark Zuckerberg was in high school; self-driving cars, facial recognition software, and smartphones were futuristic daydreams for most of us. At Harvard, this year’s incoming freshman class (class of 2028) had not yet been born, and every tub was on its own bottom – meaning that every library managed their resources independently, making the idea of a centralized, collaborative conservation effort truly revolutionary.  

Besides being a centralized source of expertise, what really makes the Weissman Preservation Center remarkable is the teamwork and generosity of our individual staff members when faced with collective challenges. These core values originated with the Weissman's and leaders like Jan Merrill-Oldham and others. 

What has been the result?  

Over the years WPC has adapted to meet the evolving needs of our libraries, students, faculty and researchers. In 2014 the Weissman Preservation Center and the Collections Care laboratory in Widener merged administratively into one Conservation unit. We’ve built solid relationships with our library colleagues and worked on projects from over 55 Harvard locations, supporting the research, teaching, and learning mission of the university through consultations, conservation treatment, materials analysis and assistance with exhibitions, loans, digitization, and more.   

We’ve contributed to a sophisticated collections disaster response team called the Library Collections Emergency Team (or LCET), trained over 60 emerging conservation professionals, and crafted innovative treatment protocols which allow us to work collaboratively on large collections. Most recently we have broadened our support of the university’s mission by centralizing our exhibition and loan activities, directly collaborating with Harvard students and faculty, and expanding our in-house capacity for analysis and technical imaging of collection materials.  

Looking Forward: The Next 25 Years 

Despite these accomplishments, the future presents new challenges and opportunities. The world of preservation is evolving, and so too must the Weissman Preservation Center. The demand for our services continues to grow, often outstripping the limitations of our workspace and staff capacity. We have not been able to keep pace with the preservation of our non-traditional library collections such as paintings, sculptures, textiles, and other artifacts – particularly modern materials such as plastic – nor have we been able to significantly improve storage conditions for many library collections.  These emerging needs call for new expertise and innovative solutions. 

As we move into our next quarter century, I’d like to see us take another giant leap of faith by envisioning integrated collaboration among the Harvard Library, Art Museums, and Science Museums, particularly in the areas of preservation and object-based learning. With the depth and breadth of our collections, faculty and staff expertise, we can create an unmatched educational juggernaut. 

Our collections are the DNA of intellectual life, and it is the responsibility of cultural and educational institutions to use them to foster communities which promote dialogue, inquiry, and curiosity about our world.  We can do this in part by actively engaging the expertise of all staff in the educational process. While we cannot predict the needs of the class of 2050, as stewards of Harvard's collections, we must ensure that future students and faculty have access to comprehensive resources, both physical and digital. We can lay the groundwork for their success by making informed and visionary decisions today. 

In Gratitude 

As we celebrate this 25-year milestone, we reflect on the success made possible by the Weissmans' leap of faith and the dedicated collaboration of our Harvard Library and Preservation Services colleagues. Together, we are creating a legacy that will continue to enrich the Harvard community and beyond. 

For more information about the work of Harvard Library Preservation Services, visit our website or watch this video.