The Museum Association of New York (MANY) provides a fact sheet about museums in the state. Here are some interesting numbers, you can also check out their white paper, “Cultural/Heritage Tourism: Opportunity, Impact, and Implications” online here:
* There are approximately 1,900 public and private museums, heritage organizations, and historic sites in New York.
* That equals one museum for every 10,258 New Yorkers.
* 68 million visitors enjoyed New York State museums in 2007.
* 29% of all tourists visit museums, historic sites, or cultural events.
* 55% of the museums offer standards-based programs for K – 12 students
* 4.461 million school children participated in classes at museums in 2006.
* 2.195 million students enjoyed museum outreach programs in their classrooms.
* 79% of the museums care for permanent collections.
* 1 million+ objects are added to these permanent collections annually.
* These museums currently employ more than 17,000 people.
* Museum operating expenses top $1 billion annually in New York State: the majority of this is returned to the state’s economy as wages, purchases, or taxes.
I realise that it takes time and money to set up an online museum collection, but many of us just can’t get to these museums any other way.
It can get very frustrating hearing about what they have and not being able to access images or information.
Regards, Le Loup.