Pro Brush CPA Report on Activities During 2017To: John Frey, Sarah LaValley, Brian Adams & the CPC Committee
From: Laurie Sanders, Co-Director, Historic Northampton
Date: May 17, 2018
RE: Small Grant: Preservation of The Pro-Brush Company Collection
Activities to Date
Since receiving our small grant award in December 2016, we have made significant improvements to the
collection storage area that houses the Pro-Brush Collection. Located
below the Damon Education Center, these renovations directly and
indirectly benefited the Pro-Brush Collection; they included
purchasing museum-quality shelving, refurbishing existing metal
shelving to museum-quality standards, creating a professional
accessioning space, upgrading the lighting and electrical systems, and
improving the room’s climate conditions.
In terms of activities specific to the Pro-Brush Collection, during the
last year we purchased 40 archival boxes ($541.26 of $3,000) and
began the process of moving items to the new storage boxes.
During the next year, our part-time curator Kelsy Sinelnikov and our
museum manager Marie Panik will purchase additional archival
boxes and work with volunteers to transfer the remaining items in
the Pro-Brush Collection (i.e. advertising volumes, photographs,
toothbrushes, dinnerware and more recent donations) into
professional, museum-quality storage.
Marie Panik takes down an archival box with Pro-
Brush materials. Note the newly refurbished metal
shelving as well as the non-archival cardboard
boxes, which we will replace with acid-free boxes
thanks to this grant. Also note the newly wrapped
furnace duct to help reduce radiant heat loss, which
improves temperature and relative humidity levels.
One of the scrapbooks from Pro-Brush, now properly stored & protected. One of the newly acquired archival boxes, nested with
smaller boxes that will be filled with toothbrushes.
In addition, since we submitted our grant proposal in
September 2016, Historic Northampton’s Vice-President
and noted photographer Stan Sherer completed his
documentary on Pro-Brush. So far, the film has been
shown eight times, with overflow crowds at Historic
Northampton (3 showings), Forbes Library, and the
Westhampton Public Library. It has also been shown at the 2017 Northampton Film Fest, Christopher Heights
and Rockridge Retirement Community. At many of the showings, audience members with personal connections
to Pro Brush cried.
A drawer in an original wooden cabinet from Pro-Brush with a
variety of toothbrushes. During the next year, these will be
organized into archival boxes.
Two toothbrushes, now stored in an archival box.
One of 100s of marketing boxes created by Pro-Brush. The
company is recognized as changing oral hygiene in America.