SUMMARY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MUSEUM 

 AND OF EECENT ACTIVITIES. 



The national collections originated in the extremely rich and 

 varied series of specimens obtained during the four years' cruise 

 of the United States Exploring Expedition, from 1838 to 1842, 

 which, with many other objects, were exhibited in the great hall of 

 the Patent Office for nearly two decades. In 1850 the Smithsonian 

 Institution commenced to assemble material for investigation, in- 

 augurating and cooperating in explorations for this purpose, chiefly 

 in connection with Government surveys, but it was not until 1858 

 that the two collections were brought together under the perpetual 

 custody of the Institution, in accordance with the terms of its 

 foundation. The Smithsonian building had only recently been com- 

 pleted, which was partly responsible for this delay, and in this 

 structure the main hall was allotted to the display of specimens, the 

 basement furnishing quarters for laboratories and for the storage of 

 study series. At the end of 20 years, however, practically the entire 

 building with the exception of its eastern wing had not only passed 

 to the use of the Museum but had become greatly overcrowded. 

 Up to this time the collections had related almost wholly to natural 

 history and anthropology. 



The first of the buildings erected for purely museum purposes, a 

 necessity forced upon the Government by the extensive donations 

 received at the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, was made ready for 

 occupation in 1881. The nature of the collections afl'orded by this 

 Exhibition, and of others elsewhere obtained, rendered possible the 

 organization of several divisions of the industrial arts, as already 

 intimated and as designed by the first board of regents, to which was 

 added a department of American history. The development of these 

 branches was soon largely checked, however, and some of the more 

 important were temporarily abandoned, because of the overflow of 

 natural history and anthropological material from the Smithsonian 

 building. 



Nearly 30 years more elapsed before relief was again secured 

 through the building of the superb granite structure on the northern 

 side of the Mall. Designed for the departments of biology, geology, 

 and anthropology, and wholly required for their collections and 

 activities, it has still been necessary to provisionally assign a certain 

 amount of space to other purposes, as, for instance, to the National 

 Gallery of Art. Among other advantages, this newest building is so 

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