Attendance 49 



Museum attendance is more or less uncertain and it is usually 

 impossible to assign any definite reasons for increase, and espe- 

 cially decrease, in the number of visitors. It can simply be said 

 that they come or stay away as they choose, and the most inten- 

 sive advertising — such as took place during the Tuberculosis 

 Exhibition of December, 1908 — fails to add permanently to the 

 list. 



In September, 19 17, the Visitors' Room was turned over to 

 the Local Board, Division No. 129, of the Provost Marshal 

 General, War Department, and up to date is still in use as well 

 as the adjoining Academy Room. Up to the time of its occu- 

 pancy by the Local Board, nearly 20,000 visitors had made use 

 of the Visitors' Room in 1917. 



STATISTICS OF NUMBERS REACHED BY THE MUSEUM 

 AND ITS EXTENSION EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM 



1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 



Board of Education Lectures 48,119 52,761 41,970 34,421 32,790 



Lectures to School Children 

 and Classes visiting the 

 Museum for Study 56,899 65,785* 61,437 58,842 57,463 



Meetings of Scientific So- 

 cieties and Other Meetings 

 and Lectures 33,357 32,939 22,542 28,495 25,549 



Total 138,375 151,485 125,949 121,758 115,802 



Attendance in Exhibition 



Halls 728,288 657,458 794,139 725,917 786,151 



Total Attendance for all Pur- 

 poses 866,663 808,943 920,088 847,675 901,953 



Lectures to Pupils in Local 



Centers 32,800 37, 400 38,525 



Numbers reached by Circu- 

 lating Collections 1,378,599 1,273,853 1,238,581 1,118,322 1,104,456! 



Grand Total 2,245,262 2,082,796 2,191,469 2,003,397 2,044,934 



There has apparently been a steady gain in the attendance 

 of students, or of those who make systematic use of the collec- 

 tions, although exact figures are available only for the Darwin 

 Hall, where 11,841 were recorded — a gain of 5,174 during the 

 past three years. 



A permanent gain of 10,000 who really use the Museum is 

 better than a temporary gain of 50,000 who come for one visit 

 only. And the record of attendance shows that special events, 



* Includes pupils, estimated at 15,000, attending lectures in the Local Centers. 

 t Includes 29,380 in the public libraries. 



