Please sign the petition to Save Wells’ History!
1. Aurora has asked Wells to transfer the college’s historical archives to the Village.
2. The transfer will stop the archives from being sold off or broken up.
3. The Village of Aurora will care for and share Wells’ archives.
4. We have lost so much already. Act now to save our history!
Background (petition link below!)
Aurora’s Board of Trustees passed a resolution in September, 2024, authorizing the Mayor to ask Wells to transfer the college archives into the existing archives of the Village, to be housed jointly with assistance from the Aurora Ledyard Historical Society.
A partnership was proposed to provide interim storage space and fund a new facility to hold and share the “Wells Collection” as a vital part of the Village’s historical archives.
Other possible recipients — such as a museum, library, or college — could de-acquisition the materials. But a municipality in New York State cannot remove items from an archival collection for sale or disposal. If the Wells archives became part of the Village’s archives, they would be protected permanently.
An immediate response from the Wells Board Chair was polite but not encouraging. Then, on October 23 the college’s Board of Trustees indicated that Christie’s is preparing to sell some of the archives. That would be a tragic loss for scholars across the country engaged in researching the rich history of the Finger Lakes region, as well as local teachers, genealogists, residents and Wells alumnae/i worldwide.
Experts agree that the Wells College Archives must remain intact and local, as explained by two former Archivists for the State of New York Archives.
The Village’s history is inextricably tied up with that of Wells, and the majority of materials in the Wells archives relate to Aurora; see the Village Historian’s letter of June, 2024.
The Wells Legacy Society requests your support now before this matter comes to the NYS Attorney General, Dept. of Education, and/or Supreme Court for a final determination.
We, the undersigned, ask that the Wells College Archives be transferred in their entirety to the Village of Aurora in order to become a part of the municipal archives under the care of the the Village’s Records Officers, with assistance from the Aurora Ledyard Historical Society.
The link above opens a Google form which is easy for us to collate. Your data will not be shared. As of March 28, we have 210 signatures!
If you are looking for the “Say NO to Manhattanville” petition, it is here and over 775!