The TWA Museum at 10 Richards Road
Archives Department
Preserving our Legacy – Sharing Our Past
Dear Friend,
It’s been said that to see the light in front of you, sometimes you have to take a look back. The mission of the TWA Museum is to provide information to the public emphasizing the story, history and importance of the major role TWA played in pioneering commercial aviation. From the birth of airmail to the inception of passenger air travel, to the post-WWII era of global route expansion, TWA led the way for 75 years.
Because of the continued interest in Trans World Airlines, the Museum accepts research requests. The following information provides details on how the Museum fulfills such requests.
Research Requests
It's important to realize that the TWA Museum Archives Department is an all-volunteer operation. The Archives Department can answer brief/general questions concerning TWA history and aircraft; however, due to staffing limitations, our volunteers cannot conduct in-depth research for the public without cost. The following pricing schedule details our research fees:
Museum Supporters: Complimentary for the first hour, $25.00 per hour thereafter
Non-Supporters: $35.00 per hour, with a 1-hour minimum
Fees may be paid for in advance via PayPal. 100% of all research fees support the Museum's operations and are not retained by any staff member or volunteer. Fees may be waived if the TWA Museum and the researcher have agreed to work on a collaborative effort that benefits the Museum's historical archives. Requests made by family/descendants of TWA employees regarding their history with TWA will be fulfilled at no cost.
All requests for information about the museum's history or aircraft must be written and sent via e-mail to the address listed below. We also cannot support same-day requests. Please do not ask for information that is too broad in scope – we have so much available that we cannot comply with such a request.
Since our primary mission is preservation, the archives areas of the TWA Museum offers only limited public access. The Archives Department considers research requests individually, with preference given to former employees of TWA and their families, and academic and public-benefit projects (i.e. scholars and researchers working on materials related to TWA for publication). For more in-depth topics, we may ask that you plan a visit to the Museum’s Archives Department.
Plan a Visit to the Archives
Research requests and visits must have specific goals and be narrow in scope. The Archives Department cannot support generic information requests or visits intended simply to browse our collections. For example, we cannot support such requests as "I want to know what you have on the Lockheed Constellation L-749 aircraft." Each research visit is approved based on its own research merit.
Researchers must make appointments for visits - no walk-in requests will be accepted. Please e-mail for an appointment as far in advance of your planned visit as possible, as volunteer availability is limited and the Museum may be temporarily closed to accommodate other events. Additionally, some materials may require advanced preparation.
Photocopies are available for a fee to researchers. Laptop computers may be used in the archives library; however Internet service may be limited. Digital cameras and small desktop scanners are permitted with prior approval from the Archives Department.
Written requests for information or in-person research should include the following information:
- Complete name
- Title
- Mailing address and E-Mail address
- Telephone number (including area code) and extension (if applicable)
- Complete and detailed information request and/or questions (be specific)
- Purpose for in-person visit/project synopsis (if applicable)
All research requests must be written and sent via e-mail to:
TWA Museum Archives Department
John Mays, Librarian
twajohnmays@gmail.com
Note: Due to workload, response time to written requests for questions concerning TWA history and aircraft may be lengthy.
In order to continue our great work, please consider a donation. The TWA Museum at 10 Richards Road is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization and all donations are tax deductible. If you would like to make a monetary donation, please send it to:
TWA Museum
10 NW Richards Road Suite 110
Kansas City, MO 64116
Sincerely,
John Mays, Librarian
www.twamuseumat10richardsroad.org
twajohnmays@gmail.com
twamuseum@gmail.com
816-234-1011 (Museum phone)
913-515-0080 (John Mays)
Museum Research Services