Cumberland Island Museum Donates Collection

CUMBERLAND ISLAND, Ga. –  Nov. 27, 2024
By Elizabeth Neely
Co-Publisher, The Newnan Times-Herald, Newnan-Coweta Magazine

The Cumberland Island Museum is announcing the donation of its entire collection to further the knowledge of the ecology of the barrier islands.

Officially incorporated in 1985, the Cumberland Island Museum has curated a collection of thousands of items ranging from marine and terrestrial mammals, fish, birds, mollusks, reptiles and amphibians, to parasites, flora, all collected on Cumberland Island.

Carol Ruckdeschel

Carol Ruckdeschel

Museum Founder Carol Ruckdeschel, 82, began collecting in the mid-’60s when she began visiting the island as a student with Georgia State University.

After she moved to the island permanently in 1973, the museum collection expanded dramatically.

The research collection also includes 50-plus years of the gut contents of sea turtles that were found dead on the beach, which can be studied to document their quality of life.

According to Ruckdeschel, the mission of the museum is dedicated to collecting, interpreting, and preserving the natural and cultural history of Cumberland Island, the largest barrier island along the Georgia coast.

The archival collections of the Cumberland Island Museum and its associated library have been available for scholarly research since its its establishment as a nonprofit in 1985.

The Museum has also served the public with several research projects, including tagging sea turtles for migratory research, monitoring alligator and eagle nests, and regular beach surveys for baseline data.

The Museum has published three books covering the ecology of Cumberland Island, “Sea Turtles of the Georgia Coast,” “Sea Turtles of the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the United States” and “Natural History of Cumberland Island, Georgia.”

In addition to the books, at least 65 articles are available in peer-reviewed journals.

Since 1990, the Museum has published a quarterly newsletter summarizing Ruckdeschel’s latest findings and observations.

Her book presents the most comprehensive picture of the island’s flora, fauna, geology, historic information and ecology to date. It is considered a valuable reference guide for the Southeast.

Ruckdeschel expressed a sense of optimism about the collection going to a new home.

“My hope is that these items will be reunited with the remainder of the collection that is already housed at The University of Georgia.”

The collection is being transferred with the assistance of the National Park Service, which brought in several experts from the region to help securely rehouse the specimens.

For more information about the Cumberland Island Museum, visit www.cimuseum.org or email cimuseumcumberlandisland@gmail.com.

Also see: Cumberland Island Museum Announces Transfer of Collection