Regarding the story “Collections in limbo” [Recorder, March 5], there was at least one previous, somewhat recent effort to start a proper natural history museum at UMass. About 25 years ago then-UMass biology professor Willy Bemis, an ichthyologist, tried to do so.

Bemis, a world-famous scientist now at Cornell University, didn’t find any enthusiasm (or funding) for the project, to his great disappointment. I’ve wondered whether this is because Amherst College already has a well-established and well-endowed natural history museum, or because natural history is still seen as a 19th-century “cabinet of curiosities,” suitable for children, by administrators and those from other disciplines.

Julie Zuckman

Florence