SEMC is proud to feature Cherish Thomas as this week’s One to Watch! Cherish is the Registrar at the Florence County Museum (FCM) in Florence, South Carolina where she began as a collection’s intern in 2018 and was promoted to Registrar a short time later. Cherish is now responsible for the care and maintenance of the museum’s collection of roughly 10,000+ objects.
Cherish’s nomination letter highlights her passion for collections management and commitment to using collections to broaden narratives, make connections, and amplify all aspects of a community’s history.
“In the short time Cherish has been with the FCM, she has worked to remediate the collection’s catalog and backlog, optimize space in storage, as well as revamp the museum’s climate monitoring and integrated pest management systems. Additionally, Cherish has made several novel discoveries pertaining to the history of Florence County. Her research into Florence’s Green Book sites has led to new discoveries and insight into the rich history of Florence’s African-American community and has helped establish new connections with community leaders. Cherish has presented this research at both the local and state levels. Her presentation, “Vacation Without Humiliation: Florence, SC, and The Negro Motorist Green Book”, saw a reception of roughly 200 people; the highest turnout for an FCM lecture to date.”