Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

Have you ever wondered what that fine looking fort-type building across the Heart River was?

Well, wonder no more thanks to the Museum's helpful and handsome new sign!

A special thanks must go out to the kind folks at Public Works who did such a top notch job on hanging our illustrious new signage.

"What's Your Story?"

We're proud to announce the winner of our 2nd Annual Historical Digital Photography Contest: Six-year-old Sasha Marceau!



Sasha is pictured here with our judges Jason Smirl (local photographer) and Beth Wilkins (Researcher and photographer) and with our contest producer Ken Staicesku (co-owner of family owned Foto Source).

The theme of this year's contest was "What's Your Story?" and challenged the young photographers to explore their family history and the history surrounding them in the Peace Region.

The winning photograph:

Who Sat There? by Sasha Marceau

The judges were impressed with Sasha's composition skills and the haunting human element of the lone chair sitting empty by the abandoned building near Mairie Reine.

Sasha is the winner of a $100 gift certificate for Foto Source in the Riverdrive Mall, Peace River.

The winning photo and those of the other talented entrants are on display now at the Peace River Museum. Check out these talented young photographers and their unique vision of our community's history.

Our Visit to Lac Cardinal!

This week some of our staff members went on a field trip to the Lac Cardinal Pioneer Village Museum (just outside of Grimshaw) to discover some of the adventures available in our own backyard.


Lac Cardinal's Pioneer Village Museum is truly one of the Peace Country's hidden treasures. It is a unique opportunity to wander down a Main Street and Farm of a typical small town in the 1920's - 1940's.


There really is no better way to experience the Peace Region's history than to walk through the Pioneer Village.


All of the buildings, businesses and homes are open for visitors to walk through and are brimming with interesting artifacts, antiques and curios from the past. The General Store is stocked with every odd and end that the enterprising pioneer would ever need.


Buildings like the bakery, Strong Creek Hall, MD Office, and Post Office are full of period detail. When you step inside charming Hassell School (above) you can almost see the students pledging their allegiance to Queen and country.


The former Worsley Catholic Church even has a working church bell with a wonderful sound.


This is the Old Cook Shack which functioned as cook's quarters and a kitchen and a mess hall for the threshing crews - all in this tiny little trailer!


There are plenty of opportunities to interact with artifacts, including this stereoscope (a retro Victorian 3D picture device).


Some historical gas prices (56 cents a gallon!).


This blacksmith's shop has a collection of hand crafted tools donated by a local blacksmith who created every one of his tools for each job that he performed.


The Museum is built and maintained by a passionate group of volunteers. We would like to thank our informative and entertaining guide, Selma (the Pioneer Village's Collection Manager) who is standing on the left with our Archivist, Wendy.


Admission to the Pioneer Village is free (Although donations are appreciated). Its location next to Queen Elizabeth Park makes it an ideal place to spend an afternoon of exploration during this coming long weekend.

The Museum is open 11 - 5 p.m until mid-September.

For more information, call the Pioneer Museum at 332-2030.

Membership Drive 2008

Our 2008 Membership Drive began this August and has already met with an enthusiastic response!

A membership to the Peace River Museum entitles the bearer to free admission throughout the year, invitations to opening receptions and special events, a subscription to the Museum's newsletter and the satisfaction of helping to ensure the preservation of Peace River's history for future generations.

Bessie (a porcelain cow creamer hailing from Scotland, c. 1911) models with the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre's 2008 Membership Card.

There are three different types of memberships for Bessie (and others) to choose from:

Individual Membership - $8
Family Membership (For 1-2 Adults and their children) - $15
Grand Family Membership (For 1-2 Adults and their grandchildren) - $15

Memberships can be purchased at the Museum with cheque or cash or at the Town Office with a debit card.

Membership are available year round and make a wonderful gift for the historically inclined individual or family.

Thank You to the Peace River Heritage Run

Photo by Beth Wilkins

A special thanks to the participants and volunteers of this year's Peace River Heritage Run who helped raise $1000 for the Peace River Museum, Archives and Mackenzie Centre on their annual run which took place this July 15th.

Lynn Page-Scott at the Finish Line Photo by Beth Wilkins

More than 75 runners and walkers participated in a 5 km or 10 km run. There were two school as well as business relay teams. The first place runner in the 10 km event was Andrea Taylor, with a time of 43 minutes 40 second. Nathan Fyfe won the 5 km run in an impressive 18 minutes and 48 seconds.

Cara Gangnon in the lead Photo by Beth Wilkins

The Peace River Museum and Archives deeply appreciates the efforts and continued support of the Peace River Running Club. Year after year, their runners and volunteers have transformed the Heritage Run into a much anticipated event in Peace River and a joy for all participants.

We look forward to next year's run!

Superb Heritage Day at the Museum

Glorious summer weather, entertaining guides and adventurous walkers all helped to make the Museum's Heritage Day Celebrations a marked success.

An excellent turnout of curious ramblers were treated to fact and folklore provided by our fantastic guides: Beth, Laura and Adele. Each brought the river, hills and downtown of Peace River to life, much to the delight of our intrepid visitors.

A special congratulations to the lucky winner of our draw, Debora Reath, who was the recipient of an adventure backpack supplied by the staff of Alberta Sustainable Resource Development.

After this week's positive results, the Museum is considering offering more guided walking tours throughout the year and possibly publishing brochures to conduct your own self-guided walking tours through Peace River. Let us know what you think at Museum@peaceriver.net or in the comments field.

And a big thanks to all our Walkers and Talkers!