Women’s magazines and periodicals from the past can offer some great advice.
For this month, it’s truly a case of “having one’s ducks in a row” as Comfort magazine from July of 1903 spells out how easy it is to raise a “quack family.” Who knew!
The Museum’s Blog
Summer Hours
Open Seven Days a Week
The Courtenay and District Museum is now on its summer operating schedule and is open Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 5:00 and Sundays from 12:00 to 4:00 until Labour Day. As always, members visit free.
June 2018 Watershed Moments
Here is the latest newsletter installment of an image and quote from the museum’s award-winning book Watershed Moments – A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District.
Photo credit: Mrs. Margaret Frank and Chief Andy Frank in the 1967 Courtenay parade. Ruth Masters photograph. Photo: CDM 2007.251.18. Page 188.
Photo caption: “In 1906, Mary and Billie Frank, Andy’s mother and father, decided to canoe to Tree Island (now Sandy Island Marine Park) to harvest clams. They pitched their tents on the island, and Andy was born there, the youngest of the family…In the 1920s, Andy went into an Alert Bay store for fishing supplies. He was so smitten by one of the clerks that he needed to make several trips into the store to choose the right flashlight. The clerk, Margaret Wilson from T’sakis (Fort Rupert), of high status and with strong convictions about promoting awareness of indigenous heritage, married Andy first by tradition and later in a church.” Page 119.
Summer Fossil Tours
Discoveries Happen Here
Have you ever wanted to make a prehistoric discovery? You have the chance with Courtenay and District Museum summer public fossil tours! Vancouver Island and surrounding area is rich in ancient marine fossils which give palaeontologists and history enthusiasts an excellent opportunity to study prehistoric life (not to mention go digging for fossils)!
June 2018 Gift Shop News
Loads of new summer stock has hit the shelves!
The shop is now carrying a line of t-shirts designed by West Coast Karma, a company based in Comox. Designs include the very popular “Vancouver Island” pattern which is available in adult and children sizes in multiple colours. Or how about the ladies tee of an octopus or jellyfish in a turquoise soft cotton?
Kid’s toy selection has been bumped up too with T-Rex snap band watches, dinosaur skeleton replicas and “hug-ems” in the shape of T-Rex, triceratops, orca whales and wolves. These are a lot of fun for all ages.
It’s All There in Black and White: Big Changes to Comox Mall in 1977
Big changes at the Comox Mall in 1977. The June 3rd edition of the Comox District Free Press reports its’ conversion from a shopping centre into a closed mall. Hmmm…
With legacy support from the Bickle Family and the Comox Valley Echo.
Capes Escape Vacation Rental
Capes Escape
Capes Escape, the museum’s vacation rental property, continues to do great business.
The 1700 sq. ft., 1930s heritage home is part of the Courtenay and District Museum visitor services.
The home, situated on seven acres of forested land on Cumberland Road, was donated to the museum by the late Katherine Capes. Located approximately 4 km from Highway 19, Capes Escape is only minutes from downtown Courtenay and Cumberland.
If you’ve got company coming for a visit and are looking for a comfortable and convenient rental space, consider Capes Escape.
Canada Day Open House
The Courtenay and District Museum will celebrate Canada’s 151st birthday with an open house event from 12 noon to 4 pm on Sunday, July 1st.
There will be free admission, balloons, prize draws, live music, kid’s crafts and a new exhibit to see!
Canada Day is a great chance to explore history at the museum.
Lecture: Against the Current, The Remarkable Life of Agnes Deans Cameron
Cathy Converse presents “Against the Current: The Remarkable Life of Agnes Deans Cameron,” an illustrated lecture based on her newly released book, at 7pm on Thursday, June 14 in the Courtenay and District Museum.
Agnes Deans Cameron was an extraordinary woman who set the educational establishment on edge. Born in Victoria to Scottish immigrants in 1863, she was ahead by a century and achieved a number of “firsts” in her life. She was one of the most well-known educators, writers, and lecturers in Canada and put western Canada on the map through her writing, cycling, and encouragement of Western immigration.
May 2018 Gift Shop News
The gift shop is now selling local free range honey. The hives of very lucky bees spend their summers taking pollen from fireweed on Mount Washington. The cost for a good size jar is $12.95. Very tasty for your own use or a nice, sweet touch as a gift for visitors.