Latest News
August 2020 Watershed Moments
Here is the latest newsletter installment of an image from the museum’s award-winning book Watershed Moments – A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District. Photo credit: Postcard showing the view over the Dyke Flats towards Courtenay, after 1926. The photo was likely hand-tinted by Spalding’s wife, Ida Merle Spalding. Joseph Frederick Spalding photograph. Photo: 999.154.2.
A Sincere Thank You
Courtenay and District Museum Board and staff extend a deep and sincere thank you to the late Allan Duncan Pritchard for his gift of a significant portion of his estate to the Courtenay and District Museum. At his bequest, this gift will support research and education related to local social history. Before he passed away, Dr. Allan Pritchard's research and provision of records played an important role in forming part of the narrative for the museum's 2015 publication Watershed Moments—A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District published by Harbour Publishing. He then provided funds for the museum’s second publication Step Into Wilderness — A [...]
Current Exhibit: Finding a Voice
983.781 Emily Elinor Dunsmuir by Ernest Castelein. Dated 1924. Courtesy of Craigdarroch Castle Now to October 19, 2020 Elinor was a granddaughter of the Dunsmuir patriarch Robert and his wife, Joan; the sixth child of eldest son James and his wife, Laura. Elinor grew up with everything but was a square peg in British Columbia society of the day. Click for Details
Join Us for Summer Fossil Tours
Photo by Ernst Vegt Join the Courtenay Museum for one of our signature fossil tours, led by Natural History Curator, Pat Trask. Explore the beautiful riverbeds of the Comox Valley for eighty million year old marine fossils! COVID-19 safety protocols are in place and tours are limited to small groups. Please click here for more information or phone 250-334-0686 to book a tour.
Step Into Wilderness: A Pictorial History of Outdoor Exploration in and around the Comox Valley
A photographic history of early wilderness exploration in the Comox Valley and surroundings, from Qualicum to Campbell River. The Courtenay Museum team and volunteers have just completed several years of research and writing in preparation for an October 2020 release from Harbour Publishing of Step Into Wilderness—A Pictorial History of Outdoor Exploration in and around the Comox Valley. This full colour hardback contains 150 images, maps and ephemera and highlights stories from the Comox Valley and surrounding areas. Step Into Wilderness is the second publication with Harbour Publishing and follows up the popular Watershed Moments-A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District published in [...]
Welcome Back!
The Courtenay and District Museum team have re-opened the museum doors with public and museum team safety in mind. First things first, we created a safety plan based upon provincial requirements. Working with this information and with information from our colleagues and associations, the museum team created safety protocols for distancing, occupancy limits and sanitizing and implemented these protocols in gallery areas. We also cleaned spaces, moved exhibits and collections, overhauled the gift shop and worked with contractors and city staff to redo floors and surfaces. This is what's new at our museum: An occupancy limit of ten at a time. Hand sanitizing [...]
Elinor Dunsmuir’s House in Comox
Elinor Dunsmuir’s House in Comox, British Columbia. Credit: Image courtesy of Craigdarroch Castle 2012.7.3
July 2020 Gift Shop News
Check out these new totes made by Thornback & Peel Co. of the UK. The totes are made from strong canvas and have a good size gusset that expands to create a large carrying capacity. A perfect bag for grocery shopping! We have two very attractive prints: Rabbit & Cabbage and Blackbird & Bramble. These totes are a great gift idea and retail for $14.95 each plus tax.
It’s All There in Black and White: Elinor Dunsmuir’s Home in Comox
The Dunsmuir family name is well known to British Columbians whether it be through the history of coal, rail or politics. But did you know that Elinor Dunsmuir, the subject of our temporary exhibit, had a home in Comox? Elinor's house, built in 1929 (not 1906 as reported in this article), was part of the unsuccessful "Save Comox Hill" campaign of the early 1990s. The final fate of her home is discussed in this article from the Comox District Free Press of May 11, 1994. With legacy support from the Bickle Family and the Comox Valley Echo.
July 2020 Watershed Moments
Here is the latest newsletter installment of an image from the museum's award-winning book Watershed Moments – A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District. Photo credit: Boating party on the Courtenay River, ca. 1924. The girl at the front of photo in the white hat is Kathleen Stephens. Photo: CDM Stubbs Collection.
Culture Doesn’t Stop
Working together, Comox Valley Arts, Courtenay & District Museum, The Sid Williams Theatre and Comox Valley Art Gallery are making a plan in concert with the City of Courtenay to keep cultural activities going. Read the Statement Here
May 2020 Gift Shop News
Culture doesn't stop and neither does our gift shop. We're going to be featuring select items on our Facebook page for your perusal. You can then email us at info@courtenaymuseum.ca or give us a call at 250-334-0686 ext. 1 to purchase. Calls will be accepted Tuesday to Friday from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm. Payment can be made with either Visa or MasterCard. Then, you can make an appointment time for pick up or we can have the items mailed or couriered to you (a shipping fee will apply).
May 2020 Watershed Moments
Here is the latest newsletter installment of an image from the museum's award-winning book Watershed Moments – A Pictorial History of Courtenay and District. Photo credit: Charles and Henrietta Simms relaxing in their picturesque garden, August 1931. Charles Sillence photograph. Photo: CDM Sillence Collection. Page 161.