Spring Fling and Easter Things
We're all set for this year's exciting and fun-packed Spring Fling and Easter Things event scheduled for Saturday, March 24 from 11am to 2pm here at the museum.
Please join us for a petting zoo courtesy of the Shamrock Gumboots 4-H Club as well as games, crafts, and mascot visits.
Event Details
Lecture: The Queen of the North Disaster, The Captain's Story
Time and Date: 7 pm, Thursday, March 15, 2018
Location: Rotary Gallery of the Courtenay and District Museum
Speaker: Colin Henthorne
Tickets: $5 for Historical Society members; $6 for general public (plus GST). Advance tickets recommended. Tickets can be purchased over the phone by calling 250-334-0686 ext 5.
Back by popular demand, Colin Henthorne will repeat his sold-out presentation about one of British Columbia's most serious marine tragedies.
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2018 BC Paleontological Symposium
Don't miss the 2018 BC Paleontological Symposium in Courtenay from August 17-20. Keynote Speaker, Dr. Richard Hebda and Special Guest Speaker, Artist, Ray Troll, will lead off the 2018 12th BC Paleontological Association Symposium in Courtenay. Everyone is invited.
Supported by the Vancouver Island Paleontological Society and the Courtenay and District Museum, the symposium will feature 15 formal presentations, field trips and a fossil prep workshop. Historically, the BCPA symposiums feature an art exhibit of varied media and paleo-imagination and this tradition will continue. In tandem with the symposium, the museum will be hosting an exhibit of in-house and private fossil collections from May to December.
Symposium registration fees are $150 + GST for professional paleontologists and non-BCPA members; $120 + GST for BCPA members and $100 for students. This includes all activities except field trips and workshops.
Here's more information on the symposium outline and guest speakers
Click here to Download the Registration Form
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: Girl Guides depart from Royston train station, 1928. Left to right: Gladys Idiens, Joyce Edwards, Margaret Dunn, Dot Waterfield, Mrs. Mary Greig, Ritsuko Uchiyama, Lynn Hilton. Photo: CDM 990.16.26. Page 158-159.
Photo caption: "The first E & N passenger train arrived in Courtenay on August 6, 1914. The August 13 Courtenay Review noted that the train "consisted of baggage and express cars and four coaches." The trip from Victoria covered 139.7 miles, with the train averaging a speed of roughly twenty miles an hour.
This arrival of the E & N, combined with major expansion of industrial rail lines, strengthened camps and communities such as Union Bay, Royston, Miracle Beach, Cumberland and Headquarters over the next fifty years." Page 128.
Click Here for a Larger Version
Your Membership and Donations Make A Difference
Purchasing a membership to the Courtenay and District Museum, now in its 57th year, supports heritage preservation in the Comox Valley through special events, lectures, education programmes, research and exhibitions. Your membership benefits these award winning programmes on a year round basis and we appreciate it!
Becoming a member provides you with discounts in the gift shop and on lectures and an opportunity to support one of the most active regional museums in British Columbia. Thank you for your support.
Click here to Join
Click Here to Make a Donation
Photo of the Month
CDM #979.3.10
Coal wharf at Union Bay, 1906
You can view more photos like this on our website. Click here to visit our holdings.
It's All There in Black and White
This article from the March 7, 1986 Comox District Free Press provides details on the North Island's first crematorium located right here in the Comox Valley.
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With legacy support from the Bickle Family and the Comox Valley Echo.
Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Royal British Columbia Museum until April 2, 2018
A visitor favourite every year, Wildlife Photographer of the Year returns with a brand new selection of 100 of the most stunning images from around the world.
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Comox Valley Genealogy
The Comox Valley Genealogy Group meets on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 1:00 pm in the Courtenay Library. Meetings feature guest speakers and a chance for members to share their discoveries. All are welcome!
FMI: info@cvgenealogygroup.org
Museum Funding
The Courtenay and District Historical Society was registered as a nonprofit society in 1961 to preserve and interpret cultural and natural heritage of the Comox Valley. It has functioned as an independent society since that time. Funds are derived from the generous support of the City of Courtenay, British Columbia Arts Council, Comox Valley Regional District, British Columbia Gaming Branch, and from museum generated revenues and donations.
Proud sponsors of the Courtenay & District Museum: