Museums & Historic Sites
Join me on one of my history adventures!
-
The Mills Brothers Holiday Village at the Museum of Natural History
Tis the season for eggnog, tree decorating and toasts around the warmth of the fireplace. Or perhaps more realistically, shoveling snow off the doorstep and frantically running to the post office with your handwritten cards before the business day’s end. Regardless of the stresses that gift shopping and cooking can bring, this time of year is generally filled with delightful decorations and the excitement of holidays that are just around the corner. If you’re like me, when you think of holiday decorations, you think of driving by lavishly decked out houses in Halifax’s South End or walking down the city’s streets to look at the amazingly lit up tree in…
-
Researching at the Colchester Historeum in Truro, Nova Scotia
What do you do in your spare time? Maybe you have a sport you’re into, complete crosswords, catch up over craft beers at local breweries or lift weights at the gym. Most of us have at least one, if not many activities that we leap to as soon as we have a day off. One of my preferred pastimes is learning about history. Usually that involves a trip to an archive or museum to investigate a history mystery that is occupying my research. Or simply exploring a new-to-me historical site just for the sake of it. Depending on the day, I may be headed around the corner or hours away.…
-
Mills Brothers Building Meets Wrecking Ball
You’ve likely walked by it dozens of times and never given the building a second glance. Or maybe you noticed the oddity of a Tudor styled building in downtown Halifax. I’m talking about that long, beige and brown trimmed shopping centre on Spring Garden Road that up until recently housed a variety of shops, including the well-known Duggers. This location is the Mills Brothers building. Over the last years, stores have been emptying out in preparation for the block to be torn down. The demolition will make way for a new development by Micco Group, set to be finished by 2023. Originally the demolition was planned for this summer, but…
-
The North Carolina Museum of History
This post is a bit of a throwback! Join me as I share my story of traveling to North Carolina over the December holiday break of 2019. I visited two state museums during my stay. This blog post focuses on the first. The day after Christmas I boarded a plane for my first solo international flight. After dating my partner for over a year, I was headed on my first visit to his home state: North Carolina. He had spent the holidays with his family and I was excited to meet them. I got up in the wee hours of the morning to start my journey at the Halifax Stanfield…
-
“Egyptian Mummies & Eternal Life” at the Museum of Natural History
There’s many things that one might expect to see in Nova Scotian museums. Models of old schooners, cookbooks from generations ago, furnishings of the rich and poor or weaponry that predates confederation. Typical maritimer artifacts and histories. I can ensure you that I never expected to see a mummy in Nova Scotia. No, I’m not referring to the one that insists you call once a week or will always make your favourite meal when you visit, but the thousands of years old one that died halfway across the world. Yes, I’m talking about Egyptian mummies. You may wonder “What could mummies possibly be doing in Nova Scotia?”. Well, the Museum…
-
Visiting Georges Island, Nova Scotia
I remember drifting over the waves of Halifax Harbour last fall as I made my way to McNab’s Island. It’s not often that I see the harbour’s islands up close, and it made me wonder if I would ever have the chance to trail any of the others. This summer, during the year that has been full of disasters and worse case scenarios, I was lucky enough to be able to book tickets to Georges Island. An Introduction to Georges Island Georges Island is a national historic site located in Halifax Harbour. Home to Fort Charlotte, Georges Island has one of the five major fortifications that enforced Halifax’s defence system.…
-
Exploring McNabs Island, Nova Scotia
You’ve all seen it. Staring at Halifax. Full of mystery, and certainly packed with history. Yes, I’m talking about one of the few islands in the harbour, McNabs. McNabs Island is the largest of the four islands in Halifax Harbour and is a provincial park. The other three islands are Lawlor’s Island, Devil’s Island, and George’s Island. Of the four, McNabs is the only which visitors are currently allowed regularly, though they need to arrange their own transportation. I had been looking back at McNabs Island for quite some time. I had heard of a quarantine, cholera deaths, old forts, houses, fairs and factories which were located on the Island…
-
Pre-History Trip: Fundy Geological Museum
The first part of our day was spent at the Joggins Fossil Cliffs, exploring the museum and rocky beach. Once we left Joggins, we headed over to the Fundy Geological Museum. The Fundy Geological Museum, though also focusing on the geological past of Nova Scotia, has a larger focus on dinosaurs! Only about a half an hour drive from the cliffs, we arrived by mid-afternoon. Eldon’s Dinosaur Statue While parking, we (myself, my boyfriend, and a friend) were greeted by a statue that I had seen before. It was a green dinosaur, clearly looking as though it has lived a long life. I first encountered the dinosaur about ten years…
-
Pre-History Trip: Joggins Fossil Cliffs
There’s nothing like digging up good local spots to spend a day. And this week’s write up takes a turn towards prehistory, time before humans and their impact on the world. History is defined exclusively to humanity’s past, with prehistory covering the world’s developments beforehand. Events thousands, if not millions of years ago, have a profound effect on our relationship and understanding of the Earth today. And there’s nothing quite like the excitement of getting to unbury some of that knowledge. It may come as a surprise to many that Nova Scotia has very rich geological history. One of the main geological or fossil related attractions in the province is…
-
History at Memory Lane Heritage Village
The age-old ice breaker “If you could time travel, when would you choose to visit?” continues to be used in a variety of settings from classes, conferences, summer camps, and work places as a way to get to know those around you. But if you actually had to choose, beyond the standard answers of Ancient Greece or Egypt, what would you choose? For me, there is no question that if I was to abandon a modern era of technology and medical advances, I wouldn’t travel too far back – but to an age that there are still those living from. I would dive in to the 1940’s. The high-waist buttoned…
