Huron County Museum
110 North Street N7A 2T8 Goderich, ON, Canada

In response to the province-wide shutdown announced earlier this week, the Huron County Museum will be temporarily closed to the public starting Dec. 24, 2020. The Museum is open today from 1-4:30 p.m. In the meantime, you can still enjoy our extensive online collections and virtual services from the comfort and safety of your own home! For full details, please visit: https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/huron-county-museum/

While the Huron County Museum is temporarily shutdown, here are 10 ways you can still enjoy the Museum from home: https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/10-ways-to-enjoy-the-huro/

The Huron County Library has just announced that free at-home access to the Ancestry Library Edition has been extended to March 31, 2021!

Winter is here! Hoping you find some time to get out and connect with Huron County's great outdoors! This Sallows image, from the Museum's online photo collection, shows Florence Sallows Saunders around 1910 out cross country skiing. To explore more from our online collections, visit: https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/virtual-services/

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! A winter umbrella is probably a good idea if you have to leave the house today! Postcard from around 1910 To: Miss Lottie Jackson, Auburn ON, From: Elma Girvin... From the Collection of Huron County Museum.

What is it Wednesday? Can anyone identify this artifact from the Museum's collection? Watch for the answer tomorrow.

Are you all ready to say goodbye to 2020? Here is a lovely New Year's message found in the Huron News-Record from Dec. 27, 1893 to carry us into 2021. Wishing you all a healthy and happy new year! This piece was found in the museum's digital collection of historic newspapers. To explore the museum's virtual collections, including the newspapers, visit: https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/virtual-services/

The Huron County Museum has re-opened its doors and staff can't wait to welcome you back! The Museum is following the advice of public health authorities and making every effort to ensure visits to the site are enjoyable and safe, so things will look a little different from the last time we welcomed you through the doors. To help with physical distancing, all visits are now by appointment. A number of guidelines have been put in place to help keep the Museum a safe space for ...all, so we ask that you review all of these guidelines on our website before visiting the site. Unfortunately, the Historic Gaol will remain closed, but we look forward to re-opening this National Historic Site in 2021. https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/huron-county-museum/

Is downtown Zurich looking just as snowy this morning as it did in this photo from 1911? If you're in the village, feel free to share below how things are looking there today! Photo from the Museum's online collection of historic photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/huroncountymuseum/#

A year-end message from Elizabeth French-Gibson, Interim Director of Cultural Services: "As we come to the end of a very different year, we would like to take time to say thank you to everyone who has supported the Huron County Museum & Historic Gaol throughout 2020. To our visitors who took part in events and visited pre-COVID; to all those who visited the Huron County Museum after our re-opening; to our volunteers who continued to encourage us; to donors who continued their... support; to researchers and donors who recognized the significance of our collections; and to our community partners who worked through difficult times as we tried to determine the possibilities. Our staff appreciate everyone’s patience and support throughout 2020. We are looking forward to 2021 with a variety of offerings - new exhibits, old favourites, virtual programmes, and more. Stay tuned, stay safe, and again thank you!" See more

The County of Huron is committed to being a leader in taking action to reduce, respond to, and recover from the impacts of climate change on the corporation and our communities. Through the development of a Corporate Climate Change Adaptation Plan (CCCAP), the County will implement strategies to improve the resiliency of corporate services and operations to ensure we are prepared for the future. Residents are invited to share their feedback to help tailor how the County continues to engage the community through the implementation of the CCCAP. https://bit.ly/3kEFgfj

This is the first of an incredible three-part story of Hugh Russell, a Barnardo home child who came to live with a family in Wingham. His journey took him back to Europe to fight in the First World War, before returning to the Wingham area suffering from severe shell shock. Using the Huron County Digitized Newspapers collection as part of the research for this story, the author shares letters written home during the war that were published in the Wingham Advance. Part two of the story is also now available on The Cowkeeper's Wish, with part three to come. https://thecowkeeperswish.com//14/part-1-a-ww1-barnardos-/

With close to 100 Jack McLaren pieces on loan from the community for the exhibit Reflections, there are just as many stories, or reflections, to share. These reflections of Jack will be shared throughout the duration of the exhibit, which is on now at the Huron County Museum until April 30, 2021. Reflections: The Life and Work of J.W. (Jack) McLaren is presented in partnership with the @Huron County Historical Society. To arrange your visit, please call the Museum at 519-524-2686. https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/reflections/

The Huron County Museum has re-opened its doors aand staff can't wait to welcome you back! The Museum is following the advice of public health authorities and making every effort to ensure visits to the site are enjoyable and safe, so things might look a little different from the last time we welcomed you through the doors. To help with physical distancing, all visits are now by appointment. A number of guidelines have been put in place to help keep the Museum a safe space fo...r all, so we ask that you review all of these guidelines on our website before visiting the site. Unfortunately, the Historic Gaol will remain closed, but we look forward to re-opening this National Historic Site in 2021. https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/huron-county-museum/

Huron County artists inspired by the Huron County Museum collection! Can't wait to see the finished piece.

Can you guess what this artifact is in extreme close-up? Can you spy this artifact detail if you're visiting the Museum today? Share your guesses down below and check back tomorrow when we share the answer.

Attention history students! Museum Assistant Jacob Smith has outlined a number of Huron County Museum resources to help with your next research essay. Jacob found this World War I propaganda poster through the museum’s digitized newspaper online collection while researching this blog post. It was published in The Exeter Advocate on Aug. 22, 1918. Learn more: https://bit.ly/35QGhej

It's so easy to shop local this holiday season with the Huron County Wish Book as your guide! Check out the selection of Huron County Museum Gift Shop items included in the guide, along with so many other great local gift ideas for everyone on your list!

Our schools are close to two months into this new, and very different, school year and the Huron County Museum would like to hear from students about how this year is going so far. As part of the Museum's COVID-19 Rapid Response Collecting, we are collecting these memories for the future and invite students to share their stories, images or videos to [email protected]

It's looking like we might need to dig out our coats and hats this weekend! Wishing you a cozy one! This photo features three women sitting on the steps of Goderich's Town Hall in the 1920s from the Museum's Flickr collection of historic photographs. https://www.flickr.com/photos/huroncountymuseum/

Huron County-based magazines have just been added to the Huron County Museum's online digitized publication collection. Explore back issues of North Huron Publishing's The Rural Voice and The Village Squire. Publication dates span 1973-2001 with more issues being added to the collection. The digitized magazines join the collection of digitized historical Huron County newspapers, which currently includes more than 350,000 newspaper pages spanning from 1848-2016. The digitization project is a joint project between the Museum and the Huron County Library. https://bit.ly/3l0Fhdp

It's cozy and dry on this Huron County Main Street! Come take a stroll! The Museum is now open each Thursday evening until 8 p.m. #mainstreet #huroncounty #strollbackintime #huroncountyontario #ontarioswestcoast

What is it Wednesday? Can anyone identify this artifact from the Museum's collection?

Everyone's favourite two-headed calf was put behind bars this morning at the Huron Historic Gaol's new selfie station! What do you think their crime was?? We would love to see your most creative 'behind bars' selfie and invite you to share on social media by Oct. 12 for your chance to win a Huron County Museum merch bundle! To enter, simply post your selfie to Facebook or Instagram and use #HuronHistoricGaol. Thank you to Regional Tourism Organization 4 (RTO4) Shareable Momen...ts Challenge for providing funding for the creation of the selfie station. For more about the Gaol's Selfie Contest, visit: https://bit.ly/3cJQ6gR

The Huron County Museum's COVID-19 Rapid Response Collecting project was recently acknowledged in an American Alliance of Museums article for its work to include children's reflections and experiences in the pandemic. The Museum continues to collect everyday personal accounts of the pandemic and how it is affecting the people of Huron County, including our children. To share your stories, images or videos, email [email protected]

Starting Thursday, Oct. 8, the Huron County Museum will expand its hours to include Thursday evenings and full days on Saturdays! As our newest exhibit, Reflections, also opens on Oct. 8, there are lots of opportunities to add a visit to your Thanksgiving weekend plans. Don't forget to call ahead to pre-arrange your visit and be sure to visit our website for full details about what to expect on your next visit! https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/huron-county-museum/

Congratulations to Amanda Cook who won our Huron Historic Gaol Selfie Contest! Thanks for sharing your selfie with us and we hope you enjoy your Museum merch bundle! While the contest is over, we would still love to see your selfies! The Gaol's selfie station is available all year round just outside the main entrance. Let us know you've put yourself behind bars by using #HuronHistoricGaol

Today we honour Kearwood White, turnkey at the Huron Historic Gaol and killed in the line of duty in 1941. The last Sunday of September is Police and Peace Officers’ National Memorial Day in Canada.

The Staysh recently sat down with members of the Huron County Historical Society and Shawn Henshall, author and McLaren relative, to talk about Reflections, the latest exhibit to open at the Museum. Reflections looks at the life and work of Huron County artist Jack McLaren and is on now! Give the Museum a call at 519-524-2686 to schedule your visit. The Museum is currently open to the public on Thursdays, 1-8 p.m., Fridays, 1-4:30 p.m., Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., and Sundays, 1-4:30 p.m. Reflections is included with regular admission to the Museum.

It's looking like a perfect fall weekend to enjoy a picnic in the great outdoors! What is your favourite Huron County picnic spot? Doesn't this spot in Brussels from 1896 look lovely?

Access to the Museum's online collection is available 24/7 from the comfort of your own home!

How are you celebrating Thanksgiving this weekend? How are your celebrations different from previous years? We are collecting memories of this time for the future and we would love to hear from you. Share your stories, images or videos to [email protected]

Happy first day of fall, everyone! It really is a beautiful time of year in Huron County, isn't it? Especially when you consider all of the delicious local foods being harvested this time of year. It has always been a bountiful season, as this R.R. Sallows photo from the 1890s shows. This group of men are harvesting apples in West Wawanosh Township at either the Cameron Orchard or the Joynt Orchard. Explore more of the Museum's online photo collection on Flickr: https://bit.ly/2RRKOq9

In celebration of the newly installed selfie station at the Huron Historic Gaol, we are hosting a selfie contest and invite you to put yourself behind bars for your chance to win a Huron County Museum merch bundle! All you have to do to win is to take a selfie behind the bars outside the Gaol walls and post it to social media using #HuronHistoricGaol. A random draw will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 13. Please note that the selfie station is not monitored and does not have sanitizer available. Please use at your own risk.

Thanksgiving Day will be here soon! And while our celebrations may look different this year, it's nice to have this time to pause and reflect on all that we have to be thankful for. The Huron County Museum is thankful for all of your continued support, especially through these challenging times. We wish you a happy and safe Thanksgiving weekend. This lovely poem was published in the Exeter Advocate on Nov. 3, 1921. It was found in the Museum's online collection of Huron County newspapers. https://pubdocs.huroncounty.ca/WebLink/Browse.aspx

The Museum's Feature Gallery is a busy place these days as staff get ready for the opening of Reflections: The Life and Work of J.W. (Jack) McLaren on Oct. 8. This week, Assistant Technician Dana Lumby began hanging close to 100 McLaren works featured in the exhibit on loan from the community. Reflections is presented in partnership with the Huron County Historical Society and is on at the Museum until April 30, 2021.

The much-anticipated exhibit Reflections: The Life and Work of J.W. (Jack) McLaren opened at the Museum yesterday with a visit from Mary Gregg and Susan Glousher, of the Huron County Historical Society. Mary and Susan worked very hard to help bring this exhibit together, and after the spring opening was delayed because of the pandemic, we are very excited to share with you all the incredible life of Mr. McLaren. Reflections features close to 100 works on loan from the community and runs until April 30, 2021. For more information, visit: https://www.huroncountymuseum.ca/reflections/

One grateful former Huron County resident wanted to give a shout out to the Museum for helping him find a new home for some old family mementos dating back to the 1920s. Concerned these mementos would one day end up in the landfill, he reached out to staff to discuss donating them to the Museum. If you are interested in learning more about the donation process to the Huron County Museum, please give us a call!

#ThrowbackThursday to 1920s Grey Township and harvest time on the Slemmon farm on the 10th Concession and Station Road. Melvin John Slemmon took this photo of this team of horses and driver threshing the grain.

Even though the Huron Historic Gaol remains closed this season, visitors can still go behind bars at our new selfie station found just outside the Gaol walls! Local blacksmith Jim Wallace recreated the Gaol's iron doors and was onsite last week to complete installation. This permanent structure is now available year round for visitors to share their visit to this National Historic Site. And don't forget to use #huronhistoricgaol to let us know you've been by! #huronhistoricgaol #behindbars #huroncountyontario #ontarioswestcoast