Maritime Museum of BC | |
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Location | Bastion Square Victoria, British Columbia |
Type | Maritime museum |
Website | http://mmbc.bc.ca/ |
The Maritime Museum of BC reflects the Pacific maritime history and culture of Canada's west coast, with an exhibits and public program mandate for research, education, and partnership.[1]
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Formed in 1953 by naval officers at Signal Hill in Esquimalt, B.C., the Maritime Museum of British Columbia Society was registered in 1957 as a non-profit society with a broadened mandate.[2] The MMBC moved in 1963-64 to Bastion Square, Victoria, British Columbia and was formally opened in June 1965.[3] The Maritime Museum of British Columbia Foundation was established in 1981 to develop long-term support for the Society.[4]
Three floors of exhibits cover Pacific exploration, the shipbuilding industry and coastal commerce and history, including the related roles of the Hudson's Bay Company, Canadian Pacific, B.C. Ferries, the Royal Navy and Canadian Forces Maritime Command.[5] Of the three vessels in the museum's collection, one is displayed on the main floor. The Tilikum, a modified 30-foot cedar-log canoe, was sailed from Vancouver Island across the Pacific, reaching London, England, by 1904.[6] Shipped back to its home port years later, it was restored and donated by members of the Thermopylae Club.[7]The extensive collection of ship models includes one of HMY Britannia and another of the Hudson's Bay Company's 17th-century trading ship Nonsuch.[8] Archival holdings include corporate and private records, artworks, nautical charts, logbooks, ship plans for more than 900 vessels and approximately 36,000 photographs.[9] The research library and archives are accessible only by appointment.
The museum is housed in the 1889 provincial law courts building near the Inner Harbour that was designed by architect H.O. Tiedemann and later structurally modified by Francis Rattenbury.[10] The province's first Supreme Court on the third floor, which also functioned as Vice-Admiralty Courtroom and after restoration is still rented as a supplemental court venue, was once presided over by Sir Matthew Baillie Begbie, Chief Justice of the Colony of British Columbia.[11] The museum's ornate elevator was installed in 1899 during architect Rattenbury's changes to the interior.[12] Mentioned as the oldest operating birdcage elevator in North America, it is on a list of top ten elevator rides worldwide.[13]
The building is a National Historic Site of Canada.[14]
The Maritime Museum of BC is affiliated with the B.C. Museums Association, the Canadian Museums Association, the Virtual Museum of Canada and Canadian Heritage Information Network.
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