Morse Museum presents exhibition about Canada’s role in the Cold War
The current exhibition at the Morse Museum and Cultural Centre provides various perspectives on Canada's role during the Cold War and more recent conflicts.
This temporary exhibition Canada and the Cold War to the Present coincides with a decision by the museum to extend its public hours into the fall and winter period.
This is the first time that the museum will remain open beyond its regular spring and summer hours. It is open to the public for three days a week during the fall and winter on every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“It's trying something new, hoping to get more people to come and learn about the history of the town of Morse and visit our museum,” Museum Curator John Griffin said.
Along with this change came the opportunity to present a new exhibition to the public in the run-up to Remembrance Day. The temporary exhibition about Canada's role in the Cold War and subsequent conflicts opened on Nov. 2 and will continue until Dec. 30.
“The exhibit features many different artifacts, such as newspapers, uniforms, military equipment, ephemera, and some other items,” he said. “Many of the items in this display are actually out of my personal collection. I'm a fairly big military collector and I collect all sorts of military items. So a good portion of the items are from my collection, but there are items from the museum as well.”
The exhibition includes uniforms from different periods, including the 1970s and 1980s. There is a first generation Canadian Disruptive Pattern (CADPAT) uniform worn in the late 1990s, which was the start of the camouflage pattern design used on Canadian military operational uniforms.
CADPAT is a series of camouflage patterns developed specifically for the Canadian Armed Forces. It was created as part of the Clothe the Soldier project and replaced the previously used olive-green operational uniforms.
Other items in the exhibition include a 1980s period helmet, an Air Force wedge cap and some tactical gear such as a first-generation Canadian tactical vest and 1982 pattern webbing, which was a modular system of load bearing equipment made from lighter and more durable material.
There are ledgers from the 1950s and 1960s related to the 14th Canadian Hussars, which was the local unit in the Swift Current and surrounding area from the end of the Second World War to the late 1960s.
Griffin prepared a visual presentation for the exhibition that is displayed on a television screen to provide information relevant to the theme and the role Canada played. There is a reference to the infamous Gouzenko Affair, which was a key moment at the start of the Cold War. Igor Gouzenko, a cipher clerk at the Soviet Union embassy in Ottawa, defected to the West with information about a Soviet spy ring in Canada.
Other information in this visual presentation includes details about Canada's peacekeeping roles and the country's role in Afghanistan.
“Canada is known for its peacekeeping operations, whether it be in the Balkans, Cyprus, Egypt or Golan Heights,” he said. “It's a period in history I'm quite familiar with, as my dad served on several peacekeeping missions, most notably in Cyprus.”
Visitors to this temporary exhibition will be able to find connections with some other exhibition material in the museum's permanent collection. The People of Morse exhibition room includes a display dedicated to a young man from the Morse area who died while serving in the Korean War. A connection to the Cold War can be found in the museum's 1950s room.
“It's set up like a typical ‘50s era home and that permanent display kind of ties into this as well,” he said. “During that time period there was the threat of nuclear war and that influenced some of the choices for the design of toys as well as choices for the layout of a home.”
Griffin can provide a guided tour of the temporary exhibition to museum visitors to provide details and share his own knowledge about items on display.
“I'm very proud to be able to have this display and to be able to tell these stories,” he said. “When people come to visit, I'm always willing to give them a walkthrough and be a tour guide and answer any questions they have.”
The Morse Museum and Cultural Centre is located in a former school building. It was originally built in 1912 as the town school with four rooms and another two rooms were added in 1928. The building was designated as a municipal heritage property in 1981 and this is the museum's 36th year of operation.
The museum preserves over 14,000 artifacts and provides a glimpse in the history of the town and surrounding area.
“There's no cost to come and visit the museum,” he said. “The only thing we ask is that you sign the guest book and if you're able to, to make a small donation as well.”