Marking a milestone
Party planned to celebrate 120th anniversary
Members of the public are invited to help celebrate a milestone anniversary for the Kings County Museum in Kentville. Located at 37 Bridge St., the building turned 120 years old in January. The museum is now open for the season and a birthday party is being held April 20 from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. It’s a chance for members of the public to celebrate with cake, refreshments, and to view exhibits.
Curator Ellen Lewis said they plan to reminisce with some photo slideshows. They are inviting long-time Kings Historical Society (KHS) volunteers to share memories, stories, and reflect on their time in the building and its history.
Lewis said they’re still working to confirm details, but they plan to organize some talks and other events in recognition of the anniversary to be held throughout the year.
The building, designed by noted architect Leslie Fairn, opened in 1904. For more than 75 years, it served as Kings County’s courthouse (its third), and as the administrative centre for the Municipality of the County of Kings.
In 1980, the recently formed KHS took over the building and began operating it as a museum. This followed the construction of a new municipal complex and courthouse (the current provincial justice centre on Bridge Street).
Considering the purposes the building served, Lewis said it had a great impact on the community and county, making it a valuable home for the museum.
It isn’t always easy keeping an older building up, and it’s great that it’s still here, she said.
buildings “It needs love and care, as old do. It’s also in a very prime spot in Kentville and to think of something else being here would be sad,” Lewis said.
IMPRESSIVE COLLECTION
The building houses a collection of more than 25,000 items, “a hybrid of physical artifacts and archives.”
Lewis said a big selling point of the building at the time of construction was its “fireproof quality.” It was touted as a safe place for the county’s administrative documents.
“We’ve been left with a wonderful system of vaults in the basement,” Lewis said. “They’re packed to the brim with everything you could imagine.”
The museum houses an extensive textile collection and a genealogy department that attracts many researchers every year.
Lewis said they have many great volunteers who help keep the KHS and museum operating, but they would always welcome more. She said it’s rewarding to work in an organization and to have a historical society that people want to be involved with.
Kings Historical Society member Bria Stokesbury served as the museum’s curator for three decades. She took over from the original curator, the late Art Pope, around 1990.
The museum started off as “The Old Kings Courthouse Heritage Museum” before the name was shortened to the “Old Kings Courthouse Museum.” It eventually became known by its current name, the “Kings County Museum.”
Stokesbury said there are many treasures in the historical society’s collection. Some are not what people would necessarily expect to find. One of the “smallest and most bizarre” is a couple of sheets of brown toilet tissue from Buckingham Palace dating from the post-Second World War era.
“Then of course there’s the courthouse itself, which is the biggest artifact that the society looks after,” Stokesbury said.
GREAT SUPPORT, COLLABORATION
She recalls that in 2004, the building’s centennial was celebrated with socials and other initiatives, including hosting a meeting of Kings County council’s committee of the whole. This recognized the building’s history of municipal administration.
Stokesbury said the KHS and the museum work well in collaboration with other organizations, including smaller historical societies. They have always enjoyed great support from volunteers; the provincial government, County of Kings, and Town of Kentville.
“The society has done a really good job of providing a good place to educate young people to go on and be really important, contributing members to society,” Stokesbury said about the many summer students employed over the years.
She said the museum is an iconic building in Kentville. With a lot of Nova Scotia’s built heritage being lost, Stokesbury said it’s great to still have at least some historic buildings in the downtown. She said it helps give the community character and “real personality.”
Stokesbury said culture, heritage, and history are important to people’s lives. Lewis said they make up part of the fabric of a healthy society.
TIME CAPSULE ON SITE
Stokesbury said she is not aware of any time capsule for the Kings County Museum building dating from its construction, but there is one deposited on the property.
There are locomotive wheels that were recovered from the Kentville railyard sitting in front of the museum. The display recognizes the importance of Kentville’s rail history.
Stokesbury said that when the static exhibit was installed, a volunteer suggested putting a time capsule together. A tube with smaller items such as newspaper clippings inside was buried between the wheels.
She said the museum’s collection also includes a time capsule from the original Kings County Academy (KCA) School, which was located on School Street in Kentville. It contains a few coins, newspaper clippings, and articles written by KCA students.