stcmuseum podcasts

E204 - Telephones Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions? As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Services Coord...

On this episode of One Hour in the Past, Kathleen and Adrian look at the history of shopping. The rabbit holes and tangential side-bars abound in this hilarious discussion of shopping carts, catalogues, and shopping malls. Catch the footnotes to this episode (including some historic photos from the Museum's collection) at the Museum's blog at www.stcatharinesmuseumblog.com

On this episode of One Hour in the Past, we welcome Manager of Programs and Cultural Services Lori Mambella to the podcast to discuss cross letters. It's a great conversation that leads down some interesting rabbit holes and Kathleen and Lori even consider the future of letter writing. Catch the Footnotes to this episode on the Museum's blog: stcatharinesmuseumblog.com

Obituaries can be incredibly valuable sources for understanding the nuances of society at a particular moment in time. We can find trends in causes of death and life expectancy, but we can also get a good sense of the values, beliefs, and shared circumstances of society from what families thought important enough to include in the obituary of a lost loved one. In this podcast episode, we explore S...

Are you just as excited as us for the winter holidays?! To kick off the holiday season, the St. Catharines Museum will launch our most festively-fun Mitten Tree campaign on November 30 from 10:00am-3:00pm in support of Community Care of St. Catharines & Thorold and Start Me Up Niagara. Help us celebrate the most magical time of year by enjoying a day of family-friendly activities that give back to...

A guide to the St. Catharines Museum's annual Guided Spirit Walks at Victoria Lawn Cemetery production. Listen to conversations with cast members and members of the creative team as we consider why a program like Guided Spirit Walks matters. This years' tours are September 6, 7, 13 & 14 at 6pm and 7pm. Visit the Museum website for more information: https://www.stcatharines.ca/en/experiencein/Guide...

Beep, beep! Get on the bus, everyone. On this episode of Museum Chat Live! we are celebrating the first anniversary of the 337 Crosstown bus route that ends here at the Museum. Stories about getting lost, preferred bus etiquette, and some interesting tales about St. Catharines' nearly-forgotten streetcars.

On this episode of Museum Chat Live, we discuss the latest venture of the St. Catharines Museum – undertaking a new Interpretive Plan. We explore what an Interpretive Plan is, what it means for the Museum, and why it matters. We’re publishing this podcast episode during Museum Week, a global online campaign celebrating the work and impact of cultural institutions across the world. One of themes th...

E201 - Sidewalks Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions?  As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Services...

On this episode of Museum Chat Live!, we dig into the history of the B.M.E. Church in St. Catharines and the role Salem Chapel has played in our community. The B.M.E. Church has been a vital centre for the Black community here in St. Catharines since the mid-nineteenth century and it continues to play a role today, both as a religious congregation and as a place of learning. To help tell this stor...

This is the fifth part in a series of Museum Chat Live! podcast episodes detailing the Fallen Workers of the Welland Canal. In this episode, we share a bit about crime and unlawful behaviour as connects to the construction of the Welland Canal and its workers. By acknowledging and sharing even the less honourable stories connected to the Fallen Workers, we hope to glean further insight into the wo...

Our very popular WWI exhibition, Doing Our Bit: St. Catharines to the Western Front is officially closing its doors at the end of November. This exhibition, which commemorates the 100th anniversary of the First World War, has been on display in our galleries since 2014. It is the incredible product of community collaboration, with many family members of St. Catharines men and women who served in t...

In commemoration of Remembrance Day, this episode honours the seventeen Fallen Workers of the Welland Canal who served in the First World War. These men survived the hardships and brutality of war but sadly succumbed to the dangers of the canal’s construction. Heroes in war, and in peace. We honour the sacrifices these men, and their families, made for their country.

E106 - Daylight Savings Time Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions?  As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Se...

This is Part 3 in a Museum Chat Live! podcast mini-series detailing the Fallen Workers of the Welland Canal. In this episode, we explore the experience of immigrants working on the canal and the particular challenges they faced. The Fallen Workers of the Welland Canal came from sixteen different countries, with many immigrating from Italy, Austria, Hungary, Poland and the Ukraine. In this episode,...

Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions?  As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Services Coordinator and Kathle...

This is Part 2 in a series detailing the Fallen Workers of the Welland Canal. In this episode, we explore the dangerous working conditions faced by labourers during the construction of the Fourth Welland Ship Canal. We highlight the stories of three Fallen Workers: Stana Benasho, William Burt, and John William Hawthorne. For more information on the Fallen Workers discussed in this podcast episode,...

Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions?  As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Services Coordinator and Kathle...

Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions?  As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Services Coordinator and Kathle...

This is the first in a series of episodes that details the Fallen Workers of the Welland Canal. Over many years, a great amount of research has been conducted by many people to gather, record, and preserve the stories of the 137 who died building the Fourth Welland Canal. We hope that this series can be a platform for us to share the stories of these men and to honour their legacy in our community...

Have you ever noticed that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions? As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast series starts with that premise! Adrian Petry, Visitors Services Coordinator and Kathlee...

As a companion to our next Books & Brews read, Margaret Atwood's "Alias Grace", we interview Dr. Linda Mahood, history professor at the University of Guelph, about crime and criminal justice in 19th century Canada. We take a look at how the upper classes of the Victorian era used crime and criminal justice as a way to control the working class, and especially women. We also bring this conversation...

April is International Genocide Awareness Month and will also mark the opening of a new, temporary exhibit created by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) about Holodomor - or Ukrainian Genocide of the 1930s. We sat down with Natalie Duduch, a child of a Holodomor survivor, and a member of the Niagara Chapter of the UCC to talk about Holodomor, the Congress' education efforts, and the exhibit tha...

E101 – Hats Did you ever notice that a simple information search can lead you in strange and wonderful directions? As in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, historical research can lead you down a winding rabbit hole that might take you off your original path and lead you to new and amazing historical places! This podcast starts with that premise. Adrian Petry, Visitors Services Coordinator and Kath...

In honour of International Women's Day, our latest Museum Chat Live! podcast episode explores women's advocacy in St. Catharines and shares a conversation with YWCA Niagara Region President Jennifer Bonato about the important work of the YW in Niagara. Please listen, share, and #PressforProgress. Visit our blog: https://wp.me/p6UUaY-1dg Footnotes 1 - You can listen to our 2017 International Women'...