'History begins yesterday': Western Development Museum's Curatorial Centre helps tell story of Sask.'s past
WDM's collection goes far beyond exhibits
People in Saskatchewan may have had a chance to explore the province's history at some of the four locations of the Western Development Museum.
Not everyone, though, has likely had a chance to take a look at the museum's Curatorial Centre in Saskatoon which houses roughly 65 per cent of the 75,000 items in the collection.
"This is kind of the heart of the operations for the WDM," curator Liz Scott said as she gave CBC a tour of the centre ahead of Saskatchewan Archives Week, which is marked from Feb. 4 to 10.
As Scott explained, the collection ranges from items that appear to be quite ordinary to items that are exceptional. Every item comes together to tell the story of Saskatchewan's history.
"Part of our mandate is to stimulate interest in the history of Saskatchewan and we do that, in large part, by our exhibitions at our four museums," Scott said.
"But another part of the mandate is to collect and preserve, conserve and care for the collections in our trust for the people in Saskatchewan and we do the bulk of that work here in the curatorial centre."
The curatorial centre itself is a large warehouse which is sectioned into rooms. Each one contains a plethora of items, from domestic items to automobiles, to textiles, farming equipment and more.
One of the items highlighted on CBC's tour was a 1967 centennial canoe, which had been on display at some of the museum locations in celebration of Canada's 150th anniversary.
"It's named the Henry Kelsey and it's the canoe that the Saskatchewan team used in the 1967 centennial Voyageur Canoe Pageant which was this incredible race from Rocky Mountain House to the expo site in Montreal," Scott detailed.
Saskatchewan came in sixth.
Another item was a new item in the collection — a 1951 Western Flyer Coach, which was a bus bought by the Saskatchewan Transportation Company during its 40th anniversary celebrations in 1986.
It was recently acquired to preserve the history of the now-shuttered STC.
"They travelled it around the province as well. So that was really attractive to us at the WDM in terms of it being a potential outreach piece. We're not quite there yet, but it does have so much potential for the people of Saskatchewan."
Another part of the work that happens at the curatorial centre is restoration.
Preservation and restoration
Tim Pomeroy, chief engineer and restoration manager for the WDM, explained that restoration work requires a lot of research into everything from the colours of a machine or vehicle to parts, upholstery and safety features.
Each component influences every project done.
"The work is mainly done by a core of volunteers I have working here. There's usually a crew of five or six guys. And most of them are, well all of them are, 65 plus."
Recent restoration projects include that of a 1913 Gaar-Scott Steam Engine and a 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air.
While restoration may mean some things, like the seatbelts in the Bel Air are replaced, many elements are still original — or close.
"How many of you remember these plastic seat covers?" Pomeroy said while showing the interior of the Chevrolet.
"Apparently these were ordered new for the car in 1953 and they sat in the dealership in Swift Current for 40 years before they were finally reunited with the car they were ordered for."
Scott explained that while the WDM has a very rich collection of items representing early settler life in Saskatchewan, one of the current collecting priorities are for artifacts that date from the 1950s to the present.
"I like to remind people that history begins yesterday."
Information on how to make an offer to the WDM can be found on its website.
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