Wetaskiwin District Heritage Museum Centre & City of Wetaskiwin Archives
an inclusive gathering place for the local community to engage in the history, heritage and culture of Wetaskiwin City, County, and the Maskwacis Cree Four Nations
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Category: Heritage Moments
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Historic Hand-Cranked Washing Machine: A Window into Chinese Laundry History
Built circa 1908, this hand-cranked washing machine is a significant feature of the Heritage Museum’s Chinese immigration exhibit, as it highlights a history of Chinese laundries prior to a modern era of automatic washing machines. Following an influx of Chinese immigrants who sought employment as laborers for the Canadian Pacific Railway, the establishment of hand-laundries…
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Butter-Making History: The Role of Barrel Churns
An outcome of 18th century agricultural innovation, the barrel churn, such as the one pictured here, was used extensively by farmers in the process of butter-making. A crank attached to the side of the barrel would have turned a paddle device within the churn or the barrel itself to separate fat from buttermilk, eventually resulting…
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Canada’s Agriculture Day: Timeless Tools in Farming
Next Tuesday, February 12th, is Canada’s Agriculture Day and we wanted to share an example of one of the many agricultural tools that has stood the test of time. We are happy to say that many of the items in our collection have aged very well and considering this hand-powered centrifugal seeder could date back…
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Fay Yee’s Heirloom: A Journey of Courage and Family
Courage was the order of the day for many newcomers arriving in Canada throughout the past 200 years. The challenge of parting with objects that held a sentimental value was and continues to be a reality for many immigrants. In the case of this mahogany hand carved trunk, Fay Yee could not bear to part…
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Honoring Cecil Hugh Colwell: A Tribute to a Local Pioneer
In admiration of a museum family member who recently passed, we would like to commemorate our dear friend Cecil Hugh Colwell, who donated this 1955 Electrolux Floor Polisher to our collection. The Electrolux company was founded in 1901 at AB Lux, Stockholm with the launch of their lighthouse Lux Lamp. On an international scale, the…
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Montgomery’s Department Store: A Community Landmark
This week we’d like to take a moment to celebrate our largest artifact. It is one of our oldest, definitely the neediest, and the only one that we have ever purchased. It protects all of our other objects and provides a friendly gathering place for the local community. It is our historic building! In 1903,…
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Unpacking History: A Trunk’s Tale from Wetaskiwin
The task of moving is hectic, time-consuming, and sometimes even backbreaking, but luckily our ancestors were up to the challenge when they decided to pack their bags and immigrate to Canada. This large rectangular trunk, now featured in the museum’s Swedish exhibit, belonged to Copenhagen-born Paul Sorenson of the Usona area. The trunk is covered…
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Explore Buffalo Fur Coats at the Heritage Museum
In an effort to fend off the bitter winter winds and harsh climate, trappers, ranchers, and traders would have worn a coat made of buffalo fur much like the one found in the Heritage Museum’s trading post exhibit. An earlier version of the buffalo coat, the buffalo robe, would have been used by Early First…
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Rediscovering Vintage Entertainment: The 1955 Admiral Super Cascade TV
As we near the month of December, you may be escaping the season’s chill by curling up on the couch with a blanket and indulging in some television. This Admiral television was built circa 1955 and can be found on the third floor of the Heritage Museum. Dubbed the Super Cascade, it has multiple functions…
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Bairnsfather Ware: A Commemorative Plate of WWI
This so-called Bairnsfather Ware is a commemorative plate of WWI that was on display in the cottage of Elton and Carrie Merner at Ma-Me-O Beach. It depicts a cartoon of soldier getting a hair cut in the trenches as a shell goes buzzing past. It is titled ‘COIFFURE IN THE TRENCHES’ and captioned “KEEP YER…