Archelaus Smith Historical Society and Museum

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Archelaus Smith Historical Society and Museum Archelaus Smith was one of the founding fathers of Cape Sable Island. Inside you will find an array of nautical items, personal items and countless photographs.

It's because of the many roles he played in the community that the museum is named after him.

10/13/2026

There is a meeting of the Archelaus Smith Historical Society this evening, Tuesday October 13 at 6:30pm at the Barrington Library. Members and new members welcome!

🥣🥚🍞 Autumn - a great time for all things pumpkin-spiced! 🍴 Find this and other great recipes in the Archelaus Smith Hist...
10/10/2026

🥣🥚🍞 Autumn - a great time for all things pumpkin-spiced!
🍴 Find this and other great recipes in the Archelaus Smith Historical Society cookbook. Contact us if you'd like to purchase a copy. $15 each.

“Few places of equal size have had as many enthusiastic duck hunters as Cape Sable Island. Enjoyment of the sport is equ...
10/01/2026

“Few places of equal size have had as many enthusiastic duck hunters as Cape Sable Island. Enjoyment of the sport is equalled by pleasant thoughts of the tasty meals the ducks provide. Duck Stew is considered by many to be the best dinner imaginable.
To help the duck hunter, decoys have long been considered to be of prime importance. In this area a decoy usually means a wooden or, in recent years, a plastic model of a duck.
…
In early days, before the use of fi****ms, some type of snare was needed. Waterways that attracted ducks were fenced with nets open at one end and having V-shaped cages at the other. As the ducks gathered, men in boats drove them into the cages from which they could be gathered.
Eventually this method was improved until the system involved “tunnels” of nets into which the wild ducks were enticed by partly tamed ducks, helped by a trained dog.
The tamed ducks lured their unsuspecting cousins into the mouth of the tunnel and there were urged on by the dog into a removable net from which the domesticated birds could be released unharmed, and the wild ones disposed of as their captors wished. The method of capturing birds by nets is believed to have originated in Holland.”
~Margaret Messenger, Island Echoes, 1985

🍪🥛 Have you tried drop cookies before? Let us know how these turn out. 🍴 Find this and other great recipes in the Archel...
09/22/2026

🍪🥛 Have you tried drop cookies before? Let us know how these turn out.
🍴 Find this and other great recipes in the Archelaus Smith Historical Society cookbook. Contact us if you'd like to purchase a copy. $15 each.

Teachers and Administrators! We welcome field trips to the Archelaus Smith Museum anytime throughout the school year. To...
09/07/2026

Teachers and Administrators! We welcome field trips to the Archelaus Smith Museum anytime throughout the school year. To make arrangements, contact, Ruth or Ethel, or send us an email.

🥒🧅🫙 Pickle season is well and truly here, so it's a great time to share this recipe from our cookbook. 🍴 Find this and o...
09/04/2026

🥒🧅🫙 Pickle season is well and truly here, so it's a great time to share this recipe from our cookbook.
🍴 Find this and other great recipes in the Archelaus Smith Historical Society cookbook. Thanks to everyone who submitted recipes at time of printing. Our cookbook is still in print and available for purchase. $15 each.

We wish all students, teachers and school staff a great first day of school.Here is an excerpt from Margaret Messenger's...
09/03/2026

We wish all students, teachers and school staff a great first day of school.

Here is an excerpt from Margaret Messenger's book, From Island to Island, with a note on the construction of the old North East Point school, later a community hall.

“Based on an interview with William E. (“Bill”) Smith in October, 1986.
“It started with a hammer and a saw.” This was Bill Smith’s answer when asked how his contracting business began.
Before he was ready to work for himself, Bill went to the United States in company with Job Atkinson. For three or four summers they found employment in the building trade, thus earning a living and at the same time gaining valuable experience.
When he came back to Cape Sable Island to stay, Bill's first contract was for the building of a new one-room school at North East Point. This must have encouraged him greatly, where he was competing with an older and more experienced builder. To purchase the lumber, Bill went by schooner to Shelburne in the spring of 1928, and the school was completed and ready for use later that year.”
~Margaret Messenger, From Island to Island, 1987

Museum is open today from 1-4. Stop in!
08/31/2026

Museum is open today from 1-4. Stop in!

This week, if you see the flags out, the museum is open. Thanks to our volunteers for giving their time to open the muse...
08/31/2026

This week, if you see the flags out, the museum is open. Thanks to our volunteers for giving their time to open the museum for you.
To arrange a visit outside of open hours, please contact Ruth (902-637-7915) or Ethel (902-635-1858) or email [email protected].

Address

915 Highway 330 Centreville
Barrington, NS
B0W2G0

Opening Hours

Monday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Friday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Saturday 9:30am - 4:30pm

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