Cumberland Museum and Archives

08/30/2026

It’s Ben’s last day at the museum!

If you've visited us recently, you'll be familiar with Ben's great sense of humour, knowledge of history, and his warm welcome for every visitor.

Behind the scenes, Ben also made a huge contribution to our collections, digitizing thousands of accession records from the museum’s early years, 1981–1989. His work is helping preserve these important records and making them much easier for staff and researchers to find in the future.

A huge thank you to MP Gord Johns and the Canada Summer Jobs program for supporting local youth employment and making it possible for us to welcome Ben to the museum this summer.

See what the museum looked like in 1981, when these records were written!

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08/28/2026

How do you envision sharing your community’s local legacies?

The Cumberland Museum & Archives is creating a permanent interpretive panel that will share stories of the Black community in Cumberland, B.C.

We’re beginning this project with a community engagement session to open dialogue about how we can meaningfully honour and share local Black legacies.

📅 September 24
🕔 5:00–7:00 PM
ONLINE MEETING

Participants will be remunerated $100 for taking part in the community engagement session.

Interested in participating or learning more? Please contact [email protected].

We welcome community members who would like to contribute their perspectives, stories, knowledge, and ideas to this important project.

More Information: https://bcblackhistory.ca/
Image Credit: Cumberland Museum and Archives

C180-005: Portrait of a Black man
MLA Rosemary Brown with Michelle and Rico Williams, 1988
C180-004: Portrait of Mrs. White

08/28/2026

08/07/2026

🌲 CLOSING AUGUST 16! 🌲

There’s still time to visit Cumberland Forest Reflections: 25 Years of the Cumberland Community Forest Society — but the countdown is on!

This special Collaboration Studio exhibition brings together stories, artwork, archives, and community memories reflecting on 25 years of the Cumberland Community Forest Society and the incredible role the forest has played in our community.

🌟 A huge thank you to Christina Jones and Meaghan Cursons, the exhibition curators, and to the Cumberland Community Forest Society for helping us create a space that celebrates the history, passion, and community action behind Cumberland’s forests.

🌿 Want to learn more about the exhibition?
Visit the Cumberland Museum & Archives exhibition page: https://cumberlandmuseum.ca/activities/cumberland-forest-reflections-25-years-of-the-cumberland-community-forest-society/

🌲 Want to learn more about the Cumberland Community Forest Society and how you can support their work?
Visit the Cumberland Community Forest Society: https://www.cumberlandforest.com/

And as one exhibition closes, another chapter begins… Keep an eye out for a new exhibition opening at the museum this September!

We hope to see you at the museum before Cumberland Forest Reflections comes to a close.

07/28/2026

📢 Mini Museum Explorers Update

Our final Mini Museum Explorers session has been postponed and will be rescheduled for a later date.

We're sorry for any inconvenience this may cause and truly appreciate your understanding. 💙

Keep an eye on our Facebook and Instagram pages over the next few weeks for the new session date, plus updates on future Mini Museum Explorers and other family-friendly programs.

Thank you for exploring with us—we can't wait to see you again soon! 🏛️✨

07/27/2026

Honouring Ginger Goodwin Day

Today, we remember Albert "Ginger" Goodwin (10 May 1887 – 27 July 1918), a coal miner and activist whose advocacy for safer working conditions, fair wages, and workers' rights left a lasting mark on Cumberland and British Columbia's labour history.

At just 31 years old, Goodwin died from a gunshot on 27 July 1918. His story remains one of the most significant and enduring in the history of labour in British Columbia, continuing to inspire conversations about workers' rights, solidarity, and social justice.

If you'd like to learn more about Ginger Goodwin and Cumberland's rich labour history, explore the stories in our Digital Museum:
🔗 https://cumberlandhistory.ca/people/albert-ginger-goodwin/

Each June, we continue to honour the legacy of workers and the labour movement through the Cumberland Miners Memorial. Learn more here:
🔗https://minersmemorial.ca/

🎨 Featured artwork: “Cruickshank River Valley Where Ginger Was Shot” by Tom Hutton, 2016. Part of the Tom Hutton Painting Collection, donated to the Cumberland Museum & Archives in 2018.

07/24/2026

✨ It's almost here! Join us this Sunday! ✨

We're so excited to welcome Megan Kiyoko Wray to the Cumberland Museum & Archives for an afternoon of poetry, storytelling, and creative writing inspired by the history of Japanese Canadians in the Comox Valley.

Hosted within our Stolen Bases exhibition, this special event begins with a reading of Megan's place-based poetry, followed by a welcoming, generative writing workshop inspired by the stories, photographs, and history shared throughout the exhibition. Whether you're an experienced writer or simply curious to try something new, everyone is welcome.

🗓 Sunday, July 26
🕐 1:00 pm
📍 Cumberland Museum & Archives
💙 Entry by donation

Megan Kiyoko Wray (she/her) is a q***r, mixed-race Yonsei poet, family historian, and community arts worker whose work explores the lasting impacts of the forced dispossession, displacement, and incarceration of Japanese Canadians. Her Kojima family lived and worked in Royston before being uprooted during the Second World War.

The additional photos in this post offer a glimpse inside our Stolen Bases exhibition—the very space where we'll gather to reflect, write, and connect with these important local stories.

We hope you'll join us for this meaningful afternoon. We can't wait to see you there!
https://www.facebook.com/share/1GQXxWb6mp/

📸 Photos: Adam Kelly (Megan Kiyoko Wray)

07/18/2026

Just over a week to go! ✍️

Join writer and Royston descendant Megan Kiyoko Wray for an afternoon of poetry, storytelling, and reflection inspired by the Japanese Canadian community's history.

Following a reading of her own place-based work, Megan will lead a welcoming, generative writing workshop inspired by the stories shared in our Stolen Bases exhibition. Whether you're an experienced writer or have never written a poem before, this workshop is open to everyone.

🗓 Sunday, July 26
📍 Cumberland Museum & Archives
🕐 1:00 pm
💙 Entry by donation

Megan Kiyoko Wray (she/her) is a q***r, mixed-race Yonsei poet, family historian, and community arts worker whose work explores the lasting impacts of the forced dispossession, displacement, and incarceration of Japanese Canadians. Her Kojima family lived and worked in Royston before being uprooted during the Second World War. She is also the author of Little Temple on the Prairie: A History of the Manitoba Buddhist Temple (2025).

We hope you'll join us for this thoughtful afternoon of writing, memory, and community.

📸 Photo credit: Adam Kelly

07/03/2026

🔎 Mini Museum Explorers starts NEXT WEEK!

Looking for a fun way to spark your little one's curiosity this summer? Join us for Mini Museum Explorers, a hands-on program designed especially for children ages 0–5 and their caregivers.

📅 Wednesdays in July
✨ July 8 – Stories, Songs & New Friends
✨ July 15 – Explore a New Story & Creative Activity
✨ July 22 – Learn, Play & Discover Together
✨ July 29 – Celebrate Our Mini Explorers!

🕘 9:00–10:00 AM
📍 Cumberland Museum & Archives

Each week features stories, songs, creative activities, and plenty of opportunities to learn and connect.

We can't wait to explore with you!