Cortes Island Museum & Archives

10/17/2026

And the winner is ....
Congratulations to Connie Quayle, the winner of the Tibetan necklace raffle.
Thanks to our anonymous necklace donor and everyone who participated in the raffle. We raised $540 to support community programming.

10/15/2026

JAPANESE CANADIANS IN DISCOVERY ISLANDS – PRESENTATION BY THE MUSEUM AT CAMPBELL RIVER: Over the past year, the Museum at Campbell River has undertaken a research project to look deeper into the experiences of Japanese Canadians on Northern Vancouver Island and the Discovery Islands prior to their forced removal from the coast in 1942.
Lead Researcher Sarah Rempel and Project Manager Tamasyn Kennedy will visit the Cortes Museum on October 25 to share stories they’ve uncovered about the lives of Japanese Canadians who called the Discovery Islands home.
The 45-minute presentation will be followed by time for questions and discussion.
Cortes Island Museum
957 Beesley Road
Sunday, October 25
1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
All are welcome. Admission is by donation.
Before the presentation, learn more about the Nakatsui family on our blog, researched and written by Mike Manson: https://cortesmuseum.com/.../the-man-called-nakatsui-by.../.
Check also our past exhibition https://cortesmuseum.com/.../museum.../the-suitcase-project/ [The Suitcase Project], and this shared Facebook post https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19Ua37veMn/ published by Susanne Tabata.
The photos used in the poster are, so far, unseen photos of the Nakatsuis, recently donated to the Cortes Island Museum & Archives by Dale Kennedy (2026.006.24, 2026.006.23, 2026.006.25). See less

10/14/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19Ua37veMn/

Susanne Tabata writing on the opening of the Japanese Canadian Monument, with thanks to Vancouver Sun for publishing.

"As a Steveston descendant, born in Nanaimo and raised in B.C., my family roots run deep into this soil and these coastal waters. Like most Japanese Canadians, my family carries the weight of a profound history of injustice.

In 1942, all people of Japanese descent living on the west coast — regardless of birth or citizenship — were permanently stripped of their homes, property, and businesses. They were relocated to internment camps and exile sites outside coastal B.C., and displaced across the country, with some forcibly exiled to Japan. The majority of the nearly 22,000 uprooted Japanese Canadians were Canadian-born.

But our history does not begin or end with that injustice. Beginning in the 1870s, Japanese immigrants began arriving on the Pacific coast. Barred from most professions, the majority found work in fishing, farming, mining and forestry. They built vibrant communities up and down the coast — opening schools, churches, temples and businesses — all while facing systemic discrimination in a province that excluded people from voting, employment and public life on the basis of race.

By 1942, nearly 200 of these communities flourished across the province. From Haida Gwaii to the fertile farms of the Fraser Valley, Japanese Canadians were deeply woven into the fabric of urban and rural life alike.

And then, in an instant, these communities were erased, as if they had never existed. School friends disappeared. Neighbours disappeared. Businesses were shuttered, later sold off without their owners’ knowledge or consent. In the fields, crops died on the vine. The entire Japanese Canadian fishing fleet was seized and auctioned off.

That rupture, and the seven years that followed, changed our community forever. By the time Japanese Canadians were granted full rights of citizenship in 1949 — four years after the end of the Second World War — we were scattered like seeds across the country. Less than half returned to the coast. Some never set foot in B.C. again. Many never spoke of what happened, even to their own children. The decades of silence that followed continue to echo through families today.

On Oct. 3, 2026, a new Japanese Canadian Monument opens on provincial land in Victoria — the historic gateway where early Japanese immigrants first stepped ashore in the 1800s, located steps from the B.C. Legislative Precinct.

Inspired by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., the monument is comprised of 100 granite panels that undulate across the landscape of a Japanese-inspired garden. Engraved upon them are the names of 22,000 uprooted Japanese Canadians, organized by the specific communities where they lived at the moment of rupture, alongside the names of 3,000 children born between uprooting and full citizenship in 1949.

The wall offers a tactile experience of memory — a place where descendants can trace the relief of their ancestors’ names with their fingertips. It breaks decades of silence and shame carried by our elders, making these people and places visible once more.
In naming those who came before us, they are honoured as individuals rather than reduced to statistics. We remember them rightly as community builders, not merely as survivors of government-sanctioned injustice.

Bringing this monument to life has been a deeply personal responsibility and a collective effort. It builds on decades of advocacy, including the National Association of Japanese Canadians’ work on B.C. Redress and the broader redress package announced in 2022.

We cannot undo the circumstances that separated families, upended lives, and erased decades of hard work. But we can return their names to the landscape of B.C., honour the communities they built, and ensure their history is never allowed to disappear.

Okage sama de.

Susanne Tabata is the CEO of the Japanese Canadian Legacies Society

10/11/2026

Are you interested in animals and nature? Do you have 4 hours a month available?

WANTED: volunteers for Wild Cortes throughout the winter!

Winter hours at Wild Cortes are Friday and Saturday from noon to 4:00 p.m. We need volunteers to cover one 4-hour shift per month.

If you are 18 years of age or older, responsible, and willing to learn, please contact the Museum by email at [email protected] or by phone at 250-935-6340 (Friday and Saturday, between noon and 4 p.m.).

Visit our website www.cortesmuseum.com and www.wildcortes.ca for more information about Museum and Wild Cortes programs and activities.

Wild Cortes, Natural History Centre & EcoLab Located at Linnea Education Centre, Wild Cortes is the permanent off-site Natural History Education Centre of the Cortes Island Museum & Archives. Wild Cortes and the EcoLab are part of the Cortes Wild! partnership which works together to create exhibits....

09/30/2026

September 30th marks National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day – Every Child Matters

Orange Shirt Day – Every Child Matters began in Williams Lake, British Columbia, on September 30, 2013. Established to honour Residential School Survivors, their families, and those who never returned home, it serves as a powerful reminder of the lasting impacts of the Residential School system. What began as a grassroots initiative has since evolved into a nationally recognized movement, with individuals, organizations, and communities across Canada participating in acts of remembrance, reflection, and reconciliation each year.

Inspired by Phyllis Webstad’s story of having her orange shirt taken away on her first day at Indian residential school, we uplift the voices of Survivors and invite all people in Canada to walk the path of truth & reconciliation together. The Orange Shirt Society was established in 2015 to: Under...

09/26/2026

Cortes Island Museum and Wild Cortes are now back to the fall schedule.

Will be open on Monday, September 28. It will be Ruben Cartland's last day as our summer host. You can come and say hello!

Our last regular summer day is Tuesday, September 29. We are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wild Cortes is already on the fall schedule.

Wednesday, September 30, is a statutory holiday, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/national-day-truth-reconciliation.html. The Museum is closed.

Thursday, October 1 – the Museum (and Wild Cortes) is closed.

Friday and Saturday, October 2 and 3 – We are back to fall hours, noon to 4 p.m., at the Museum and at Wild Cortes.

Photo: Suzanne Fletcher, Cortes Island Museum Heritage Garden Apples

09/12/2026

Join Mike Yip and the Museum for an illustrated talk on eagles.

Mike Yip retired from teaching in 2001, and in 2004, a chance encounter with a strange large-billed duck inspired him to take up bird photography. Since then, he has self-published 7 books, mostly about birds and one about butterflies. He has also written many newspaper articles and is currently a regular presenter at the North Island and Mid-Island Elder Colleges.

His presentation today is about Bald Eagles based on his latest book, A YEAR OF EAGLES.

Mike is an avian photojournalist, dedicated to increasing public awareness of the birds on Vancouver Island. He writes bimonthly bird articles for a local newspaper and frequently gives illustrated presentations.

Get more information by visiting Mike’s website: https://vancouverislandbirds.com/, Vancouver Island Birds.

Mike’s latest bird books will be available for purchase.

Sunday, September 20
From 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Manson’s Hall

All welcome. Admission by donation. Refreshments!

Visit our website, www.cortesmuseum.com, for more information about Museum programs and activities.

08/27/2026

Author, artist and mariner Yvonne Maximchuk reads at the Corte Island Museum from her debut mystery novel, “Murder Rides a Gale Force Wind,” and shares a sneak peek from her work-in-progress, “An Intertidal Life” – an adventuresome memoir of how running away to sea with her ‘holiday man’ diverted the trajectory of her life as an urban artist and single mom. Daughter, Theda Phoenix, an Intuitive Sound Healing musician, takes us deeper into the moment with her golden voice, weaving songs and intuitive sound between the stories.

Sunday. September 6, 2 to 4 p.m.
Cortes Island Museum
Heritage Garden

Join Yvonne and Theda at the Museum. Bring family and friends, and maybe a question or two, to an afternoon story time about life in the Broughton Archipelago in fact and fiction.
Vancouver and other Island dates:

• Campbell River Library, Thursday, September 3, 3:30 p.m.
• Quadra Island Library, Saturday, September 5, 2:00 p.m.
• Cortes Island Museum, Sunday, September 6, 2:00 p.m.
• Qualicum Beach Library, Wednesday, September 9, 3:00 p.m.
• Courtenay Library, Thursday, September 10, 3:30 p.m.
• Campbell River, Roderick Haig-Brown Festival, Saturday, September 12, 1:30-2:30, In the Study

Yvonne Maximchuk is still exploring the Broughton Archipelago in her sixteen-foot speedboat SeaRose from her off-grid home on Gilford Island, still learning the secret world of islands and inlets from which she draws her inspiration. She is a lifelong working artist in acrylic, watercolour, drawing media and clay; author and publisher of "Murder Rides a Gale Force Wind," an Island Mystery and a memoir; "Drawn to Sea – From Paintbrush to Chainsaw, Carving out a Life on BC’s Rugged Raincoast" (Caitlin Press 2013) about her life in the Broughton Archipelago wilderness. She also co-authored "Full Moon Flood Tide, Bill Proctor’s Raincoast" (Harbour Publishing 2003) nominated for the Bill Duthie’s Booksellers Choice Award in the BC and Yukon Book Awards and the follow-up, "Tide Rips and Back Eddies, Bill Proctor’s Tales of Blackfish Sound" (Harbour Publishing 2015).

What people are saying…

~ Jane Wilde, Gumboot Girls, Dancing in Gumboots (Caitlin Press 2014)
“A compelling page turner that I had trouble putting down; absolutely loved having it set in places I know. Surprise ending, strong women characters, Back Eddy – perfection!”
~ Bill Proctor, Full Moon Flood Tide, Tide Rips and Back Eddies (Harbour Publishing) “I read your book. It’s great. I could not put it down. It’s the best book I think I’ve ever read.”
~ Sharon Gordon, lifelong coastal resident, Alert Bay, “Gilakas’la to Yvonne Maximchuk for your excellent book, Murder Rides a Gale Force Wind. I thoroughly enjoyed it and couldn’t put it down! Your insight, your creativity as an artist, your knowledge of the area and the people, and your love of Echo Bay come shining through in your writing!”
~ TerryLynn Gold, Alert Bay resident, “Absolutely loved it. Best were the sights, the sounds, the fragrance you created that evoked the feeling of actually being there, cruising through the Broughton’s, visiting the folks in Echo Bay. Every scene contains a richness of elements that bring to life the unique cultural life and the close-knit communities of the Broughton Archipelago, with real and distinctive characters. And the other best… the nail-biter climax!
~ Carolyn on Amazon, “The Author takes you on a journey to the beautiful Broughton Archipelago and the most interesting characters who live there all whilst keeping you captive with a whodunit. So well written you feel you have met these people and want to visit! Definitely a great read!”

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.

08/15/2026

Join us for some family fun building LEGO in the sun!
Museum’s Heritage Garden!
Bring your sunscreen, sun hats, sunglasses and a water bottle!
If the weather is bad, we will be inside the Museum.
• From 1 to 3 p.m.
• Saturday
• August 22
• Heritage Garden
• 957 Beesley Road

Visit our website, www.cortesmuseum.com, for more information about Museum programs and activities.

08/06/2026

The Art of Cedar

Wednesday, August 12, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., Museum’s Heritage Garden

We respectfully acknowledge the toq qaymɩxʷ (Klahoose), ɬəʔamɛn qaymɩxʷ (Tla’amin) and ʔop qaymɩxʷ (Homalco) Nations upon whose territories the programs and activities of the Cortes Island Museum & Archives take place.

Join Brenda Hanson, Emma Mathieu, Sofia Nybida and Amy Robertson as they share cedar arts in the Museum’s Heritage Garden.

Free event.
Donations are appreciated.
All welcome.
All materials provided.

"Cedar is sacred spiritual medicine used by the Coast Salish people. I am excited to share this afternoon together at the museum." -- Brenda Hanson

For more information about our programs and activities, please visit our website at www.cortesmuseum.com and follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/cortesislandmuseum

Photography by Suzanne Fletcher.