Shawnigan Lake Museum

Shawnigan Lake Museum Learn about the history of Shawnigan Lake, the Kinsol Trestle, E.J. Hughes, and the E & N Railway Admission by donation. Everyone is welcome.

History is fun at the Shawnigan Lake Museum - Hands on and interactive with a surround sound theatre. Executive Director: Lori Treloar SLHS President: Michael Battler

Kingsley' General Store, Post Office and Library(from "Green Branches & Fallen Leaves", published 1966 - available at t...
09/02/2026

Kingsley' General Store, Post Office and Library

(from "Green Branches & Fallen Leaves", published 1966 - available at the Shawnigan Lake Museum Gift Shop for $18)

1912: We find that Mrs. Kingsley sold the hotel and most of her property to Mr. James Finlay. Then in 1913 she built a handsome store building directly opposite the Hall.

In the basement part was a butcher shop; on the main floor was the Kingsley store and the post office; and on the top floor were comfortable living quarters.

Although most oldtimers recall no one but Mrs. Kingsley giving out mail at that time, post office records mention a Mr. Thomas F. Cullum as being postmaster during at least part of this early time.

At any rate, it is known that when the Kingsleys sold the store to the Carters in 1923, Mr. J. C. Rathbone succeeded as postmaster.

(photo sharpened with Google Gemini)

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OPEN
Tues - Sat, 10 - 3:30
Beat the heat! We’re air conditioned!

Please park:
• at the lot down the street, west (towards the lake of the Museum,
• on the south side of Shawnigan-Mill Bay Rd
• on Shawnigan Lake Rd
• in the Community Centre parking lot.

Please avoid using Aitken & Fraser lot unless you are a customer

Admission by donation
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/

Send a review:
https://g.page/r/Celk60O2gAxfEBM/review

Did you know that there is a World Letter Writing Day?On 1 September, the world quietly marks World Letter Writing Day -...
09/01/2026

Did you know that there is a World Letter Writing Day?

On 1 September, the world quietly marks World Letter Writing Day - a small holiday built around one large question: when did you last write a letter to someone you love?
Most of our writing now happens in chat threads and email subject lines. A letter is something else - slower to send, slower to arrive, and almost always slower to forget. It can be held, re-read, and kept in a drawer for a decade.
Many of our players have fond memories of writing and receiving letters. Do you still write to friends or relatives? Do you keep a special letter - Share a memory with us.
Write a letter: Send a thoughtful, handwritten note to a friend, family member, or someone in need.
Put down screens: Step away from digital devices and take time to slow down with pen and paper.
Share online: Use the hashtags or on social media.
Start a tradition: Begin a pen pal relationship with someone locally or overseas

This is an annual global event celebrated on September 1st that encourages people to put down their digital devices and write a physical, handwritten letter to someone they care about. Why It Is Celebrated
• To preserve a personal touch: Unlike quick text messages or emails, a handwritten letter carries personal handwriting, physical effort, and a unique emotional warmth.
• To create lasting memories: Physical letters become tangible keepsakes that people can save, re-read, and cherish for decades.
• To encourage a digital detox: The day serves as a reminder to slow down, unplug from fast-paced screens, and practice thoughtful, reflective communication.
• To honor history: Australian author and artist Richard Simpkin founded the day in 2014 to share the pure joy he felt receiving physical letters in the mail, celebrating a tradition that once connected the world across long distances before the internet.

Ed Bain & Jeff King, the Upside Guys from CHEK TV, visited the Museum for the second time a couple of weeks ago.Watch th...
08/30/2026

Ed Bain & Jeff King, the Upside Guys from CHEK TV, visited the Museum for the second time a couple of weeks ago.
Watch the highlights of their visit on our You Tube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbWlRqZ5AVc

COLEMAN ROADTHE COLEMANSOctober 27, 1881Elizabeth Coleman was born in Cirencester, England.Before 1906Elizabeth was a fo...
08/29/2026

COLEMAN ROAD

THE COLEMANS
October 27, 1881
Elizabeth Coleman was born in Cirencester, England.
Before 1906
Elizabeth was a fourth-generation needlewoman. She grew up in a household where the girls were trained in the art of “superlative” stitchery. The family business catered to gentlemen who sought embroidered frilled and ruffled shirts and to ladies who wanted fine lawn underwear and Christening gowns for their infants. The women also supplied countless churches with altar cloths and vestments for the clergy. In a world without factories, the family was much in demand.
1906
William Coleman and his brother Jasper (Jessie) Coleman came to Shawnigan Lake. Soon after their arrival they wrote to the family in England that Shawnigan Lake was “absolute paradise, beautiful and new and unspoiled”. The brothers built a log cabin and were happy to work at whatever they could find, including labour-intensive lumbering and railroad work.
1906 — First cabin
According to an informal chat with Bert Luckovich, the existing Coleman cabin was the first one. It was built in 1906, as noted on the building in cartridge shells, along with the Coleman brothers’ initials.

Read the whole story here:
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/post/coleman-road

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OPEN
Tues - Sat, 10 - 3:30
Beat the heat! We’re air conditioned!

Please park:
• at the lot down the street, west (towards the lake of the Museum,
• on the south side of Shawnigan-Mill Bay Rd
• on Shawnigan Lake Rd
• in the Community Centre parking lot.

Please avoid using Aitken & Fraser lot unless you are a customer

Admission by donation
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/

Send a review:
https://g.page/r/Celk60O2gAxfEBM/review

Are you wondering about visiting the Shawnigan Lake Museum?Read the review by Vancouver Island Bucket List for details:h...
08/28/2026

Are you wondering about visiting the Shawnigan Lake Museum?

Read the review by Vancouver Island Bucket List for details:
https://tinyurl.com/cap5f6eu

The Shawnigan Lake Museum would like your help, please.The restoration of the Historic Lion is making progress!https://w...
08/27/2026

The Shawnigan Lake Museum would like your help, please.

The restoration of the Historic Lion is making progress!
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/

At this stage of the process, we are in need of any old towels that can be used to help in the finishing process of body of the Lion.

They can be dropped off at the Museum - Tues - Fri, 10 - 3:30.

Thanks so much in advance!

Any questions: 250-743-8675 or [email protected]

The History of the Victoria Aqua Ski Clubby Cliff Moffat(Recently Cliff Moffat, our friend and mentor passed away peacef...
08/27/2026

The History of the Victoria Aqua Ski Club

by Cliff Moffat

(Recently Cliff Moffat, our friend and mentor passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family.

Cliff will be greatly missed by his many friends and associates in the Canadian water-ski community and the Victoria and Duncan construction community.)

The year is 1953, when a small enthusiastic group of people first started water-skiing on the salt-water of Bamberton Inlet. They named themselves the Victoria Outboard Club. The sport was new, daring and exciting. As time marched on, any patch of flat water lured them in, including Elk Lake.

Some of the skiers forming this new sports club included Jim Leech, Bill Hughes, Cliff and Knute Johnson, Stu Mcinnis, Chuck Dumeresque, Barry Philbrook, Don Lowe, Vi Sharp, Charlie Mullen, Tim Vee, Terry Pye, Barnie Gamble, Shirley Crowe, Pat Molino, Grant Fenwick, Lyall Flett, Don Malcolm and Charley Clarke.

Read the detailed story of the VASC here:
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/post/history-of-the-victoria-aqua-ski-club-1958-to-2017

The Mysterious Fibrous Balls of Heydon LakeDaily Colonist October 26, 1969By LYNTON BLOW . . . their origin baffles expe...
08/26/2026

The Mysterious Fibrous Balls of Heydon Lake

Daily Colonist October 26, 1969

By LYNTON BLOW . . . their origin baffles experts

“It’s unwholesome! It repels me,” declared my wife, Gonda, hastily thrusting the huge, hairy, tan-colored specimen back into my hands. “It brings monsters, of all things, into my mind. Lynton and Gonda Blow have lived in Victoria for eight years, at 2437 Rambler Road. Born in England, Lynton Blow has flown most of his life. One of his wartime duties was testing the prototype Horsa troop-carrying glider, later used in Allied invasions. For many years he was a prospector-pilot in Canada’s north.

Gonda has always had an inherent ability to discover much of the past history of an object by touch. This is known to researchers in the field of extra sensory perception as tactile clair-voyance, commonly known as psychometry. “Nonsense,” I said, laughing. “It’s exactly as Hazel described it. A large fibrous ball. There’s nothing unwholesome about it.” Nothing was further from my mind then than a connection between this unusual object and ESP.

“Well, don’t keep it in the house. I don’t feel right with it around,” Gonda insisted.

Click below for the detailed story:
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/post/mysterious-fibrous-balls-of-heydon-lake

Please share if you like this post.

OPEN
Tues - Sat, 10 - 3:30
Beat the heat! We’re air conditioned!

Please park:
• at the lot down the street, west (towards the lake of the Museum,
• on the south side of Shawnigan-Mill Bay Rd
• on Shawnigan Lake Rd
• in the Community Centre parking lot.

Please avoid using Aitken & Fraser lot unless you are a customer

Admission by donation
https://www.shawniganlakemuseum.com/

Send a review:
https://g.page/r/Celk60O2gAxfEBM/review

Address

1775 Shawnigan-Mill Bay Road
Shawnigan Lake, BC
V8H3B7

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 3:30pm
Wednesday 10am - 3:30pm
Thursday 10am - 3:30pm
Friday 10am - 3:30pm
Saturday 10am - 3:30pm

Telephone

+12507438675

Website

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