The Museum & Archives of Vernon

05/28/2026

Our friends at the Caetani Centre are inviting the community to celebrate the longest days of the year at the Summer Solstice Music & Market Festival, taking place June 20–21, 2026, on the historic Caetani grounds in Vernon!

The two-day festival combines live music, art, food, and community gathering in a unique outdoor setting. Saturday, June 20, 2:30 to 9 p.m., features a ticketed music festival and market experience with Strange Bazaar vendors, while Sunday, June 21 welcomes the return of the free all-day Strange Bazaar from 1 to 7 p.m., showcasing a vibrant collection of artists, makers, and vendors from across the region.

To learn more, visit www.caetani.org!

05/27/2026

All are invited to attend the 4th Annual Komastet Powwow, to be held June 12-14, 2026!

05/22/2026

We wanted to let our visitors know that the City of Vernon - Local Government will be completing construction work in the general vicinity of the Museum between May 24 and June 12.

Beginning Sunday, May 24, a larger utility renewal project will begin along 31st Street between 31st and 33rd avenues, including the lane west toward 32nd Street.

Crews will be upgrading storm and sanitary infrastructure while also preparing the roadway for resurfacing improvements.

Construction on 31st Street will move block by block north toward 33rd Avenue, with work taking place daily between 6:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Underground infrastructure work is expected to continue through June 12, subject to weather and other factors.

The intersection at 31st Street and 32nd Avenue will remain open whenever possible; however, a full closure of the intersection will be required from June 1 to 3.

Local traffic will continue to have access to nearby businesses and residences throughout construction. Roads will be closed in sections as work progresses, and motorists should plan for delays and allow extra travel time.

Please plan accordingly and obey all traffic control and speed signage while accessing during the Museum during this time. We would be happy to see you!

05/21/2026

May 17-23 is BC Museums Week and this year's theme is . Did you know that in 2023 heritage institutions in Canada fulfilled nearly 1.1 million research requests?

Some may hold the belief that museums simply store old items, but most museums are not only actively collecting objects and records, as space allows, but also working with researchers to support a range of inquiries, from genealogical searches to requests for archival information to research about an object held in a personal collection, and more. Museums serve a vital role in helping community members understand themselves and their place in history.

In 2025, the MAV served around 250 researchers, on top of our general visitors, a number which has already reached around 150 in 2026. It is a pleasure to serve our community.

05/17/2026

The Vernon Women in Business Woman of the Year awards return on June 4, 2026, after a nine-year hiatus. Since 1988, the awards have recognized women whose leadership, entrepreneurship, and community service have helped shape Vernon and the North Okanagan.

Our latest blog post looks back at the history of the awards and some of the remarkable women who have been honoured over the years.

On June 4, 2026, the Vernon Women in Business (VWIB) will once again honour outstanding women in the community,

05/15/2026

May flowers? Oh how we adore May flowers!

This ornate little teapot showcases florals-o-plenty, perfect for a springtime picnic. The porcelain style, known as Coalbrookedale, originates from a small English settlement in Shropshire known for the first smelting of iron ore (the company Coalport also produced porcelain pieces in this style).

The design of this style is heavily inspired from the swirling ornamentation of Rococo Revival, and the naturalist Gothic architecture of the early 19th century. Pieces like our teapot share the pastel and fun colours of spring 🌼🌼

We may not know the makers of this teapot or its manufacturing date, but it is still a pretty display of flowers, worthy of May’s feature display!

05/14/2026

We still have a small handful of tickets let for our May 30 speaker event with Emily Hails of Ursus Heritage Consulting!

Emily has worked as a professional archaeologist since 2014 and has served as an archaeologist with Ursus Heritage Consulting since 2017. Based in Interior British Columbia, her work spans residential and municipal developments, as well as projects with BC Hydro, BC Parks, and Parks Canada. She holds a Master’s degree from Newcastle University (UK), where she contributed to the digital recording of a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon settlement in Northumberland. Her field experience also includes excavations at a 13,000-year-old midden site on the Central Coast of British Columbia.

Established in 2008, Ursus Heritage Consulting provides heritage and archaeological consulting services across a wide range of sectors, including partnerships with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities, developers, forestry clients, private landowners, BC Hydro, and local, provincial, and federal governments. The organization operates offices in Vernon, Kaslo, and the Comox Valley.

Ursus Heritage Consulting respectfully acknowledges that its team lives and works on Indigenous ancestral lands, particularly those of the syilx, Secwepemc, K’omoks, Sinixt, and Ktunaxa peoples.

To grab your ticket for what is sure to be a fascinating presentation, visit www.vernonmuseum.ca.

05/13/2026

😂😂😂 We appreciate our friends at Relate Janitorial Services!

Never quite sure what we’ll find at The Museum & Archives of Vernon! 😂 Their team is always putting together amazing historical projects - what a gem to have in our community. 🏛️💎

05/13/2026

Our friends at the BC Community Bat Program need our help.

May is the month when the regional coordinators organize the BC Annual Bat Count, as well as respond to increasing calls and reports about bats. This year funding is extremely tight in some regions. In the Okanagan, they only have funding to keep the South Okanagan region going (thanks to the RDOS South Okanagan Conservation Fund).

They are currently seeking donations to support the regional coordinators. Your contribution will enable them to keep the regions open, and have coordinators check emails, send out BC Annual Bat Count details, coordinate bat counts at private homeowner roost sites, coordinate volunteers and Bat Ambassadors, remind participating roost volunteers to collect spring guano for Pd testing, respond to dead bat reports for white-nose syndrome testing, deliver bat presentations and so much more.

Whether it's $10, $20, $100 or more, your donation will go a long way to continue monitoring bat populations and continue raising awareness about the importance of bats.

Donate now and receive a charitable donation tax receipt.

To donate, visit BC Conservation Foundation (https://www.bccf.com/donate/) and select the BC Community Bat Program.

Alternatively, please send a cheque made out to the BC Conservation Foundation, with a note specifying that it's for the BC Community Bat Program. Mail it to:
BC Conservation Foundation
Attn: BC Community Bat Program Donation
206 – 17564 56A Avenue
Surrey, BC V3S 1G3

📸: Jenn Barrett | Yuma Myotis | BC Community Bat Program

05/10/2026

💐 Happy Mother’s Day 💐 from all of us at the Museum & Archives of Vernon. Today, we honour the many forms motherhood can take; from mothers, to grandmothers, aunties, chosen family, caregivers, and all those whose care and guidance shape the lives of others.

📸: The Low family in Vernon's Chinatown in June 1960. From left to right, Kee Gee, Cindy, Chui Ha, and baby Sandy | GVMA #25270.