ART CONTEST - Students can earn volunteer hours just for entering

The Goulbourn Museum is holding an art contest to find talented young people to create a ‘Head-in-Hole’ painting for their site.  The contest is open to students in Grades 9-12 who live or attend high school in the former Goulbourn Township (Stittsville, Richmond, Munster, Ashton). The theme of the artwork is Soldiers of the War of 1812. 

Every student who enters and meets the basic submission requirements for the initial sketch will receive 10 volunteer hours.  Artwork must be original and can be the work of one student or of teams to a maximum of five students. The artist(s) selected to transform their sketch into the final “Head-in-Hole” painting will receive an additional 30 volunteer hours plus a letter of reference, recognition in the Museum’s publications and the local newspaper, and an award of $100. The winner(s) will also be a VIP at the official unveiling of the painting at the Museum’s War of 1812 Tribute on June 16.

The deadline for submissions is April 12, 2013. All the materials needed to create the final painting will be provided by the Museum.

Click HERE for rules and entry forms.

Wondering what on earth is a 'Head-in-Hole' painting? Click on the examples below.
Example 1
Example 2
Example 3

March Break Camp will Create Kid Curators

This March Break the Goulbourn Museum is offering a one-of-a-kind camp experience for children aged 7-11.  At Camp Curator kids will get their very own curator kits, don pint-sized lab coats and gloves and learn how to handle artefacts, create their own exhibits and even conduct an archeological dig.

This week long camp will include crafts, games, a behind-the-scenes tour of the artefact collection (did you know the Museum has over 8,000 artefacts?), and visits from special guests.

Camp Curator takes place March 11-15 from 1-4:30 p.m. Cost is $125 per child for the week and there are still spaces available. Snacks are included. For more information or to register, please call 613-831-2393 or email education@goulbournmuseum.ca

The Goulbourn Museum is located at 2064 Huntley Road, just south of Stittsville, at Stanley’s Corners. For more information, please visit the Museum's website or check us out on Facebook.

Finding a Connection at Goulbourn Museum

Just starting as a new member of the Goulbourn Museum team in February, it was soon apparent that I might have more of a connection to the history of Goulbourn than an interest in becoming involved at the museum. While working in one of the collection storage rooms, on one of my first days at the museum, that I had an "aha" moment, and this is the story that unfurled.

Alexander and Mildred Graham were married on September 1, 1928. Soon after being married Alex and Mildred rented the lower level of a log home on Carp Road in Stittsville, from a man named John Junks. Their family soon grew and in this log home their first nine children were born, while baby number ten and eleven were born in their new home, after relocating to Stittsville Main Street in 1947. 

Alexander worked on the railway in Stittsville as a section hand at the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) station. Stittsville had grown around this railway station, after the destruction of Old Stittsville by a great fire that ravaged Carleton County in 1870. The railway brought prosperity to the Goulbourn area, created opportunities for local business to flourish, and became a crucial means of transit between communities along the rail line. Alexander and his family witnessed the growth of the railway and height of its influence throughout the war years, but following the Second World War the decline of rail became apparent with an increasing preference towards the car as a means of travel. Alexander worked a total of 47 years with CPR, had seen the height of influence and decline of the railway, and in the 1960s saw the discontinuation of rail service to Stittsville, and the demolition of the CPR train station in 1969. The 1990s were the finale to railway history in Stittsville, with the last train travelling through the village on January 14, 1990.

Mildred and Alex Graham celebrating their 40th Wedding Anniversary on September 1st, 1968

Back to present day and I am standing in the collection storage area at Goulbourn Museum; mounted on the wall is a hand crafted wooden sign with the word “Stittville” painted across its length. I had seen this spelling once before, in my grandparent`s house there was a framed image of a circa 1920 Stittsville CPR train station with “Stittville” prominently written across the roof tiles. My grandmother always told us that the extra “s” was a later addition to the village`s name. Below the wooden sign at the museum a label went on to explain, “Stittsville Rail Station Sign. This is the original Train Station sign... Alex Graham, CPR Section Hand for 47 years.”

Stittsville Rail Station Sign - Goulbourn Museum

It was in that moment that a realization of the connection hit me... “Aha!” Alex Graham was my grandma`s father! This wooden sign had been something of significance in Alex`s life, a daily occurrence in the 47 years he spent with the Canadian Pacific Railway. Saved from the demolition of the station, the sign now resides within the collection of Goulbourn Museum to preserve the memory of the station, and promote the importance of the railway in Goulbourn Township. What a surprise that my great-grandpa Graham played some role in making this history happen!