No matter what the season, one of the most delightful ways to spend a few hours, or an entire day, is a visit to Lunenburg’s Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic. Several major exhibits are open year-round, Monday - Friday (holidays excepted). In the winter and early spring, Wednesday mornings are Movie Mornings, with showings from the Museum’s heritage collection, at 10:00 a.m.
Full season programming begins on May 17, with visitors encouraged to explore many aspects of Nova Scotia’s maritime heritage. Exciting activities and a wonderful salt and fresh water aquarium engage people of all ages. Exhibit topics include rum running, losses at sea, the famous Bluenose and the history of fishing on the Banks.
2008 marks the 70th anniversary of the launch of Canada’s oldest saltbank schooner, Theresa E. Connor. The flagship of the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic, Theresa E. Connor is a tribute to all schooners that plied their trade on the Banks. Stepping aboard the vessel is like going back in time, where you can see a schooner ready for work and talk with men who fished on the Banks.
Cape Sable, a steel-hulled side trawler, is also open to the public, with retired fishermen sharing stories of their times at sea.
Local maritime heritage is celebrated in many ways, at the Museum. Special events are scheduled throughout the season, but every day is a special day, with thrilling discoveries and activities. Visitors enjoy the ultimate waterfront experience, at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
The Courage To Do The Impossible ...
Marlon Brando in "Mutiny on the Bounty". Russell Crowe in "Master and Commander". Captain Angus Walters aboard the famous Bluenose.
What do these three men have in common? The connection is found through their vessels; the replicas of the HMS Bounty and the HMS Rose (later HMS Surprise) and the original Bluenose were all built at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, in Lunenburg Nova Scotia.
The replica of HMS Bounty was launched in 1960, to the cheers of thousands of Lunenburgers and visitors to the community. It sparked the movement to build a replica of our own Bluenose, and in 1963, Bluenose II slid down the ways at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard.
In 1970, the replica of HMS Rose was constructed at the same Yard. Marine history buffs were delighted to see another part of nautical history come to life under the skilled hands of Lunenburg craftsmen. In 2003, HMS Rose was immortalized in the release of "Master and Commander", as the vessel HMS Surprise. In honour of that role, the name of the ship was officially changed to HMS Surprise.
The Smith and Rhuland Shipyard was one of the best-known shipyards in Nova Scotia. Located on the Lunenburg waterfront, the Yard produced more than one hundred fine ships. The Shipyard was the creation of Richard Smith and George Rhuland and was established in 1900. In their first year, they built two vessels: Palatia and Quisetta.
From 1900 until the mid-1970s, many vessel designs went from half-models to full-sized craft. Fishing vessels, like the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic’s Theresa E. Connor were built there, as were larger "ocean-going" ships. Vessels that were used for pleasure craft and in serious work went hand-in-glove with other, adventurous ships ~ like rum runners!
The mainstay of the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, though, remained in the fishery. The fine vessels, the shipwrights that crafted them and the men who sailed them can all be brought together under the same tagline used in the movie "Master and Commander": The Courage To Do The Impossible Lies in the Hearts of Men.
For every fisherman who has gone to sea and for their brave families on shore, the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic celebrates their dreams and honours their sacrifices.
Wishing you Smooth Sailing,
Heather
What do these three men have in common? The connection is found through their vessels; the replicas of the HMS Bounty and the HMS Rose (later HMS Surprise) and the original Bluenose were all built at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, in Lunenburg Nova Scotia.
The replica of HMS Bounty was launched in 1960, to the cheers of thousands of Lunenburgers and visitors to the community. It sparked the movement to build a replica of our own Bluenose, and in 1963, Bluenose II slid down the ways at the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard.
In 1970, the replica of HMS Rose was constructed at the same Yard. Marine history buffs were delighted to see another part of nautical history come to life under the skilled hands of Lunenburg craftsmen. In 2003, HMS Rose was immortalized in the release of "Master and Commander", as the vessel HMS Surprise. In honour of that role, the name of the ship was officially changed to HMS Surprise.
The Smith and Rhuland Shipyard was one of the best-known shipyards in Nova Scotia. Located on the Lunenburg waterfront, the Yard produced more than one hundred fine ships. The Shipyard was the creation of Richard Smith and George Rhuland and was established in 1900. In their first year, they built two vessels: Palatia and Quisetta.
From 1900 until the mid-1970s, many vessel designs went from half-models to full-sized craft. Fishing vessels, like the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic’s Theresa E. Connor were built there, as were larger "ocean-going" ships. Vessels that were used for pleasure craft and in serious work went hand-in-glove with other, adventurous ships ~ like rum runners!
The mainstay of the Smith and Rhuland Shipyard, though, remained in the fishery. The fine vessels, the shipwrights that crafted them and the men who sailed them can all be brought together under the same tagline used in the movie "Master and Commander": The Courage To Do The Impossible Lies in the Hearts of Men.
For every fisherman who has gone to sea and for their brave families on shore, the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic celebrates their dreams and honours their sacrifices.
Wishing you Smooth Sailing,
Heather
Monday, March 3, 2008
Lunenburg on the Money!
Hello Everyone,
We’ve always said that the smell of fish, when being made into various products at a fish processing plant, is the "smell of money". I’m sure that Lunenburg is not alone in that regard. Fish processing, whether it was in the days of salt fish or in modern plants, has been the economic backbone of coastal communities.
The Museum schooner Theresa E. Connor played a successful part in the economy of Nova Scotia, from 1938 until 1966. The vessel was originally owned by the Halifax-based National Fish Company.
However, Theresa E. Connor has an added connection with the Canadian economy. The Canadian one hundred dollar bill, issued from May 1976 until December 1990, had a picture of three vessels on the Lunenburg waterfront. It was part of the Bank of Canada’s "Scenes of Canada Series". The vessels were, from left to right, Lilla B. Boutilier, E. P. Theriault and Theresa E. Connor. The schooner Lilla B. Boutilier was the sister ship to Theresa E. Connor. The original photograph, from which the engraving was copied, dates to early 1939.
On 3 December 1990, the Birds of Canada Series one hundred dollar bill was first issued. The front of the bank note remained the same, with Prime Minister Robert Borden. The reverse showed the Canada goose.
Wishing you Smooth Sailing,
Heather
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