Welcome to our Spring 2023 newsletter! Works continues on the museum project and we are once again pleased to announce some significant donations and progress on the building.
CONSTRUCTION UPDATE
The heat is on! Early in February, J&R Mechanical crews hooked up the propane boilers with heated water to provide the first stages of warmth to our building. The infloor-heat lines, which will be heated glycol, have yet to be filled due to the colder weather. However, the zone heating units are functioning well and the building is warm. This has been good for the mudders, tapers and painters with Kasteel Construction who are quickly finishing the interior decorating. Doors are hung on the frames and all the trim and wainscotting is completed. Elite Flooring is laying down the vinyl flooring in various rooms. DT Electric has completed most of the essential electrical work. The admissions and gift shop counter is completed, and we have started to erect storage shelving.
Kitchen equipment has been delivered as has all of the restaurant and gift shop furniture. Overall, things are looking pretty good and we still aim for a soft opening this summer!
DONATIONS
We received a nice $1,000 donation from Ron Muyres in March 2023 which will go towards our museum project. Thank you Ron! The Muyres family were pioneers of Yellowknife - “Lanky” Muyres came up in 1940 to work at Negus Mine. Both he and his wife “Smitty” were great athletes and sponsors of sports (hockey, fastball, curling) in the community.
SITE SIGNAGE
Janet Pacey’s Signed company was busy this winter producing a number of signs for the museum project. The ‘MUSEUM’ building sign and logo will hang on the gable end facing the parking lot. We also have an interior donors wall sign, and an interpretive history sign for the Giant Mine rec hall. Additional signs are for the Outdoor Display area, including interpretive plaques for the Brock Headframe, Con Mine Log Cabin, and various pieces of machinery. Thanks to Janet and her staff for all their hard work!
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT MEETINGS
Working with facilitator Roxane Poulin and with funding from GNWT-ECE andCanadian Heritage, the Society has embarked on engagement meetings with the Indigenous community. In March 2023, we met with the North Slave Metis Alliance and Yellowknives Dene. The purpose of the meetings was to share information about the museum project, answer questions and obtain feedback from their members, seek ideas and advice about which people, events, or stories that could be featured, and explore opportunities for additional contributions to the museum and exhibits. Our meetings were very productive, and we appreciate the supportive feedback from their members and all the ideas that were shared around the table!
MUSEUM MANAGER
We are still on the lookout to hire a candidate for ‘Museum Manager’! The manager’s position will be responsible for facility operations, including admissions, sales, programming, sub-contracts, and coordinating other staffing/volunteer needs. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the manager will be the face of the Museum and our conduit to the public. In the interim, we’ve appreciated the help of Debbie Mills in admin duties!
OLD TOWN WALKING TOUR
The Society is excited to announce that it has taken over the production of the Yellowknife Old Town Walking Tour guide and a new version will be ready for distribution in the summer of 2023!
The guide contains summarized information on a number of points of historical and cultural interest on Yellowknife’s waterfront peninsula we call “Old Town”. It is full of archival images showing the community in its younger years, and a number of interesting facts about geology, geography, and history.
We are very proud of the brochure and it will be available at our booth at the Yellowknife Spring Trade Show at the Multiplex on May 13-14, 2023 at a cost of $5 each. What better way to support the Society and its heritage efforts than to pick up a copy!
ARCTIC WINTER GAMES 1970s
The National Film Board of Canada has recently digitized and made available its documentary footage of the 1970 to 1974 Arctic Winter Games events. The videos show the north - including footage from Yellowknife - as it was in those days. There is also some great commentary in the blog by Yellowknife’s own Ken Hall. Check them out!
VIC MERCREDI HOCKEY CARD
Congratulations to local hockey legend Victor Mercredi for the release of his hockey card, nearly 50 years after his debut in the NHL! Commissioned by “Upper Deck”, the card is part of a series of cards celebrating Indigenous players in North America’s top hockey league.
Hockey was always a part of life for Victor while he was growing up in Yellowknife. He was top scorer in the Wee Wee Hockey league in the 1961/1962 season and was supported towards pro-hockey thanks to local hockey coach Louis Prince, who helped fund Victor’s training and eventual entry into the Alberta and British Columbia junior leagues. In 1973, he got a chance to play in the NHL, being drafted to the Atlanta Flames and playing two games. His NHL career was short-lived but memorable. Victor was the first person from the NWT to play in the National Hockey League; Greg Vaydik was the second in 1976.
Thank you Victor, for donating a signed hockey card to our museum collection!
SPRING TRADE SHOW
Don’t forget to come check out our booth at the Trade Show on May 13-14. Consider volunteering some of your time to help us with booth duty and sell our products!
NEW WEBSITE
Our new re-designed website will be launched in May 2023. The website, which contains the same content, had to be rebuilt on new software. One change is the elimination of the website store and a new online sales platform using Square and Weebly, located at yellowknifehistory.square.site. Memberships can also be purchased at the new online store.
Yellowknife Historical Society
Box 1856 Yellowknife NT X1A 2P4