Daring prisoner escapes — Hollywood's bread and butter for psychological thrillers — happened in Southern Alberta too. Many mirrored or even surpassed the classics of the genre.

ArticleAndrew ChernevychDecember 2, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesEscape, Police, Lethbridge, Lethbridge HeraldComment

100 Years Ago: The Delicate Subject

Few film screenings in Lethbridge history attracted as much attention as the 1920 screening of Fit to Win.

Article, InstagramAndrew ChernevychNovember 16, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesLethbridge Herald, Lethbridge, STD, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Venereal Disease, First World War, CensorshipComment

Deaccessioning

As its collections have grown and evolved, the Galt's mandate for collecting objects has become focused on "preserving the human history of Lethbridge and southwestern Alberta." However, many artifacts donated before the current collecting mandate do not demonstrate those regions and connections.

ArticleKirstan Schamuhn November 2, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesDeaccession, Museum, Canadian Museums Association, Process, Best Practices, Staff, CommitteeComment

Lethbridge Symphony Orchestra

The Lethbridge Symphony Orchestra is an organization and resource in southern Alberta that many take for granted as part of our community. But the symphony didn't exist a short 60 years ago.

ArticleGraham RuttanOctober 19, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMusic, Orchestra, Symphony, University, Southminster, Performance, Arts, CommunityComment

The Legacy of Canada’s Residential School System

Reconciliation is a process of understanding and accountability that can bridge the gap between Indigenous peoples and non-Indigenous Canadians. Here are some steps you can personally take to further the important work of reconciliation between Indigenous communities and allies

Article, Indigenous HistoryKalli Eagle SpeakerAugust 24, 2021Residential School, Niitsitapi, Treaty 7, Canada, Truth and Reconciliation, History, St. Mary's Residential School, Unmarked Graves, Reconciliation, City of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Southern AlbertaComment

The History of Canada’s Residential School System

Between 1880 and 1980, ten Residential Schools operated in our own backyard, or Treaty 7 lands. The impact of residential schools has caused generations of Indigenous youth to strive to relearn and preserve cultural ways of knowing as intergenerational victims.

Article, Indigenous HistoryKalli Eagle SpeakerAugust 10, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesResidential School, Truth and Reconciliation, Reconciliation, Colonization, Canada, Treaty 7, Indigenous, Children, Childhood, Trauma, Assimilation, Lethbridge, Southern Alberta, History Comment

Exploring History Today

New opportunities to explore and engage with this region's history will be introduced as we safely and responsibly reopen our site. Each day at Fort Whoop-Up will bring new adventures designed to capture the imagination and showcase southwestern Alberta's rich and diverse history.

ArticleDarrin J Martens Aaká óóhkotoki (Many rocks)June 29, 2021Fort Whoop-UpFort Whoop-Up, Guided Tour, history, Lethbirdge, TourismComment

Lethbridge Coat of Arms

In 1907, reverend Chivers designed the City of Lethbridge coat of arms. While it reflected the community of the day, Lethbridge has changed greatly since then.

ArticleGalt Museum & ArchivesJune 22, 2021Lethbridge City HallCrest, Lethbridge, Brand, City, Augustine, Church, City CouncilComment

The Man Behind the Lens

Do you know the story behind what local historians have called “unquestionably the most famous photograph ever taken in the City of Lethbridge?”

ArticleHannah YuzwaJune 15, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesExtra Exhibit, Extra, Lethbridge Herald, Archives, Photojournalism, Visual, Electricity, Photography, Brunelle, Lethbridge, NewspaperComment

Through the Lens of the Lethbridge Herald

Orville Brunelle, Lloyd Knight, David Rossiter, and Ian Martens are four of the most prolific photojournalists who have contributed to the Lethbridge Herald. Find out more about their work and accolades.

ArticleBobbie FoxJune 1, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesLethbridge Herald, Photojournalism, Photographer, Photography, Archives, Exhibit, Extra! Extra!, Orville Brunette, Lloyd Knight, David Rossiter, Ian Martens, Newspaper, Media, Lethbridge, Southern AlbertaComment

Wolfers

On a winter's day in 1873, Canadian Donald Graham found himself in an armed standoff with a man remembered now only as “The Bigheaded Dutchman.”

ArticleCarolyn BenMay 18, 2021Fort Whoop-UpFort Whoop-Up, Furs, Pelts, Wolf, Wolves, Trapping, Poison, Strychnine, Animals, Trade, Donald Graham, Firewater, Hugh Dempsey, Southern Alberta, FortComment

The Impressive Life of Mary Drever

Who was Mary Drever and what makes her a notable female figure in the history of southern Alberta?

ArticleCarolyn BenMay 11, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMary Drever, NWMP, Police, Northwest Mounted Police, Macleod, Fort Macleod, Treaty 7Comment

Mother's Day

When did Mothers Day start and what was its original intent? Find out about the history of Mother’s Day and of the legacy of women in Lethbridge and southern Alberta.

ArticleJanae RedgraveMay 4, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesWomen, History, Mothers, Work, Mothers Day, Stafford, Coalbanks, LegacyComment

A Student At St. Mary’s Residential School

When Blanche Bruisedhead was 7, an RCMP Officer and priest threatened her parents with jail time if they didn’t send their daughter to St. Mary’s Residential School. Read Blanche’s account of her time at St. Mary’s.

Blackfoot and Blanche

Blanche Bruisedhead and her follow Niitsitapi students were forced to stop speaking Blackfoot at St. Mary’s Residential School. Learn about her experience learning English by force, and now teaching Blackfoot to students of all ages.

Indigenous History, ArticleBlanche BruisedheadApril 20, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesBlanche, Blanche Bruisedhead, Language, Blackfoot language, Culture, Residential School, St. Mary's Residential School, Reconciliation, Lethbridge, Southern Alberta, NiitsitapiComment

White Tailed Deer Woman and the Mine

When Nicholas Sheran drowned in the Oldman River in 1882, why didn't his wife or his sons inherit his estate?

A ship called Lethbridge

To generate public support and sponsorship for ships and their crews during the Second World War, some corvettes were named after communities, and so on June 25, 1941, the HMCS Lethbridge was commissioned into service.

ArticleCarolyn BenMarch 30, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesHMCS Lethbridge, Second World War, Marine, Navy, Corvette, FundraisingComment

How Sweet it is: Beekeeping in Southwestern Alberta

Today there is a mix of large commercial and small hobbyist beekeepers in southern Alberta. How did apiculture develop here over the last century?

ArticleAimee BenoitMarch 23, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesBuzzworthy, Bees, Beekeeping, Beekeeper, Honeybees, Apiculture, Ideal Farm, Agriculture, CanolaComment

Early Beekeepers in Southern Alberta

Did you know that southern Alberta has a long history of beekeeping? Find out what and who made our region a “beekeeping hotspot.”

ArticleAimee BenoitMarch 16, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesBuzzworthy, Bees, Apiary, Riedel, Schurtz, Beekeeping, Southern Alberta, Honey, Polination, Lethbridge, Stirling, Coaldale, Irrigation, AgricultureComment

Local Inventions

Southern Alberta has been a hub for ingenuity over the years. Learn about inventors Andrew Briosi, Chloe Davies, Catherine Jackimszyk, Charles Noble, Alberta Stubbs and Otto Wobick.

ArticleAimee BenoitMarch 9, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMade In, Ingenuity, Lethbridge, Nodle Blade, Agriculture, Invention, Farmer, Sugar Beet, Grasshopper, Pest Control, Toilet, MopComment