Made by Hand

Handmade goods can range from functional to expressive to ingenious, blurring categories such as art and craft. But they all share something in common: a connection between objects and their creators that makes each piece unique.

ArticleAimee BenoitMarch 2, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMade In, DIY, Handmade, Craft, Artisan, Doukhobor, Mass Production, Creativity, Blacksmith, Knitting, Ornaments, Macrame, Sewing, Woodworking, CarvingComment

Iiksisawaato’p Kainaiwa O’tookátákssin: Maana’pii ki niita’piitsitapii saatstakssin | We Visit with Kainaiwa Beadwork: A New Way and the Real Way of Design

Exhibit organizers Hali Heavy Shield, Kalli Eagle Speaker and Carol Williams speak about the special meanings and connection of traditional Kainai and Niitsitapi beadwork pieces and designs

Online Presentation, Indigenous HistoryGalt Museum & ArchivesFebruary 26, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesKainaiwa Beadwork, Niitsitapi, Blackfoot, Craft, Beadwork, Exhibit, Curatorial, Glenbow Museum, Archives, Indigenous, TraditionalKnowledge, KainaiComment

Mass Production: A Look at Toys

In the late 1800s, many Canadian children played with hand-made or improvised toys, even though mass-produced toys were available. Why did it take until the 1950s for that trend to shift?

ArticleAimee BenoitFebruary 23, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMade In, Toys, Manufacturing, Production, Mass-Market, Globalization, ArtisanComment

Black History Month

The Galt’s permanent collection now includes objects collected from a Black Lives Matter demonstration at Lethbridge City Hall. Find out more about Black history in Lethbridge and southern Alberta.

Online PresentationGalt Museum & ArchivesFebruary 16, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesBlack History, City Hall, Protest, Demonstration, Community Organizers, Anti Racism, George Floyd, Police Brutality, Black Lives Matter, Indigenous Lives MatterComment

Made in Lethbridge

Where does our “stuff” come from? How has that changed over time?

ArticleAimee BenoitFebruary 16, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMade In, Bison, Trade, Research, Manufacturing, Agriculture, Invention, Entrepreneur, Agri-food, Commerce, EconomyComment

Introducing Made In... (Stories of Stuff)

Galt Curator Aimee Benoit presents an introduction to our newest exhibit Made In... (Stories of Stuff).

Online PresentationAimee BenoitFebruary 9, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMade In, Exhibit, Curatorial, Presentation, University of Lethbridge, History, Niitsitapi, Blackfoot, Manfuacturing, Objects, Collection, Production, Supply ChainComment

100 Years Ago: Czech Army Goes to Canada

Did you know that the Czech Army was transported through Canada on the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1920?

ArticleAndrew ChernevychFebruary 9, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesCzechoslovak, Army, Soldiers, Lethbridge Herald, Archives, History, Train, Rail, Russian Civil War, Tsar, First World WarComment

Tips and Tricks From the Archives: Labelling Memories

Documenting your personal photographs and snapshots is an important step in preserving your family's history.

Online PresentationBobbie FoxFebruary 5, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesArchives, Label, Writing, preserving records, Genealogy, Photo Album, Photos, Information, Bobbie FoxComment

Our Secret Histories of Stuff

Dr. Christopher Churchill discusses overlapping networks of material cultures: Indigenous nations, local settler communities, and connections to transnational chains of production of "stuff" as part of our Made In exhibit.

Online PresentationDr. Christopher ChurchillFebruary 2, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMade In, Exhibit, Curatorial, Presentation, University of Lethbridge, History, Niitsitapi, Blackfoot, Manfuacturing, Objects, Collection, Production, Supply Chain Comment

Black Lives Matter—Lethbridge in Context

How has Lethbridge contributed to the ongoing dialogue related to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s and the Black Lives Matter and BIPOC movements today?

Rat Control in Alberta

how Alberta has stayed “rat-free” despite their widespread presence?

Online PresentationMuseum EducatorJanuary 29, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesRats, Rat Control, Rat Free, See Something, Say Something, Public Health, Video, PresentationComment

Siksikaisitapi Bags: Blackfoot Pockets and Pouches

Although Siksikaisitapi, Blackfoot people, did not sew pockets into their clothing, they did use personal bags and pouches to carry essential belongings.

Indigenous History, Online PresentationBlanche BruisedheadJanuary 26, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesBlanche, Blanche Bruisedhead, Pockets, Parflesch, Bag, Suitcase, Luggare, Niitsitapi, Blackfoot, Exhibit, Pockets of PossibilitiesComment

100 Years Ago: Japanese Canadian Memorial

A 1920s memorial erected in Vancouver’s Stanley Park includes the names of Japanese Canadians from Raymond, Alberta. Do you know what the memorial was erected to commemorate?

ArticleAndrew ChernevychJanuary 26, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesFirst World War, Japanese Canadians, Lethbridge Herald, Stanley Park, Memorial, Enlisting, Sugimoto, Suda, Veterans, Internment, Human Rights, Racial Prejudice, Nikkei TapestryComment

Building Bridges

Follow along as Museum Educator Rebecca Wilde teaches us how to construct a model of the #yql's very own High-Level Bridge and explains the history of this extraordinary structure.

Online PresentationMuseum EducatorJanuary 22, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesBridge, High Level Bridge, Building, Construction, southern alberta, Railway, Train, Learning at Home, EducationComment

Preparing Tapestry for Display

Collections Assistant Nicole Wilkinson is applying a cotton muslin sleeve to the reverse of a recently acquired Belgian tapestry in the Galt’s collection.

InstagramKevin MacLeanJanuary 21, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesExhibits, Made In, Tapestry, Collections, ConservationComment

Pioneer Lee Duck

Have you heard about Lee Duck’s life and journey from Canton, China to Lethbridge, where he established a family and a successful business in the early 1900s?

ArticleCarolyn BenJanuary 19, 2021China, Immigration, Pioneer, Emigration, Lethbridge, Lee Duck, Chinese Canadian, Chinese history in Lethbridge, Business, Tailor, Fashion, Southern Alberta Comment

The Galt's Vaults: Why is there a CD Player in the Galt's Collections?

Collections Technician Kevin MacLean explains why contemporary objects like CD Players are added into the Galt’s permanent collection as important pieces of history.

Online Presentation, Galt's VaultsKevin MacLeanJanuary 15, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesGalt's Vaults, Collections, Kevin MacLean, Cd Player, Music, ElectronicsComment

100 Years Ago: Lethbridge Aircraft Company

Did you know Lethbridge was home to an aircraft company 100 years ago?

ArticleAndrew ChernevychJanuary 12, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesAviation, Airplane, Airport, Aerodrome, Lethbridge, Flight, Lethbridge Herald, Archives, Research, InvestorsComment

Pockets of Possibilities with Kirstan Schamuhn

Discover how pockets in women's fashions of the 20th century impacted women's interactions with public spaces, and why it's an ongoing challenge to find a good pocket in women's clothing.

Online PresentationKirstan Schamuhn January 8, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesPockets of PossibilitiesComment

The Transferring of Knowledge from Miistakists

Mike Bruised Head, Chief Bird, discusses his ongoing effort to restore Niitsitapi, Blackfoot, names to mountains, coulees, and communities on traditional Blackfoot territory.

Online Presentation, Indigenous HistoryMike Bruised HeadJanuary 5, 2021Galt Museum & ArchivesMountains, Mike Bruised Head, Blackfoot language, Blackfoot history, Blackfoot, Blackfoot geography, Sacred Blackfoot Sites, Blackfoot Geography, NiitsitapiComment