Beautiful Plains Museum open for summer
- Details
- Published on Friday, June 9, 2017
By Allison Trimble
The Neepawa Banner
Hello, my name is Allison Trimble. I am a student at the University of Manitoba and for the duration of the summer months, I will be the new curator at the Beautiful Plains Museum. Since May, volunteers and I have focused our work toward reopening the basement.
The basement area has undergone renovations, including new flooring. The basement is full of many interesting areas, including a barbershop, farm equipment, tools and a sports room. My personal favorite piece is labeled Poultry “Sunglasses” and they are small red glasses that were used by farmers to put on chickens so everything looked red, so the chickens wouldn’t peck at bleeding or damaged areas on other birds. There is a large variety of artifacts and displays, making the museum a great experience for people of all ages.
On the main floor, we have worked on putting up a clothing and camera display. The clothing section consists of articles from the early 1900s. An item that stands out to me is the wedding dress from the 1930s. The dress is off-white, with long sleeves that are wide at the wrists and a train.The high neck and detailing along the mid region of the dress makes it unique and displays the amount of effort put into it. The camera and photography sections of the display feature portraits, family photos and the technology of old cameras. One of which is entitled “Magic Lantern” was powered by a candle light within the lantern and glass slides are projected by the lens. These are only a few of the many interesting displays and artifacts that are housed at the Beautiful Plains Museum.
To find out more about Neepawa and surrounding area’s history, stop by the museum anytime during our business hours. In June we are open: 9 am - 5 pm Monday to Friday; July and August: 9 am - 5 pm Monday to Friday, and 1 pm - 5 pm Saturday, Sunday and stat holidays; or call 204-476-3896 if you’d like to book a tour. The museum is located at 91 Hamilton Street in the former CNR station and admission is by donation. I look forward to meeting you this summer!
