For this year’s Manitoba Day, we’d thought we’d showcase our collections and some of the Manitoba History at Daly House. So here is Daly House from A to Z!
A is for Archives – our collections include an archive known as the Magnacca Research Center which contains documents, photographs and an unique music recordings created by local musician Roy Brown. Thanks to a grant from the Brandon Area Community Foundation we’re having the recordings digitized!
B is for Brandon – Brandon and Western Manitoba is our mandate. We collect, preserve and exhibit the history of our city and region from the earliest Indigenous inhabitants to the present day.
C is for Collections – Our museum contains over 1200 individual collections with over 20, 000 artifacts, documents, and photographs. Our collections contain rare memorabilia related to one of Brandon’s oldest businesses – Christie Office Plus. We’re honored to be able to help them celebrate their 140th anniversary with a special exhibit this fall.
D is for Dollhouse – We have an amazing dollhouse on display on our second floor. The dollhouse originally belonged to Sigrid Green and dates back to the 1880s. See our video on Sigrid Green’s Dollhouse to learn more!
E is for Exhibits – The museum contains three floors of fascinating exhibits. Our favorite is Mutter’s Store. The bulk bins and product packages on the shelves helps us to picture what it was like to shop for groceries a hundred years ago.
Mutter Bros Groceries Exhibit at Daly House
F is for Fire Insurance Maps – These maps are the hidden gems in our archives that can be a wealth of information for researchers. The museum has two fire insurance maps dating from 1911 and 1916. These maps are a blueprint of the buildings that once existed (and still do) in Brandon. Their original purpose was to assist insurance companies to determine risk when assessing insurance rates within the city.
G is for Garden – Its hard to believe but less than a decade ago the yard at Daly House was an empty bowl shaped space! Today our beautiful garden is a refuge for the community and it contains historic plants such as the Brandon Pink Coral Bells, which were developed at the Brandon Research Station.
H is for House – Of course our historic house is the biggest feature in our collection and it has a rich history. It’s been through two World Wars and two pandemics. The house was built 139 years ago by Thomas Mayne Daly, Brandon’s first mayor. It then became the property of Daly’s law partner G.R. Coldwell. In the 1930s, it was turned into a children’s shelter known as The Maples. Over the last 43 years it has been Daly House Museum, named in honor of Thomas Daly.
I is for Investigation – Artifacts, documents, and photographs are an important part of the museum’s work. Every item that comes through the museum’s doors needs to be examined or investigated for who owned it, how it was used, and what it can tell us about the past.
J is for Jubilee – the museum’s archives contains the records of many local organizations such as the Canadian Order of Foresters Court Jubilee #12 and the records of various Loyal Orange Lodges in the South Western Manitoba. These records are another gem in our archives as they can tell researchers about the history of local fraternal organizations. Plus, they can be a wealth of information for genealogist researching information on their ancestors.
K is for Kaye Rowe – Daly House contains over 300 hats that belonged to Brandon Sun fashion reporter Kaye Rowe. The hats display a wide array of women’s headwear from the 1880s to the 1980s. The collection visited Gimli’s New Iceland Heritage Museum in 2013 as a travelling exhibit.
L is for Letters – Our archival collections contains numerous letters between various family members of Brandon and area personalities. The most emotionally impactful letter in the archives is from Private Frank Lau advising his younger brother Allan to wait until he is 19 before enlisting to serve in World War I. The letter is dated August 9, 1917 four months prior to Private Lau being wounded at the Battle of Cambrais.
M is for MAIN – MAIN is the Manitoba Archival Information Network where the public can search through the Daly House Museum’s archival records. Search Our Collections to see what local Manitoba history we have in the Magnacca Research Center.
N is for Now or Never – Now or Never is our collecting initiative to gather materials relating to the pandemic, documenting this time of change and disruption. We invite the Brandon and area community to submit what has supported, challenged or inspired you. We want your stories, drawings, poems, journal entries, blog and social media posts, letters, music, photos, or videos of your experiences during COVID-19.
O is for Organs – Pump organs of course! Music was a big part of the Victorian life as it is today! Dancing, playing instruments, and singing songs in the parlor was a favorite way to pass the time. Daly House has a beautiful pump organ in our parlor just waiting for you to hear it play.
P is for Photographs – Our collection has over 6, 000 images and growing yearly! Photographs help us understand how our community has changed. They show us the events and experiences that shaped our society. Our oldest images dates from the 1860s and our newest are of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Q is for Query – Do you have a research question needing solving? Or are your wondering about something from Brandon’s past? Contact our curator with your query and we’ll do our best to help!
R is for Rotating Exhibits – Our rotating exhibit hall has been the home of some amazing temporary exhibits from the history of women’s fashions to our current exhibit Brandon House & the Pre-History of Manitoba.
S is for Steamboats – Today, few of us know about the era of the Prairie Navy that once plied the Assiniboine River. Before the arrival of the railroad the steamboat was a quick mode of transportation. They shipped people and goods from Winnipeg to St. Lazare. In fact, the very first shipment of lumber to Brandon arrived by steamboat. You can learn more about the era in the book Steamboats on the Assiniboine available in our gift shop.
T is for Time Travel – no we don’t have a time machine hidden in our basement but our artifacts and displays are a way that visitors can step back in time to learn about life in Victorian Brandon.
U is for Underwear – Our historic garment collection includes a wide variety of undergarments from bloomers to long Johns. It never fails to amaze us on what kind of things people wear or wore under their clothes!
V is for Violin – Did you know that Daly House has a violin made by John Melnick – Prisoner of War #457 in Brandon in 1915? The violin was handmade out of a seat of a chair and a leg of a bed while Mr. Melnick was interned at the Brandon POW camp. Did you also know that the violin is currently on display at the Canadian History Museum in Gatineau, Quebec?
W is for Weddings – Daly House has a wonderful collection of wedding dresses on display and our Victorian Garden is always ready for an outdoor wedding or photography session!
X is for X-rays – Okay X is a hard letter to brainstorm for but… Daly House has an amazing array of medical equipment on display in our basement including a dentist office, a doctor’s examination table, and a box for Kodak X-Ray film.
Medical equipment on display at Daly House Museum
Y is for You – Our visitors, volunteers, and online viewers are the driving force behind all that we do! If you’d like to be a part of making our community’s history come alive please visit our volunteer-opportunities page.
Z is for Zoom – the NEW way to meet the curator! If you’re an educator and would like to book a Q & A with our curator Eileen, let us know! We want to help however, we can with these new ways of learning.
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