What's On
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Feature Exhibitions
Opening late September 2023, Be Prepared tells the vibrant history of Guiding and Scouting and its legacy in Oshawa.
Archival photographs of units, camps, and local landmarks, uniforms through the years, private collections, and memories shared by the community bring the history of guiding and scouting to life.
Thank you to our exhibit sponsors:
Oshawa has a unique maritime perspective that often goes unnoticed and underappreciated. For centuries, the waterways of Lake Scugog, Oshawa Creek, and Lake Ontario have provided Indigenous Peoples and settlers with a natural navigation system and the backdrop for the commercial, agricultural, and residential development that would later become the city of Oshawa. From Ship to Shore: Looking at Oshawa's Relationship with Lake Ontario celebrates the city's port history, the marine industry, and contributes to an overall sense of pride in being part of a port city.
Oshawa’s waterfront has more than two centuries of stories to tell, from hunting and fishing, ship building, trade, railways, steamboats, pleasure crafts and ocean-going vessels. The waterfront and specifically the Oshawa Harbour have played an important role in the settling of our area, and continues that function as a vital element of the City's growth and economic development today.
Visit From Ship to Shore's Digital Exhibit via Digital Museums Canada
From Ship to Shore is developed with an investment by Digital Museums Canada.
A Carrying Place is on display in Robinson House. This immersive exhibit connects our community with their past, embraces the present Indigenous community, and builds towards a spirit of reconciliation and partnership.
A Carrying Place showcases objects recovered from the Grandview and MacLeod archeological sites and interprets the culture of the ancestral Wendat that lived in this area from 1380 – 1450 CE, and it examines the arrival and impact of European immigrants. This exhibition looks at the Indigenous community today, featuring displays from partner organizations, including the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nations, the Oshawa and Durham Region Métis Council, and the Durham District School Board.
Opening in Summer 2023: Hope and Healing Canada, an installation by Tracey-Mae Chambers.
More info: 
https://www.traceymae.com/
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Feature Events
September 9-10 - Scenes from the Cemetery
2-4pm, Union Cemetery; tour times: 2pm, 2:20pm, 2:40pm, 3pm
Tickets required for admission; https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/scenes-from-the-cemetery-2023-tickets-676627269377
September 16 - Union Cemetery Tour, presented in partnership with Parkwood National Historic Site
Theme: World War I and World War II
2pm, departing from King Street gates
September 19 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Dave Mowat, Chief, Alderville First Nation: The Williams Treaty
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
Registration required: https://oshlib.bibliocommons.com/events/64dbe42ca60f8d3d00337598
October 1 - Orange Shirt Day
A Carrying Place open for free admission
12-4pm, Robinson House
October 17 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Rob Brown: Ontario's Ghost Towns
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
Registration required: https://oshlib.bibliocommons.com/events/64dba0e05919183600080153
October 29 - Halloween at the Harbour
Check back for more details
12-4pm, Oshawa Museum
November 4 - History Beneath Our Feet Walk, in partnership with Friends of the Second Marsh
Join us on a walk to learn about the Indigenous and First Settler history around the Oshawa Second Marsh.
10am, space is limited, RSVP: check back soon for the link
November 21– Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Movie Night: Unarchived, a National Film Board of Canada documentary
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
December 2 - Annual Lamplight Tour
6-8pm; more details to come
January 17 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Nicole Adams, Local History & Genealogy Librarian, Oshawa Libraries: Oshawa's Newspapers
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
February 20 - Family Day at the OM: Artefact Explosion!
Drop-in, 12-4pm
February 21 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Club Carib: The History of Club Carib: Our First 50 Years
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
March 13-17 - March Break at the OM: Back to School
Drop in activities at Guy House and Museum Tours - $5/child
9am-4pm (last tour at 3:30pm)
Book your tickets in advance: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/541168819507
March 19 - World Storytelling Day with the Durham Storytellers
Three Tours: 1pm, 1:45pm, 2:30pm
Book your tickets in advance: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/world-storytelling-day-at-the-oshawa-museum-tickets-560676096297
March 21 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Dan Buchanan: Murder in the Family: The Dr. King Story
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
April 18 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Doris Cherkas & Irene Chromej-Johnston: Finally Finding Home in Oshawa
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
May 6 - Doors Open Oshawa
Henry House open FREE
12-4pm
May 13 - Union Cemetery Tour
Theme: Symbols, Secrets, and Societies
2pm, departing from King Street gates
May 16 – Speaker Series, in partnership with Oshawa Libraries
Annual Meeting, Oshawa Historical Society
Melissa Cole, Curator, Oshawa Museum: Summer in the City
6pm, McLaughlin Library Auditorium
For up-to-date information about the Annual Meeting, please visit the OHS Website: https://oshawahistoricalsociety.org/
June 2 - PA Day Camp: Digging up the Past
Registration required - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/591417113507
9am-3pm
June 10 - Union Cemetery Tour
Theme: South Presbyterian and Section C
2pm, departing from King Street gates
June 21 - Indigenous Peoples Day
History Beneath Our Feet Walk, in partnership with Friends of the Second Marsh
Join us on a walk to learn about the Indigenous and First Settler history around the Oshawa Second Marsh.
10am, space is limited, RSVP: https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/3327702260126/false#/invitation
Friday mornings - Yoga in the Garden
Drop in 9am-10am
July 1 - Canada Day at the Lake
Robinson House is open, and you can sign up for a tour of Henry House
2-6pm
July 8 - Union Cemetery Tour
Theme: HER-Story
2pm, departing from King Street gates
July 15 - Music in the Gardens with the Oshawa Civic Band
1:30pm - Bring your own lawn chair!
July 26 - Walking Tour Wednesday
Lakeview Park Walking Tour
10am, departing from Guy House
Friday mornings - Yoga in the Garden
Drop in 9am-10am
August 6 - Drive Shed and Carriage Tours
For McLaughlin Day, take a look at our carriage collection, then take a tour of Henry House
12-4pm, Henry House
August 12 - Union Cemetery Tour
Theme: Plots and Stories
2pm, departing from King Street gates
August 30 - Walking Tour Wednesday
Lakeview Park Walking Tour
10am, departing from Guy House
Friday mornings until August 18 - Yoga in the Garden
Drop in 9am-10am
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Plan Your Visit
The Oshawa Museum is open year round for tours - learn more about how you can experience the Home to Oshawa's History!
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Programming at the OM
Featured Education Programs
The Oshawa Museum is proud to offer educators a number of programs and workshops, available for elementary and secondary levels, and we can work with teachers in offering these programs to best meet your needs.
Students gain insight into the various roles that contribute to a museum’s functioning and the special rules we use. The museum tour includes exploring the different homes and engaging in a fun craft activity inspired by the Victorian era.
Teachers can enhance their learning experience by scheduling the Visitor Experience Coordinator to visit their classroom with 3 to 4 Education Kits to create different stations.
You can choose from various Education Kits, including ‘School Days,’ ‘Around the House,’ ‘Bonnets and Breeches,’ and ‘Toys and Games.’ Obtain a complete list by contacting the Visitor Experience Coordinator.
Compare the roles and challenges of being a Victorian Child to those of a modern day child through a number of hands-on activities, which include candle or butter-making, planting, and washing laundry (Spring/Summer). Classes tour through Henry House and learn about the Henry family and how the Henry children would have spent their time over 150 years ago!
Later, the students will use educational items from the museum’s School Days kit to gain a unique perspective on schooling in Oshawa during the 1900s. Finally, teachers can choose between demonstrations on candle-making or butter-making to complete the program.
In this workshop, students learn the different between primary and secondary sources, they learn to think critically about what can be learned from these sources, and they learn about difficulties they can present to researchers. Students are given examples of primary sources from the archival collection of the Oshawa Museum and they go through a worksheet, helping them use the skills they learned about.
Using a collection of letters written by a young man from Oshawa, we will learn about the experiences of those on the front lines during WWI from 4 very different sources. The talk will follow along with William Garrow Jr., the author of the letters, Albert Pankhurst, a young Black soldier, Victoria Donevan, a Nursing Sister and George Finigan, a young man conscripted to fight. After hearing about these experiences and how the fit into the larger picture of the First World War, the students will be tasked with writing their own letter home from the front.
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Groups and the Oshawa Museum
Special group tours (special interest groups, retirement residences, Guides/Scouts, etc.) must be booked in advance so we can best meet the needs of your group and offer you the best experience possible. We cannot accommodate drop-in tours for special groups and/or groups of 10 or more.
To book, contact Jill Passmore: 905-436-7624 x 106 or email programming@oshawamuseum.org.
programming@oshawamuseum.org.
Teachers
We offer a number of workshops suitable for elementary and secondary classes, and they can be offered virutally or in-person. These include Critical Thinking Using Objects, Working with Primary Sources and a World War I Timeline.
Curriculum based local history programs are also available, and most are adaptable to any grade level, from JK to Grade 12.
Email to learn more about how you can incorporate local history into your classroom.
Leaders
The Oshawa Museum offers badge based experiences for all levels of Guiding and Scouting. We do the work for you, the kids do the learning for themselves.
We have different program options available - to learn more, view our Guiding and Scouting Brochure:
Lectures
The Oshawa Museum has developed over fifty lectures that pertain to various aspects of Oshawa's immense cultural history. Lectures are $50 each, plus mileage if your facility is located outside of Oshawa. Lectures are approximately one hour long and are often accompanied by associated artefacts. An experienced staff member of the Oshawa Museum delivers each lecture.