A new project is underway at Pickering Museum Village, according to the city.
It said the museum received $100,400 from the Digital Museum of Canada and $33,000 from Young Canada Works, to create a free virtual exhibit and educational resource. The website invites users to explore the evolution of blacksmithing in Ontario and includes curriculum links and lesson plans for grades 7-12.
Available in both English and French, the website will feature an interactive timeline that takes users on a journey from the 1860s to today to discover how blacksmiths adapted their trade to meet the changing needs of their communities. The website will launch December 2022, said a city statement.
“It is fascinating to see the change from small rural smithy to blacksmithing as an art form,” says Ellen Tayles-Armstrong of the Pickering Museum Village. “The Greenwood Blacksmith Shop at the museum, for example, was used as an art studio by artist Bill Lishman after the last village blacksmith retired in 1959. This website will give new life to stories such as these in a fun and exciting new way.”
The museum village has partnered with five partner sites, including Fanshawe Pioneer Village, Westfield Heritage Village, Lang Pioneer Village, Grey Roots Museum and Archives, and Fleming College to individually represent an era of blacksmithing in the timeline.
Dynamic videos
The website includes dynamic videos of blacksmiths solving design and technological challenges using the tools and methods of their assigned time period.
Accompanying teacher resources include lesson plans that link to history, science, and art curriculum. Various activities are included, such as an archival scavenger hunt, a blacksmithing-inspired sculptural art project, and a text-based adventure game.
A “Blacksmith’s Toolbox” will serve as an interactive virtual archive for users, exhibiting various artifacts and tools that illustrate the changing technology of the trade.
The website will also be available in the new permanent on-site exhibit in the Greenwood Blacksmith Shop at the museum. This will add an innovative use of technology in the space and provide additional historical background on blacksmithing.
New exhibit
The new exhibit, opening June 1, will explore wagon making at the turn of the century. Families and kids will be able to learn about three trades- metalworking, woodworking and painting through exhibit activities such as forging a horseshoe, shoeing a horse, assembling a wagon, and adding to a community paint-by-number.
“The Pickering Museum Village is excited to launch both the website and the on-site exhibit during the year that we celebrate the 175th anniversary of the Greenwood Blacksmith Shop,” says Ms. Tayles-Armstrong. “Museum staff have developed an amazing line up of new programs and workshops for children and adults in the blacksmith shop for summer 2022.”
For tickets and information about museum programs visit pickeringmuseumvillage.ca .