Julien St-Jean
Shawville July 23, 2021
The Pontiac Historical Society is looking to make the Pontiac Museum more accessible to French speakers through the development of a bilingual museum guidebook.
Glen Ansell, the museum curator and member of the Pontiac Historical Society, said that the decision to make a guidebook was born out of a surge in French patrons to whom the museum felt it couldn’t give proper tours to. He said that in the past, staff have been able to make do through some basic French language skills, but wanted to offer more than that to French speakers.
“We recognized that we have a language limitation,” said Ansell. “We want to do what we can to welcome French visitors. The book is a good step forward.”
The guidebook will contain much of the same information that is offered during a tour of the museum and will be able to be swapped whenever the museum changes its layout. The museum has also begun to put up french descriptions to accompany some of the exhibits and items on display.
Ansell explained that the museum’s two summer students, who have been giving museum tours in recent weeks, are taking the lead on putting the book together. They take the information and descriptions offered during tours, translate it and then prepare it for the guidebook.
“We look at all the artifacts and sort of mesh it all together,” said Sydney Sharpe, one of the museum’s summer students.
Ansell expects the guidebook will have about 10 sections, each one representing a different section of the museum. They expect the book will feature sections on farming equipment, general stores, medical equipment, railway stations, education, household items, entertainment and more.
Every item in the museum has been donated by residents of the Pontiac. Ansell believes each item has a specific history and wants to teach visitors about the role the items played in everyday life.
Much of the museum highlights items and how they were used in everyday life between 1860 and 1920. Some items even date back to the 1840s.
“We want to give the story behind things,” said Ansell. “I think there’s a really rich history to the area. We want to make people feel comfortable coming here”
The museum is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday until Labour Day weekend. The guidebook is expected to be finished by Labour Day.
