tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post4878592074098333302..comments2024-03-09T13:22:32.480-05:00Comments on Jenny's London & Southwestern Ontario : London, Strut Your "Stuff"Jenny Graingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14230086205964696464noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post-10916892775757766522011-03-10T12:55:30.864-05:002011-03-10T12:55:30.864-05:00Might add that the last thing important community ...Might add that the last thing important community collections need is to be housed in any old building the public fancies. That kind of thinking went out decades ago. Artifacts and archives need a controlled environment, ideally a purpose-built facility, allowing for Collection conservation and Exhibit/public education functions. An expert opinion on the efficacy of mid-20th century EPW and Victorian Normal School building for this would be instructive. And an estimate of the costs of upgrading on top of the purchase price, if even available to London taxpayers.Old Timernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post-53941870577707246872011-03-09T18:33:33.712-05:002011-03-09T18:33:33.712-05:00Keith Thompson, a firefighter heritage activist (e...Keith Thompson, a firefighter heritage activist (even helped with Heritage Week) tried to get a closing fire station in south London for this purpose, being beaten by of all people, Ed Phelps pushing for residential use. As for the idea of packinging all museology at one downtown location with parking problems, what's wrong with having small institutions in various neighbourhoods - and avoiding a central bureaucracy. The Radar one is compatible with a location many of us remember when the Western Counties huts housed our injured and ill and dying "Returned Soldiers". And look up the prices of the real estate mentioned...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post-31333837163759131942011-03-09T18:22:55.085-05:002011-03-09T18:22:55.085-05:00The 1940 EPW building did host the historical muse...The 1940 EPW building did host the historical museum, transferred from L&MHS's Victoria House museum up Wellington, the collection housed in e Library sub-basement "Bear Pit" for years.<br />A donated separate exhibit building was added c1968 re Centennial. Then 20 years later the art function of EPW was transferred to the new LRAG Moriyama building at the Forks. c1989 museum functions went there resulting in unintelligible <br />'Museums London' name,and a sole library function on Queens.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post-23213593099432499562011-03-09T17:23:23.090-05:002011-03-09T17:23:23.090-05:00Sadly about 20 years ago Keith Thompson, a firefig...Sadly about 20 years ago Keith Thompson, a firefighting heritage activist - even helped with local Heritage Week - tried to get a redundant firehall for a firefighters museum - beaten out by, of all people, Ed Phelps, backing a residential use for the property. Not sure agree with concept of centralizing all the specialty museums, setting up a bureaucracy, volunteer unfriendly, and just one downtown location for a vast city. You seem to live in central London, most of us don't - and remember the parking problem. "Heritage" does not package well, no problem with military at Wolseley Barracks, Royally patroned, Radar fits down where the Western Counties huts housed our ill Returned Soldier relatives. Hussars is a problem since turfed out of the Old Courthouse years ago - not sure how strong their Regimental Association is these days. Of course museology was moved from L&MHS Victoria House to that 1940 composite EPW Queens Ave. building at Centennial time with the new maple leaf shaped exibitions structure (!) the eclectic Collection housed in the bowels of the main building, known as the Bear Pit. Then shunted off to the 1980 Art Gallery building about 20 years ago. As a newcomer you might want to review the history of museums in this and annexed communities. It starts with the Historical Society wanting to get accumulated artifacts from under the members' beds..MRS. MENINnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post-90329030284808454352010-12-01T03:00:38.042-05:002010-12-01T03:00:38.042-05:00The idea of turning the old library into a Histori...The idea of turning the old library into a Historical Museum is honestly one of the coolest ideas I've heard for re-purposing that building.<br /><br />Very neat.wyattnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4712133571153787239.post-72225315122146431132010-09-20T14:33:37.758-04:002010-09-20T14:33:37.758-04:00I am entirely behind you!I am entirely behind you!Chantellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17105340666607040424noreply@blogger.com