Doon Heritage Village facts for kids

View of some of the living history buildings.

The Doon Heritage Village, part of the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum, is a large outdoor museum. It covers about 25 hectares (60 acres) and shows visitors what life was like in the Waterloo Region in the year 1914. This was just before World War I began. The village is located in what used to be the village of Doon, now part of Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It's right next to Homer Watson Park.

Doon Heritage Village is open during certain seasons, usually from May to December. The Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum, which is connected to the village, is open all year round. The village is currently closed for important renovations to make its historic buildings stronger. It is planned to open again in 2025.

The village has more than 22 buildings that help recreate life in rural Waterloo County in 1914. Some of these buildings were moved from other places in Waterloo Region and carefully restored. Others are new buildings built to look exactly like the originals.

Some of the buildings you can see include the Grand Trunk Railway's Petersburg station, a Dry Goods and Grocery Store, a Post Office, a Sawmill, and a Blacksmith Shop. There's also a Meat Market, a Fire Hall, and several historic homes like the Peter Martin House.

Both the Doon Heritage Village, which started in 1957, and the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum, which opened in 2010, are run by the Regional Municipality of Waterloo.

Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum

The Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum is a modern museum building that opened its doors on May 1, 2010. It's located right at the entrance to Doon Heritage Village. The museum and its exhibits officially opened in November 2011.

In November 2018, the museum campus was renamed the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum. This was done to honor Ken Seiling, who retired after serving 33 years as the Regional Chair. The museum was designed by a company called Moriyama + Teshima Architects.

What You Can Do at the Museum

The Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum is a big campus with many historical attractions and places to keep old items safe. It includes the Doon Heritage Village, the Waterloo Region Hall of Fame, and the Waterloo Region Curatorial Centre. This whole campus is the largest community museum in Ontario.

The museum building itself is 47,000 square feet. It was the first museum in Canada to get a LEED Silver certification. This means it was built in an environmentally friendly way.

Museum Exhibits and Features

The museum has two main exhibit areas. The long-term exhibit, called "What Makes Us Who We Are?", tells the story of Waterloo Region's history over 12,000 years. It covers everything from the First Peoples to the high-tech industries of today. There's also a gallery for temporary exhibits. These might be from the museum's own collection or traveling exhibits from other museums.

The museum also has public areas like a gift shop, a theatre with 114 seats called the Christie Theatre, and classrooms. There's an outdoor patio for picnics and a snack bar/cafe called Hazels. The museum is open every day of the year.

Doon Heritage Village Programs

The Doon Heritage Village is set in the year 1914. Its "living history" programs bring to life what it was like to live in the early 1900s. You can try hands-on activities like playing old-fashioned games, making ice cream, or doing historic crafts. These activities are led by friendly staff dressed in costumes, who act as teachers and guides. Special events and programs happen throughout the village's eight-month season, from May to December.

Waterloo Region Hall of Fame

The Waterloo Region Hall of Fame is located inside the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum. It's on the second floor, within the "What Makes Us Who We Are?" exhibit. Each year, the Hall of Fame honors people and groups who have done amazing things and brought recognition to themselves and the community. Since it opened in 1972, more than 450 individuals, groups, and sports teams have been added to the Hall of Fame.

Waterloo Region Curatorial Centre

The Waterloo Region Curatorial Centre is a large building, about 35,500 square feet. It's where the museum keeps and takes care of its historical items. This center supports all the museums owned and run by the Region of Waterloo. It has special rooms for storing artifacts, two labs for preserving old items, a studio for designing exhibits, and a workshop for building them. It also has a library and archives for research.

History of the Museum

The idea for a pioneer village in Waterloo County came about in the 1950s.

Early Years (1950s)

• In 1952, Dr. A.E. Dusty Broome visited a museum in the Netherlands and thought a similar one would be great for Waterloo County.
• By 1953, the Waterloo Historical Society strongly supported the idea.
• Land was bought in 1956 next to Homer Watson Memorial Park.
• On June 19, 1957, Doon Pioneer Village officially opened with a special barn raising event. More land was bought that same month.

Growth and Changes (1960s-1980s)

• The main museum building opened in 1960.
• More buildings were moved to the site, like the Freeport Church in 1962.
• Live demonstrations, such as blacksmithing, started in 1963.
• A CPR train engine (number 894) was moved to the village in 1964.
• In 1967, a recreated Waterloo Township Hall opened to celebrate Canada's 100th birthday.
• The village expanded its live exhibits in 1968, adding weaving and spinning.
• In 1983, the Regional Municipality of Waterloo took over running the village.
• In 1985, the village's name changed to Doon Heritage Crossroads. Its focus shifted to showing life in rural Waterloo Region in 1914.

Modern Era (1990s-Today)

• In 1990, the village started a livestock program with horses, cattle, and sheep. A heritage garden program also began.
• The Waterloo Regional Curatorial Centre officially opened in November 1995.
• In 2000, the Grand Trunk Railway Petersburg station was restored.
• A new blacksmith shop was built in 2004, based on an old building from Conestogo, Ontario.
• In 2007, Doon Heritage Crossroads celebrated its 50th anniversary.
• Construction began on the new Waterloo Region History Museum in 2008.
• In 2009, the village's name changed again to Doon Heritage Village.
• The Waterloo Region Museum opened in 2010, becoming the main entrance to the village.
• In 2011, the museum's main exhibit, "What Makes Us Who We Are?", officially opened. The Waterloo Region Hall of Fame also moved into the new museum building.
• Throughout the 2010s, the museum hosted many interesting traveling exhibits, covering topics from dinosaurs to space travel.
• In 2018, the museum was renamed the Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum.
• In 2020, an exhibit about Nelson Mandela's struggle for freedom was featured.

Museum Collections

The Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum has a huge collection of items. These items support the 1914 living history village and also cover the entire history of the Waterloo Region, from ancient times to today. The main collection has over 50,000 artifacts and historical documents. There are also hundreds of thousands of archaeological items found across the region. All these research collections are stored safely at the Waterloo Region Curatorial Centre, which is on the museum's property.

Museum Connections

The Ken Seiling Waterloo Region Museum is connected with many important organizations. These include the Canadian Museums Association (CMA), the Canadian Heritage Information Network (CHIN), and the Virtual Museum of Canada. It's also linked to the Ontario Museum Association (OMA), the Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums (ALHFAM), and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). These connections help the museum share knowledge and work with other museums.

See also

• Open-air museum
• Museum