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Stettler Town & Country Museum almost back to full hours

Some buildings are closed due to ongoing hail damage repairs
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The Stettler Town & Country Museum is up and running, although no events are planned for Canada Day this year.

“Normally we open on May 1st, but this year we weren’t able to open until June 1st,” said Museum Manager Karen Wahlund. “We are now back up to almost full hours - 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week,” she said.

But not all of the buildings are open because of ongoing repairs due to (last year’s ) hail damage, she said. “We are still recouping from that.”

“We are, I would say, two-thirds of the way rebuilt,” she said.

The courthouse building, which was damaged most severely, will be the final one to be repaired.

These days, otherwise, it’s pretty much business as usual as staff showcase the richness of Stettler and area’s past.

“We do have some safety aspects now put into place,” she said, referring to regulations regarding COVID-19 prevention. “We have it set up so there is only one group in a building at a time,” she said. “Other than that, it’s pretty much back to normal. Although unfortunately, there are no events (planned) so July 1st is cancelled.

The Museum will actually be closed on Canada Day as well.

Meanwhile, Museum staff will be collaborating with other organizations in town to help host a few events over the coming months.

“We will be working alongside the Library to do a couple of events that they have come up with,” explained Wahlund, referring to a scavenger hunt that is in the works and an Amazing Race-type of event.

“Usually we have summer staff in May. We actually just did interviews after getting some funding, so at least we will have them for July and August,” she said.

“Since June 1st, we are averaging one to maybe two groups per day. Normally at this time of year, there are school classes coming for their year-end as well,” she said. “We are getting people from Calgary, Edmonton, Cochrane,” she said, referring to some of the examples of places visitors are from.

And although the old courthouse, which is packed with all kinds of displays and fascinating local memorabilia, is closed for now, it should be open in the next few weeks. In the meantime, there are some 20 other historic buildings on the expansive site to check out.

For more information about the Stettler Town & Country Museum, find them on Facebook at ‘Stettler Town and Country Museum’.



Mark Weber

About the Author: Mark Weber

I've been a part of the Black Press Media family for about a dozen years now, with stints at the Red Deer Express, the Stettler Independent, and now the Lacombe Express.
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