Carmichael-Stewart House Museum

06/02/2026

The Pictou County History Museum is now open for the season!

05/23/2026

Reminder to join us Saturday, May 30th, from 2:00PM - 4:00PM to celebrate Gaelic Awareness Month. Pictou Bee Press will be here to discuss their new Gaelic children's book - An Cù Agam Tank and we'll have a talk about Na Sìthichean - the fairies!

05/20/2026

An enthusiastic group of volunteers did an amazing job cleaning up the gardens for summer. Thank you to everyone who came and spent their Saturday with us!

05/09/2026

Join us Saturday, May 30th, from 2:00PM - 4:00 PM to celebrate Gaelic Awareness Month with Pictou Bee Press as they discuss their new Gaelic children's book - An Cù Agam Tank. Dr. Michael Linkletter, the translator, and Sophie Lawrence, the illustrator, will also be there. Karen Mergronigle, illustrator of their second Gaelic book - A' cur fáilt air na Nàbaidhean Ùra (Meeting the New Neighbours) - will also be joining the. There will also be a talk about Na Sìthichean - the fairies.

05/07/2026

Our own curator, Dr. James Lees, will be presenting and offering a workshop on paleography at the Pictou County Roots Society. Don't miss this fascinating event!

Join us at the New Glasgow library this upcoming Wednesday (May 13) at 2 pm for a talk and workshop on Paleography - the study of old handwriting.

This presentation will be led by James Lees, who holds a PhD in history from Oxford University. In the first part of the presentation, James will give an overview of historic handwriting, and for the second part James will conduct a workshop to help people read different handwriting samples (with a focus on the 1700s, the 1800s, and the early 20th century).

Everyone is encouraged to bring examples of handwriting that they would like James to examine (and with careful examination, decipher). This will be a fascinating event!
All are welcome to attend.

04/19/2026

We now have funding confirmed for three summer positions. If you or someone you know is interested, please send in an application!

Position Title: Season Museum Staff Member
Position Type: Seasonal (35 hours per week for 10 – 12 weeks)
Wage: $17.00 / Hour
Closing Date: 30 April 2026

Overview:
The Pictou County Historical Society is a registered charity, incorporated in 1964 with the goal of preserving the history of Pictou County through education and conservation. As part of its mandate, the PCHS operates the Pictou County History Museum, Pictou County’s de facto history museum. With a collection of thousands of artifacts from the eighteenth to twentieth centuries, the museum welcomes hundreds of visitors annually. The PCHS hires multiple seasonal staff members each year – they are integral to the operation of the museum, and the programming of the PCHS in the community. The availability of these positions is pending the receipt of government funding.

Key Responsibilities:
Seasonal staff will work under the direct supervision of the Museum Committee of the Pictou County Historical Society and will be required to perform a variety of duties. These include:

- Leading museum tours and offering interpretation of exhibits / collections
- Opening / closing the museum
- Assisting with artifact and exhibit curation
- Planning and coordinating events
- Conducting historical research
- Data entry and cataloguing
- Grounds maintenance (lawn and garden care)
- Building maintenance (cleaning)
- Clerical and other miscellaneous duties
- Reading and following all museum policies and procedures
- Outreach to local media / posting to website and social media accounts
- Completing Association of Nova Scotia Museum training as required
- Operation of ‘Collective Access’ museum database software
- Working collaboratively with museum committee to complete projects and tasks

Given the short term of employment, seasonal staff are expected to quickly familiarise themselves with the museum collection and the general history of Pictou County – to that end, the Museum Curator will provide orientation and suggested reading lists.

Essential Qualifications:
- Interest in or knowledge of local history, geography, and culture or willingness to learn
- Comfort with public speaking and experience in giving presentations / interpersonal skills
- Enjoy engaging with people from various backgrounds, cultures, and age groups
- Must be fluent in English, with strong verbal and written communication
- Excellent organizational and problem-solving skills, with keen sense of responsibility
- Ability to work both independently and as part of a team
- Strong computer literacy skills (e.g. Microsoft Office, social media)
- Ability to meet the physical demands of the job – mowing grass, climbing stairs, etc.

Desirable Qualifications:
- An educational background in history, archaeology, anthropology, or museum studies
- Knowledge or experience of a museum environment or heritage research
- Experience working with artifacts and museum databases
- Fluency in French

Working Conditions:
The successful applicant will be expected to work during the open hours of the museum – these are usually between 9:00AM - 4:30PM although they may be altered for special events and programming. The museum is open from Monday to Saturday – thus, applicants must be willing to work at least every second Saturday. On occasion, staff may be asked to work off-site for the purposes of research, programming, or other such work as required by the museum committee. Routine duties include tasks requiring light to moderate physical exertion and the use of stairs.

Requirements:
Applicants must be able to prove their eligibility for either:
1.) The Nova Scotia SKILL Initiative - Applicants must be a post-secondary college or university student studying in the Fall of 2026 following the summer work term, and be a permanent resident of Nova Scotia. Successful candidates must be willing to work flexible hours, as required, and be available to start in June until the end of August.
OR
2.) The Summer Canada Jobs program - Applicants must be between the ages of 15 and 30. Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Nova Scotia, or person granted refugee status, have a valid Social Insurance Number and be legally entitled to work in Canada. The applicant must be willing to work flexible hours, as required, and be available to start in June until the end of August 2026.

How to apply:
Please submit a cover letter and a resume by email to [email protected] with “JOB APPLICATION” as the subject line, or by mail to: Pictou County Historical Society, 86 Temperance Street, New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Canada, B2H 3A7. Please include the names of two references.

03/21/2026

Position Title: Season Museum Staff Member
Position Type: Seasonal (35 hours per week for 10 – 12 weeks)
Wage: $17.00 / Hour
Closing Date: 30 April 2026

Overview:
The Pictou County Historical Society is a registered charity, incorporated in 1964 with the goal of preserving the history of Pictou County through education and conservation. As part of its mandate, the PCHS operates the Pictou County History Museum, Pictou County’s de facto history museum. With a collection of thousands of artifacts from the eighteenth to twentieth centuries, the museum welcomes hundreds of visitors annually. The PCHS hires multiple seasonal staff members each year – they are integral to the operation of the museum, and the programming of the PCHS in the community. The availability of these positions is pending the receipt of government funding.

Key Responsibilities:
Seasonal staff will work under the direct supervision of the Museum Committee of the Pictou County Historical Society and will be required to perform a variety of duties. These include:

- Leading museum tours and offering interpretation of exhibits / collections
- Opening / closing the museum
- Assisting with artifact and exhibit curation
- Planning and coordinating events
- Conducting historical research
- Data entry and cataloguing
- Grounds maintenance (lawn and garden care)
- Building maintenance (cleaning)
- Clerical and other miscellaneous duties
- Reading and following all museum policies and procedures
- Outreach to local media / posting to website and social media accounts
- Completing Association of Nova Scotia Museum training as required
- Operation of ‘Collective Access’ museum database software
- Working collaboratively with museum committee to complete projects and tasks

Given the short term of employment, seasonal staff are expected to quickly familiarise themselves with the museum collection and the general history of Pictou County – to that end, the Museum Curator will provide orientation and suggested reading lists.

Essential Qualifications:
- Interest in or knowledge of local history, geography, and culture or willingness to learn
- Comfort with public speaking and experience in giving presentations / interpersonal skills
- Enjoy engaging with people from various backgrounds, cultures, and age groups
- Must be fluent in English, with strong verbal and written communication
- Excellent organizational and problem-solving skills, with keen sense of responsibility
- Ability to work both independently and as part of a team
- Strong computer literacy skills (e.g. Microsoft Office, social media)
- Ability to meet the physical demands of the job – mowing grass, climbing stairs, etc.

Desirable Qualifications:
- An educational background in history, archaeology, anthropology, or museum studies
- Knowledge or experience of a museum environment or heritage research
- Experience working with artifacts and museum databases
- Fluency in French

Working Conditions:
The successful applicant will be expected to work during the open hours of the museum – these are usually between 9:00AM - 4:30PM although they may be altered for special events and programming. The museum is open from Monday to Saturday – thus, applicants must be willing to work at least every second Saturday. On occasion, staff may be asked to work off-site for the purposes of research, programming, or other such work as required by the museum committee. Routine duties include tasks requiring light to moderate physical exertion and the use of stairs.

Requirements:
Applicants must be able to prove their eligibility for either:

1.) The Nova Scotia SKILL Initiative - Applicants must be a post-secondary college or university student studying in the Fall of 2026 following the summer work term, and be a permanent resident of Nova Scotia. Successful candidates must be willing to work flexible hours, as required, and be available to start in June until the end of August.

OR

2.) The Summer Canada Jobs program - Applicants must be between the ages of 15 and 30. Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Nova Scotia, or person granted refugee status, have a valid Social Insurance Number and be legally entitled to work in Canada. The applicant must be willing to work flexible hours, as required, and be available to start in June until the end of August 2026.

How to apply:
Please submit a cover letter and a resume by email to [email protected] with “JOB APPLICATION” as the subject line, or by mail to: Pictou County Historical Society, 86 Temperance Street, New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, Canada, B2H 3A7. Please include the names of two references.

03/20/2026

PCHS Update Regarding Provincial Budget Cuts

In the days since the tabling of the provincial budget, PCHS leadership has been working to advocate against budget cuts that impact our museum and the heritage sector.

In addition to writing letters to our three local MLAs and the Minister for Communities, Culture, Tourism, and Heritage, we have been engaging in broader outreach – at Seedy Saturday, on February 28th, our members distributed flyers outlining the devastating impacts of these cuts. Our Vice President, Dr. James Lees, also gave an interview to the Pictou Advocate which was published on March 4th. Some of our members also attended a rally outside the constituency office of Premier Tim Houston organised by ArtNS on March 4th, part of a province-wide protest that saw thousands of attendees in Halifax outside the legislature.

On Monday morning (March 16th), we met with Pictou Centre MLA Danny MacGillivray to raise our concerns with the budget and highlight the importance of investing in museums and heritage organisations. Mr. MacGillivray has understandably had a hectic schedule recently and appreciate his engagement with us.

Points we raised during our meeting included the degree to which CCTH grants are efficiently spent by virtue of volunteer hours invested in funded projects, the outsized impact cuts to museums and the heritage sector will have on local communities, and specific ways the government could reallocate spending in the budget. We also highlighted how Nova Scotia’s history and heritage is a uniquely rich resource and a proven economic driver – one the government should be strategically investing in. Finally, we emphasized the importance of pre-emptive consultation with communities and stakeholders during funding allocation decisions, processes that appear to have been mostly or wholly absent in preparation for the 2026-2027 budget.

Epitomizing that latter point, after our meeting with Mr. MacGillivray, we were disheartened to learn that the Association of Nova Scotia Museums was “informed that there will be no meetings with the Minister until after the legislature sits and the proposed budget passes. This goes for all organizations in the arts, culture and heritage sectors.” ANSM will continue to advocate for a moratorium on museum closures and a restoration of funding. We also encourage our members to engage in this important advocacy work, applying pressure to elected officials and forcing them to engage with the concerns of the electorate.

The budget has not yet passed and the legislature is currently on March break – it will return on March 23rd. In the meanwhile, MLAs are in their constituencies, and this is an excellent opportunity to make your voice heard. Write letters, drop into constituency offices to meet with your elected representative, and share posts like these on social media. This government has the full ability to change its budget and reverse these cuts and closures – letting them know how you feel is a key part of the democratic process.

Please like and share this post. We will continue to provide updates on the budget as they become available and will continue in our advocacy.

- The Board of Directors of the Pictou County Historical Society

02/26/2026

The leadership of the Pictou County Historical Society was disturbed yesterday to learn that, in addition to the three initial museums announced to be closing permanently last week, the province will now be closing a total of twelve Nova Scotia Museum sites.

These include the Cossit House, Lawrence House, Perkins House, Prescott House, Ross-Thomson House, Shand House, Barrington Woolen Mill, Wile Carding Mill, Fisherman’s Life Museum and North Hills Museum – and in our local area, the Sutherland Steam Mill and McCulloch House.

We have also been informed that our operating grant from the province, the Community Museum Assistance Program, has been cut by 20%.

These austerity measures represent the single biggest threat to the preservation of our heritage in a generation, and they are not something that can be undone in the future – a museum is more than the sum of its parts, and once collections are dispersed, buildings repurposed and experienced staff laid off, these historic sites will be irreparably broken.

Meanwhile, a 20% cut to our operating grant means that more effort and resources will need to go towards funding the day-to-day operations of the Pictou County History Museum, rather than investing in programming, collections care, and museum growth.

The closure of these museums and the reduction of the CMAP grant is an affront to the cultural patrimony of every Nova Scotian – it will have a direct and visible effect on every museumgoer in the province.

As the PCHS leadership, while we appreciate the difficult financial position the government now finds itself in, we believe that the simple closure of these museums is unacceptable. Solutions exist whereby the government can meet its fiscal goals while these crucial institutions continue to operate as museums, but these require creative thinking, collaboration, and political willpower – processes more difficult than cuts and closures. We must demand that in spite of difficult circumstances, our leaders do the hard work to make sure our past has a future in this province.

We encourage everyone to write to their local MLA, and the Minister of Communities, Culture, Tourism, and Heritage expressing their concerns about these measures. The PCHS board has already sent its own letter to all three Pictou County MLAs and the Minister, the Hon. Dave Ritcey. You may find their contact information, and a link to the official announcement from the Nova Scotia Museum, below.

If you are wondering how else you can help our museum during this difficult time, there are several concrete steps you can take. First, if you aren’t already a member of the PCHS, we would encourage you to join. Second, as we are volunteer-run, contributions of time and labour are as important to us as donations, so if you would like to get involved, please get in touch. Third, be sure to spread this message with your friends and family – we can more effectively apply pressure to the government if we have strength in numbers. Finally – we are currently creating a video series that explains the importance of investing in community museums and the value they create – if you would be interested in appearing in this video, or if you have a testimonial to share, please to reach out.

___________________________________________________

Tim Houston, MLA, Pictou East
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 902-695-3582
Address: 2042-2 Queen Street, Westville, NS, B0K 2A0

Danny MacGillivray, MLA, Pictou Centre
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 902-752-3646
Address: 342 Stewart Street, New Glasgow, NS, B2H 2R7

Marco MacLeod, MLA, Pictou West
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 902-485-8959
Address: 37 Water Street, P.O. Box 310, Pictou NS, B0K 1H0

The Hon. Dave Ritcey, Minister of Communities, Culture, Tourism, and Heritage
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 902-424-4889
Address: 1741 Brunswick Street, 3rd Floor, P.O. Box 456, STN Central, Halifax, NS, B2J 2R5

Official Announcement from NSM: https://museum.novascotia.ca/blog/statement-department-communities-culture-tourism-and-heritage?fbclid=IwY2xjawQLz35leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeTvydEn7nqo9rHFsPx794VclDX-SipkayDrS6nTF8FCechFSXze8t9OvNcOw_aem_iA0xOec2II0zB0HnYcSX_w

02/16/2026

Come and hear readings of historic letters from Nova Scotia and elsewhere in the world as The Pictou County Historical Society and the Barney's River Station School Museum present Written in Time. Join us on February 21st, from 1:30-3:00 at the Museum of Industry.