The Conception Bay Museum is located at 1 Water Street East, inside the old Customs House. Originally built in 1870, the present-day brick-and-stone structure replaced the previous customs office—a wooden, thatch-roofed building. Nearby, the pirate Peter Easton constructed fortifications at Capelin Cove, circa 1612.
George Tapp is credited as the architect of the Customs House, having been sent to Harbour Grace to build such a stone structure in the 1860s. Reports say that the Gordon family lived upstairs immediately after its completion and are believed to be its first inhabitants. Any boats coming in and out of the harbour would be subject to tariffs and checks from the customs officer. The officer would work and live inside the building with his wife and children. The servants’ quarters was located on the third floor. (The old servants’ staircase can be seen in the ‘Sewing Room,’ located adjacent to the Museum’s ‘Aviation Room.’) After brief iterations as a medical clinic and town hall, the Customs House was converted to a museum in the 1970s by Jerome Lee, Pamela (Barton) Lee, and Martin “Mac” Lee. The Customs House is a designated Municipal Heritage Site.
Today, the Museum offers a unique heritage and cultural experience for those interested in the history of Conception Bay, Newfoundland. Exhibits currently at the Museum are:
• an ‘Aviation Room,’ where visitors can learn about Harbour Grace’s important role in transatlantic aviation (including the story of the world’s most well-known female pilot, Amelia Earhart!);
• a ‘Pirate Room & Fishing Room,’ which contains storyboards relating to Peter Easton’s adventures in Newfoundland and on the Atlantic and a presentation the history of mercantile fishing and shipbuilding in the region;
• a ‘World War Exhibit‘ (with regimental uniforms), dedicated to the island’s military and naval legacy; and
• a ‘Period Setting Room,’ filled with traditional late-nineteenth-century artifacts.
Guests receive guided tours through each room, with presentations specially catered depending on age level, general comprehension, and relevance. Tours run roughly forty-five minutes.
In the park, tourists will find two Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC) plaques commemorating Rev. Laurence Coughlan, ideological founder of Methodism in Newfoundland, and Harbour Grace’s history of transatlantic aviation. (These plaques were recently refurbished in 2017 and 2018, respectively.) A Newfoundland & Labrador Medical Association (NLMA) plaque remembers Sir Thomas Roddick, the Canadian surgeon, medical administrator, and politician. (This plaque was refurbished in 2018.) Our patio also offers an exceptional view of the bay and Harbour Grace Islands. In summer 2019, we restored the steps leading to Colston’s Cove, the historic site where John Guy and his crew landed salt in October 1612. The steps and beach are accessible to visitors in the spring, summer and fall months.
In the summer months, the flags of prominent Harbour Grace merchant firms and the solid black pirate flag of Peter Easton are flown from poles next to the building. (The skull-and-crossbones flag was adopted by later pirates.)
Over the summer, depending on scheduling and staffing, guided tours through the Heritage District of Harbour Grace are on offer. This tour covers the history of Peter Easton; the Garrison House; the murder of Robert Crocker Bray; Ridley Hall & Office; John Munn and the mercantile fishery; the mysterious ‘Pirate’s Grave’ on Bennetts Lane; John Shannon Munn and the little-known story of cricket in the town; the infamous ‘Harbour Grace Affray’ of 1883; the Aero Tennis Club; St. Paul’s Anglican Church; Immaculate Conception Cathedral; the old Courthouse; and much more.
As well, the Museum offers a guided hike, “Travel the Trail,” through Bears Cove, Harbour Grace, with author Patrick J. Collins. This guided hike, of moderate difficulty, details the murders of Robert Crocker Bray, Jane and Garrett Sears, and Elfreda Pike, and the history of naval communications in Harbour Grace. Look out for upcoming dates here and on the Museum’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
Our popular Haunted Harbour Grace event takes place in the fall during the Halloween season.
The Conception Bay Museum is now open every day for the 2021 season with COVID-19 restrictions in place. Hours are 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Inquiries:
Danita Power, Coordinator-Curator
(709) 596-5456 (during Museum hours)
conceptionbaymuseum@outlook.com
-
- Our fountain and museum
-
- “Wings Over the Atlantic”
-
- Transatlantic Flights, National Historic Event
-
- National Exhibition Centre plaque
-
- Peter Easton plaque
-
- Sir Thomas Roddick plaque
-
- View from the deck
-
- Aviation Room
-
- Aviation Room
-
- Munn family portraits
-
- Period Room
-
- Period Room
-
- Poet Heidi Greco reads from her new collection, “Flightpaths”
-
- Lecture by Dr. Lisa M. Daly, aviation archaeologist
-
- Travel the Trail event
-
- Travel the Trail event
-
- Author Patrick Collins reads from his novel “Murder at Mosquito Cove”
Location:
GPS Coordinates: 47.693567, -53.211461
Street Address: 1 Water St E, Harbour Grace, NL
Further Inquiries:
Patrick J. Collins, Board Chair
pjcollins@eastlink.ca
Phone: (709) 596-2172
Connect on Social Media:
Website: conceptionbaymuseum.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/conceptionbaymuseum
Instagram: www.instagram.com/conceptionbaymuseum
Twitter: www.twitter.com/cbmuseum1870
Board of Directors (2019-20):
Patrick J. Collins (Chair), Brenda Hunt-Stevenson (Vice-Chair), Ernie Pynn (Treasurer), Matthew G. McCarthy (Communications Officer), David Bishop (Secretary); Joy French-Coleman, Anne Gosse, Jane Lynch, Jerome McCarthy, Judy McCarthy, Tony McCarthy, Heather Pumphrey, Francis M. Sullivan.