Talks on a wide range of topics are held on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Thunder Bay Museum from September to March.
Light refreshments are served after the speaker’s presentation.
Recordings of many lectures are available on the Thunder Bay Museum YouTube channel. Alternatively, links to specific videos can be found in the Past Lecture Topics section.
Please note that members of The Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society receive advance notice of all lectures.
Upcoming Lectures:
- 22 September 2026 – 7:30 PM – Ryan Mackett – Conservation in the Lakehead – A History of the LRCA
- 27 October 2026 – 7:30 PM – Betty Carpick & Julie Cosgove – A Record of Time: Chronicling McVicar Creek Through Art
- 24 November 2026 – 7:30 PM – Myles Cummins – Claude Garton/Herbarium History (Official title TBA)
- 26 January 2026 – 7:30 PM – Kelsey Pennanen – Local Archaeology Work
- 23 February 2026 – 7:30 PM – Todd Miller – From Voyageurs to Viking: A Brief Look at Transportation on the Great Lakes
- 23 March 2027 – 8:00 PM – Dr. Brandon Cordeiro – Hydro-Electricity In The Thunder Bay Region
The 2025-2026 Thunder Bay Museum lecture series was sponsored by:
Past Lecture Topics
Just a few of the topics covered in the past include:
- February 24, 2026 – Lakehead University, History Graduate Students – Josh Wetendorf and Maya Oversby
- January 27, 2026 – Silver Islet Silver Mine – Joe Piwoschuk
- November 25, 2025 – Early CPR Elevators – Bill Reist
- October 28, 2025 – United Church of Canada – Dr. Ernie Epp
- September 23, 2025 – Jingle Dress – Cheryl Suggashie
- March 25, 2025 – Bryan Wyatt – The Rise and Fall of Thunder Bay’s Two Professional Sports Franchises in the 1990’s
- February 26, 2025 – Lakehead University Graduate Students – Rachel Kakegamic & Steve Jobbitt
- November 26, 2024 – Gerard Boyer – The Early French History of Thunder Bay 1660-1759
- October 22, 2024 – Elder Ma-Nee Chacaby – Two Spirit & Pride movement
- September 24, 2024 – Elder Sheila DeCorte – Water Walks
- February 27, 2024 – Allan Campbell – Draught Horses in the Logging Industry of Northern Ontario
- January 23, 2024 – Lakehead University, History Graduate Students – Taylor Mae Laughton, Aja Mayer and Bronwyn Chesterfield
- November 28, 2023 – Kelly Saxberg – A Tale of Two Qallunaat
- October 24, 2023 – Bev Soloway – The Fur Traders’ Table: A ‘Bill of Fare’ from 18th Century Rupert’s Land
- September 26, 2023 – Stephanie Pesheau – Women in Technology
- May 9, 2023 – Dr. Peter Raffo – Naming the new city at The Lakehead
- March 28, 2023 – Nancy Angus – Places and Faces: Gathering Older Adults’ Stories of Connecting, Belonging, Placemaking in Thunder Bay
- February 28, 2023 – Lakehead University Graduate Students – Christine Green and Haileigh Riddell
- November 22, 2022 – Capt George Romick – POW Art Exhibit
- October 25, 2022 – Eladia Smoke – Indigenous Architecture
- September 27, 2022 – Elder Paul Ritchie – Residential Schools
- March 22, 2022: Nick Duplessis – Social Democratic Politics at the Lakehead 1943-1963
- February 22, 2022: Presented by graduate students from Lakehead University
- January 25, 2022: Dr. Brian McLaren – Travelling West and East from Lake Superior to Lake of the Woods
- November 23, 2021: Bill Reist – Bawlf and Stewart Grain Elevators Construction
- October 26, 2021: Beth Hanna – Ontario Heritage Trust
- September 2021: Book Launch – Becoming Canadian: Memories of an Italian Immigrant, John Potestio
- March 2021: Iain Angus: 100th Anniversary of Chippewa Park
- February 2021: The Caribbean African Multicultural Association of Thunder Bay (CAMAT) Presents Black Business: An Evening with Local Black Women that are leaders in Business.
- January 2021: Lakehead University Graduate Students
- November 2020: Cathy Woodbeck : Thunder Bay Multicultural Association
- October 2020: Ted Glenn: “Embedded: The incredible story of two journalists, a burlesque star and the expedition to oust Louis Riel.”
- Sept 2020: Peter Raffo: “Saul Laskin, Man and Politician”
- Feb 2020: John Mason: “Northwestern Ontario: A Mining Powerhouse”
- Jan 2020: Greg Wright: “Timbers, Textiles, Traditions: The Story of North House Folk School”
- Nov 2019: Students session: Mary Francis Maarup, Sarah Somerville, Jennifer Blenkarn
- Oct 2019: David Kemp: “No 2 Elementary Flying Training School – Fort William’s contribution to the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan”
- Sept 2019: Krista McCracken: “Reclaiming Place: Community History at the Shingwauk Residential School Site”
- Special May 2019: Mark Kuhlberg: “Where Have All the Abitibis Gone – Comparing the History of Pulp and Paper in Canada and Finland”
- Mar 2019: Nathan Hatton, on injuries in sports.
- Feb 2019: John Stephenson, on the construction and architecture of grain elevators.
- Jan 2019: Student session: Nick Duplessis, Jasmine Hyslop, Holly Fleming, Hudson Kunicky
- Nov 2018: Sean Smith: “This treaty has been wrinkled for more than 100 years” (Treaty 9 at Archives of Ontario)
- Oct 2018: Douglas Hunter: Beardmore – The Viking Hoax that Rewrote History
- Sept 2018: Michael Moir: James Fraser Paige and the Rise of the Port Arthur Shipbuilding Company
