Manitoba Museum gets $10M from province for renewal

The Manitoba Museum is embarking on its largest-ever renewal and received a big boost Thursday with a $10-million donation from the province.

The museum plans upgrades to several galleries, including the grasslands, Nonsuch and the orientation area. The latter is the iconic diorama at the entrance, featuring Métis hunters on horseback chasing a herd of wild-eyed bison.

The museum also wants to create space to display more significant artifacts, such as the internationally renowned Hudson's Bay Company collection, and is constructing a new Winnipeg gallery to tell more of the city's stories.

"The Manitoba Museum is a cherished cultural asset that tells the story of our shared history, and we support plans to improve and expand their wonderful facility," Premier Greg Selinger said on Thursday.

He announced the government funding while standing on the deck of the Nonsuch, a full-size replica of the ship that sailed into Hudson Bay in the 17th century. The replica was itself a working ship that sailed the Atlantic as part of the Hudson's Bay Company's 300th anniversary celebrations in 1970.

"We are excited to support the largest renewal in the history of the museum to ensure that it continues to be a source of pride and family fun for generations to come," Selinger said.

The $16-million renewal project will require three years to develop and install, with additional funding expected to come from a private-sector capital campaign and other levels of government.

The project will begin in mid-2016 with the official opening planned for 2020 to coincide with Manitoba's 150th celebration, Hudson's Bay Company 350th anniversary and the Manitoba Museum's 50th anniversary.