Ontario Agricultural Museum

• Ontario Agricultural Museum

In 1967 the Ontario provincial government passed the Ontario Agricultural Museum Act. In 1973 the Ontario Agricultural Museum project was initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food and the ministry began to collect artifacts and develop plans for the museum site which had been chosen in Milton in Halton County. Initial work on the site began in 1974 and the first building on the site was errected in 1975. Over the proceeding years other buildings were constructed and a number of historic buildings were relocated to the site. The museum was open on an unofficial basis beginning in the summers of 1977 and 1978. On June 8, 1979 the museum was officially opened. In June of 1980 the Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame was added to the museum.

The Ontario Agricultural Museum was part of several divisions throughout the course of its history: Agricultural Education, Research and Special Services Division (1975-1982), Education and Research Division (1982-1993), Education, Research and Laboratories Division (1993), Rural Development Division (1993-1997). Prior to 1975 the museum was not assigned to a specific division within the administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food.

On November 29, 1995 the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced its intention to close the Ontario Agricultural Museum in Milton effective March 31, 1997. The museum remained open on a limited basis for the 1996 season with reduced staff and a reduction in its operating budget. In April of 1997 the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs divested the operation of the Ontario Agricultural Museum to Country Heritage Experiences Inc., a not-for-profit corporation. The museum closed in 1998 after the Country Heritage Experience Inc. experienced financial difficulties. The museum is now run by a private enterprise and is known as the Farm Museum.

The Ontario Agricultural Museum housed and displayed tools, implements and artifacts associated with the evolution of agriculture in Ontario. The museum also maintained a research facility including a library and archives.

The Ontario Agricultural Museum Act, Statutes of Ontario, 1967.

RAD: Rules for Archival Description, 2nd edn (2008)

2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

Annual Reports of the Department of Agriculture and Food, 1966-1972.

Annual Reports of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, 1972-1994.

Annual Reports of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, 1994-1997.

Ontario Historical Society Bulletin, No. 101, Jan/Feb 1996.

KWIC Index to Governement Services, 1988.

Archivist(s):
Lisa Singer