TheMuseum (stylized THEMUSEUM, formerly the Waterloo Regional Children's Museum until 2010) is an art and technology museum in Kitchener, Ontario. It opened to the public in September 2003.[1] As of 2026, the current president of the museum is Deborah MacLatchy.[2]
 | |
 | |
| Established | 2003 |
|---|---|
| Location | 10 King Street West Kitchener, Ontario |
| Coordinates | 43°27′00″N 80°29′21″W / 43.45000°N 80.48917°W |
| Type | Art and technology museum |
| President | Deborah MacLatchy |
| Website | www |
History
editThe building that houses TheMuseum was historically Goudie's Department Store, one of western Ontarios first, and eventually largest department stores at the time, owned by former city council member Arthur Russell Goudie since 1925. The deparment store would close in 1988.[3][4]
Since the closing of its former storefront, the building would swap ownership multiple times before reopening as the Waterloo Regional Children's Museum in 2003 after eight years of planning and fundraising. Rebranding as THEMUSEUM in 2010.[1]
Funding and Finances
editOn the 28th of May 2018, the BMO Bank of Montreal building adjacent to the museum offered to sell its building to TheMuseum allowing an expansion of approximatley 40,000 square feet, with the bank pledging to donate CA$1,000,000 to offset renovation costs.[5][6]
In 2024, museum CEO David Marskell reported that the museum was struggling with financial instability, with 75% of the museums operating costs being made through self-generated revenue. In May of the same year, the museum successfully appealed to the Kitchener City Council for a one-time grant of CA$300,000 in emergency funding to avoid the museums closure.[7] But was unsuccessful in a second bid for an additional CA$150,000.[8]
Exhibits and Programs
editTheMuseum operates a range of multiple permanent interactive exhibits and rotating temporary exhibits designed for all ages. It provides both guided programming and open, self-directed activities, as well as outreach programs for schools in the surrounding area.
Since 2008, TheMuseum has also run day-camp programs for children..[2]
Affiliations
editTheMuseum is affiliated with: CMA, CHIN, and Virtual Museum of Canada.
TheMuseum is host to TriCon, a semi-recurring multi-day anime, comic book, and sci-fi convention.[9][10]
References
edit- 1 2 "Director of Themuseum happy with its upswing". The Record. 7 December 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
- 1 2 "Home". THEMUSEUM. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ MacDonald, Shyenne (2018-08-01). "If Streets Could Talk: Goudies Lane – The Community Edition". Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ Kitchener, C. T. V. (2015-08-07). "Decades-old safe opened during renovations on former Goudies store". CTVNews. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ 10am (2018-05-28). "BMO donates $1M and offers to sell building to Themuseum". THEMUSEUM. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Pavia, Joe (May 29, 2018). "THEMUSEUM in downtown Kitchener to expand into bank next door". CBC. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ Nielsen, Kevin (May 14, 2024). "TheMuseum gets $300K from Kitchener to remain open, develop new funding plan | Globalnews.ca". CJOY. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ Bacon, Ashley (2024-06-05). "THEMUSEUM requests more funding, while regional council looks to cut 2025 property tax increase". CTVNews. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ "TriCon 2026 Information". SciFiCons.com. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
- ↑ Bueckert, Kate (May 1, 2026). "Kate's 5 fun things to do in and around Waterloo region: May 1 to 3 | CBC News". CBC. Archived from the original on 2026-05-02. Retrieved 2026-05-02.
