Northern Ontario Railroad Museum & Heritage Centre

New Exhibits as Railroad Museum Officially Opens - Thanks to OTF Grant

Capreol – The Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre (NORMHC) officially open doors to the historical sight today, thanks to a $55,000 grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF). France Gélinas, MPP for Nickel Belt and OTF representative Jean Warwick Conroy were joined by Nickel Belt MP Raymond Bonin to take part in the opening ceremony and get a first hand glimpse of the museum’s collection.

“The Capreol Museum does fantastic work in encouraging Sudburians to appreciate our shared history,” said MPP Gélinas. “I’m thrilled to see the Ontario Trillium Foundation recognize and support the value of this important heritage centre in our community.”

“My partnership with the Capreol Museum over the past years has been extremely gratifying,” said MP Bonin. “Their accomplishments are remarkable and envied throughout the riding. “I look forward to continuing to work with the museum to promote and enrich our area and our heritage.”

The OTF grant was used to provide the railroad heritage centre with additional exhibits. The expansion of the exhibits will help attract more visitors to the Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage centre and make it the destination place in Capreol.

“2008 will be the Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre’s most successful season,” said NORMHC president Stu Thomas. “Thanks to a very hard working group of volunteers, a grant from OTF and funding from the federal and provincial governments for summer students, we will be able to proudly display our greatly expanded Prescott Park. I would also like to acknowledge the contributions made by CN Rail and Vale INCO.”

The Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre was established as a not-for-profit in 1993. Its mandate is to provide a unique educational and tourist attraction that displays and preserves the railroading past and heritage of Northern Ontario. Current railroad exhibits include a 1944 steam engine, a 1912 Pullman passenger car that has been redesigned to depict a school on wheels, an 1899 caboose, 1912 crossing signals, a CNR handcar and velocipede. In the museum house there are displays of the local history of Capreol and area and the importance of the railroad to the local lumber and mining industry.

The Ontario Trillium Foundation is an agency of the Government of Ontario. For over 25 years, the Foundation has supported the growth and vitality of communities across the province. OTF continues to strengthen the capacity of the volunteer sector through investments in community-based initiatives. For more information, please visit www.trilliumfoundation.org.

For more information, please contact: Stu Thomas, President, Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre 708.858.5050 or by Email at normhc@vianet.ca