Road to Yesterday Museum & Christopher Pratt Art Gallery

ROAD TO YESTERDAY MUSEUM:

The remainder of the second floor has been devoted to the museum.  Rather than compete with area museums, such as the Fishermen’s Museum in Port de Grave and the Cable Building in Heart’s Content, the Society worked on depicting the commercial history and lifestyles of Bay Roberts at the turn of the 20th century. Some 3000 artifacts are currently on display.  Additionally, there is an extensive collection of pottery artifacts recovered from Bay Roberts Harbour c.1500s.  A dedicated military exhibit is the most recent development. The exhibits are continuously updated and/or expanded.

The museum was opened in October 2000. To date, there have been approximately 40,000 visitors.  Qualified heritage people have stated that it is currently one of the best “community” museums in Newfoundland and Labrador.  A foreign visitor remarked that he has been in community museums all over the world and he has never seen a better one.

As a result, the Society has received the “Award of Merit” from the Museum Association of Newfoundland and Labrador.

CHRISTOPHER PRATT ART GALLERY:

Artist Christopher Pratt has donated a permanent collection of his work to the Gallery in honour of his late mother, Christine Dawe, a native of Bay Roberts. The success of the Gallery has resulted in many works of art being donated to the Society for the Gallery. The list includes, but is not limited to, (alphabetically) David Blackwood, Henry Bradshaw, Cliff George, Scott Goudie, Pam Hall, Ann Hart, Sheila Hollender, Gary Kennedy, Jennifer Morgan, Paul Parsons, Florence Pinhorn, Jean Claude Roy, Helen Parsons Shepherd, Reginald Shepherd, Ian Sparkes, Carl Stevenson, and Jon Wilkinson.

In 2013, Darryl and Marlene Fry voluntarily began loaning pieces to the Gallery from their private collection to promote the work of Newfoundland and Labrador artists and artists with a connection to the province. Currently, in addition to some of the artists listed above, there are pieces by Alex Balitski, Anne Meredith Barry, Allister Drysdale, Maurice Hall Haycock, Tish Holland, Brian LaSaga, George Noseworthy, Barbara Pratt, and Mary Pratt.