About Us

On December 5, 1947, a small group of local citizens interested in the early history of Medicine Hat met in the home of the City’s mayor, Mr. Hector Lang.  Those present included Mr. and Mrs. Lang, Mrs. M. Miller, Mr. T. Bassett, Mr. A. McColeman, Mr. and Mrs. T. Murray, Mr. and Mrs. T. Hargrave and Mrs. H. Michael. A motion to form the Historical Society was proposed and carried.

At the next meeting, on January 29, 1949, an executive was elected:

• Chairman: Hector Lang
• Vice-Chairman: Tom Murray
• Secretary: Hope Michael
• Treasurer:  Mort Fulton
• Provincial Representative: Heather Murray

Members joined and paid annual dues of $1 per year.  Volunteers started compiling historical information on the early settlers and progress of the Medicine Hat district.  As the public began donating artifacts and documents, it became evident that a museum was needed.

A Museum Society was incorporated to undertake the next step. Relocated to the junction of Highways No. 1 and 3 and expanded to three times the original size, the log structure was re-opened in 1957.  However, the building was not heated, had no facilities and was very difficult to keep clean. In 1964, the Society applied for centennial funds to build a new brick building on the same site. The log building was demolished with only the engraved logs saved for an interior display. The new Medicine Hat and District Museum opened in 1967.

The City of Medicine Hat, through the Museum and Art Gallery Foundation, took over the operation of the building. Significant additions to the Museum were made in 1972, in 1978 (the National Exhibition Centre) and in 1988, when the existing building was also renovated and a separate archives established.

In 1998, the Museum and Art Gallery became a department of Cultural Development within the City of Medicine Hat and discussions began regarding relocation of the facilities. A fund-raising campaign culminated in the opening of the Esplanade, a combined arts and heritage centre, in 2005. The Historical Society of Medicine Hat and District continues today to support the museum and the preservation of the history of our corner of Alberta.

The Historical Society of Medicine Hat and District is a vibrant, community‑driven organization that exists today to preserve, share, and celebrate the layered history of Medicine Hat and surrounding southeastern Alberta for residents, visitors, and future generations.  Today, it continues as a hub where local history is not kept in archives alone, but actively discussed, interpreted, and connected to contemporary civic life.

Who the Society is today  

The Society brings together individuals from all walks of life, long‑time residents, newcomers, students, and heritage professionals, who share an interest in the city’s past.  Its activities are anchored in regular public meetings, typically held every other month at community venues such as the Monarch Theatre, each featuring talks, panel discussions, or presentations on Medicine Hat and district history.  Membership is open to anyone for a modest annual fee, reinforcing its role as an accessible, grassroots organization rather than an exclusive academic body.

Its reason for being in present‑day Medicine Hat  

In today’s Medicine Hat, a city with a population approaching 66,000 and a rapidly evolving economy and downtown, the Society helps residents understand how past choices, industries, migrations, and civic decisions shape current realities.  It does this by:

• Hosting public history talks that connect local stories, veterans, industrial heritage, Indigenous place‑names, and community institutions, to the lived experience of contemporary citizens.
• Working alongside the Esplanade Arts & Heritage Centre, the City’s Heritage Resources framework, and other local organizations to steward photographs, documents, and oral histories that might otherwise be lost.

By making Medicine Hat’s past visible and relevant, the Society strengthens community identity, supports informed decision‑making about heritage conservation, and helps new generations feel rooted in the city’s story.  In that sense, the Historical Society of Medicine Hat and District exists not just to remember the past, but to build a more historically conscious and cohesive present‑day Medicine Hat.