Welcome to the Basilian Fathers Museum

...from the past, into the present, for the future...

The Basilian Fathers Museum was founded in the 1950s, but its roots go back much further—to a French Canadian priest named Father Josaphat Jean.

In 1910 Father Jean went to Ukraine to study the Ukrainian language and the Eastern rite. Inspired by Metropolitan Andrei Sheptytskyi, the charismatic founder of the National Museum in L’viv, Father Jean began to collect a wide variety of religious and ethnographic artifacts. These eventually found a home at the museum in Mundare.

When contacts with Ukraine were cut off by the Communist regime in the 1940s, the Basilian Fathers recognized the need to preserve the cultural as well as the religious heritage of Ukrainians in Canada.

In 1953 the Basilians founded a Ukrainian museum in the town of Mundare. Here, Father Jean’s valuable lifetime collection of religious artifacts found a permanent home alongside unique collections of Ukrainian Easter eggs, embroidery, weaving, pioneer tools and folk artifacts.

The museum also houses a private library collection and archives (not open to the public).

In 1991 the museum’s collections were moved to the current museum building—a beautiful new structure which combines elements of Ukrainian folk architecture and Byzantine church style. The new museum took the name Basilian Fathers Museum.

The museum:

• commemorates the 100th anniversary of Ukrainian settlement in Canada
• serves as a memorial to the early pioneers
• marks the Basilian Fathers’ continued dedication to the cultural and spiritual heritage of Ukrainian Canadians

Latest Blogs (6)

PHOTO EXHIBIT "CHURCHES OF LAMONT COUNTY" AND DESSERT RECEPTION
The Basilian Fathers Museum, Mundare, AB invites you to attend a Dessert Reception for the opening of the photo exhibit, "Churches of Lamont County," on Friday, June 1, 2012, at 6:30 PM. Photographer Christian George will be in attendance. Please R.S.V.P. to 780-764-3887 by May 25, 2012.
SUMMER TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM - BASILIAN FATHERS MUSEUM
Basilian Fathers Museum, Mundare, AB is seeking a qualified, full-time Museum Assistant for the Summer Temporary Employment Program (STEP). Responsibilities include: tour guide, gift shop assistant, manning tourist information center, and facility upkeep. Specialized skills include: customer service skills, multi-tasking, and flexibility related to job assignments. The position is a temporary, six week (34 hrs. per week) position for the summer months. Please hand in resume at your ... More...
Tours, School Programs and Booking of Conference Room or Social Room comment on Tours, School Programs and Booking of Conference Room or Social Room
Tours, School Programs and Booking of Conference Room or Social Room
The Basilian Fathers Museum offers senior's tours, group tours, school programs and booking of its conference room and social room for meetings, special functions, etc. Please contact Shawna, Museum Assistant for more information at 780-764-3887.
Gift Shop Sales
Published by the Basilian Fathers Museum are the following items for sale in the gift shop: DVD - Beyond the call of duty: The story of Dr. Strilchuk, 1900 - 1996 and the 2 volume book - Beyond the call of duty (commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of the Basilians in Canada and subsequently the rise of the Ukrainian Catholic Church).
Grade 4 Artwork (Time Capsule) on Display
Now on display at the Basilian Fathers Museum is the artwork submitted by Mrs. Dyer's grade 4 class from A.L. Horton School, Vegreville. Come see what items the students think should be put into a time capsule for future generations to uncover.