More awards for the Canadian War Museum’s 1812 exhibition

 Ottawa, Ontario, May 31, 2013 — The Canadian War Museum has earned another prestigious award for its exhibition marking the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812. The latest accolade is from the Canadian Museums Association, which has conferred on 1812 an Outstanding Achievement in Exhibitions award. The War Museum was one of two recipients of this coveted prize which was presented on May 30 during the Association’s annual conference in Whitehorse, Yukon.

The exhibition and a companion book, The Four Wars of 1812, have also been recognized by the Ontario Museum Association. The exhibition won the Association’s 2012 Award of Excellence in Exhibitions and the book received an honourable mention in the Publications category.

“By examining the conflict from multiple perspectives, 1812 offers visitors a new and different way of learning about this pivotal event in Canadian history,” said James Whitham, Director General of the Canadian War Museum. “We are delighted at the recognition from our museum peers.”

1812 was one of the largest and most innovative exhibitions ever produced by the War Museum. The exhibition broke new ground by examining the conflict from the different perspectives of the four major participants: the Americans, the British, Canadians (including Canadian First Peoples) and Native Americans.

The award-winning exhibition was presented at the War Museum from June 13, 2012, to January 6, 2013. Two other versions of the exhibition are now on tour, with stops in multiple venues in Canada and the United States. The larger of the travelling exhibitions is currently featured at the St. Catharines Museum in St. Catharines, Ontario. The War Museum has also produced an online version of 1812, available at www.warmuseum.ca/war-of-1812.

The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Its mission is to promote public understanding of Canada’s military history in its personal, national, and international dimensions.

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