Quinte Educational Museum & Archives (QEMA)

The Quinte Educational Museum and Archives was established in 1977 and incorporated in 1978, by a group of educators and other interested people, as an independent, non-profit, charitable organization with a mission: to tell the story of education in Ontario; encourage interest in the history of education; support Canadian Studies (Heritage & Citizenship) and The Ontario Curriculum; preserve artifacts and records, and provide an archives and library for social and educational research. The QEMA Archives at 13 Coleman Street contains thousands of fascinating records from historical documents to anecdotal material about early school life. Financial records provide information ranging from government grants and salaries of school teachers, to small items such as the cost of a cord of wood, and charges for sweeping and making the fire. We also display many photographs, trophies, scrapbooks, and other archival materials. In addition, QEMA has a large collection of school texts and educational reference books. Research facilities are open to everyone from the person looking for pictures of ‘Granddad’s school’ to the serious researcher investigating the evolving story of education in Ontario.