The Museum has a collection that allows people to learn about the country’s immigration history. Collection items are preserved and used for research, exhibition, and interpretation.
The collection has digital and physical items. The Museum focuses on collecting born-digital and digitized items. Some examples include cellphone photographs or scans of a paper document.
Oral Histories
The oral history collection includes over 1,300 audio and video recorded interviews with immigrants, refugees, settlement workers, immigration officers, war veterans, and Pier 21 volunteers and staff. These interviews were recorded across Canada by the Museum’s oral history team.
Written Stories
Since the Museum first opened in 1999, museum staff has collected and preserved written memories shared primarily by newcomers to Canada, veterans, Pier 21 staff and volunteers, and their families. Presently, this collection contains nearly 3000 stories.
Archives
The archive primarily consists of digital photographs and documents, as well as original two-dimensional photographs and documents, and a small collection of multimedia. It includes immigration paperwork, photographs, and ship memorabilia.
The Museum is also home to the Canadian Immigration Historical Society collection. Originally collected by a dedicated group of retired immigration, customs, and foreign service officers from across Canada, this collection is a rich resource for researchers.
Artifacts
The Museum houses a small collection of approximately 1500 three-dimensional artifacts, largely collected by the Pier 21 Historical Society.
Frequently Asked Questions
For questions about the collection or research assistance, you must contact the Collections team. The Museum will decide what is accepted based on our mandate, history, condition, and representation already in the collection.
If your donation is accepted it may be available to use in a number of ways. This could include exhibitions, research, or public programs. It may eventually be accessible via the Museum's online collection.
Oral histories are collected by the Museum's Oral History team. Interview participants are selected based on gaps in the collection and upcoming projects. To learn more about the oral history program, please visit the Oral History page.
The Museum collects only a few artifacts and two-dimensional archival material for the collection.
The Museum focuses on digital collecting. Some examples include emails, cell phone photos, and scans of paper documents.
If your artifact or archival material is accepted by the Museum you may receive a tax receipt. Tax receipts are given for the fair market value of material. If your item is valued at more than $1000.00, an external appraisal will be arranged by Museum staff. The cost of the appraisal is the responsibility of the donor.
The Museum has an exhibition program that helps showcase the collection. Only a limited number of artifacts can be exhibited at one time. The Museum cannot guarantee that donated items will be exhibited.
You can make an appointment to see items currently in storage. Please contact the Collections team at collections@pier21.ca or 902-425-7770 ext. 279. Appointments must be made during regular work hours Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm. Appointments must be made at least 3 work days in advance.