The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum
- 701 Oxford St E, London, ON, N5Y 4T7
- Tel: (519)-660-5275 x 5102
- Website | Email | Mobile App | Directions
- Museum regular hours Wed, Fri & Sat 10am to 4pm Thu 10am to 8pm Contact us for bookings and Digital Tuesdays The museum is now open for onsite visits, but online guided tours and other digital programming is still available.
- Free admission for general public, service fees applicable for group bookings (please contact staff for details).
The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum
Discover one of London's best-kept secrets and explore one of Canada's finest regimental museums!
The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum is located in Wolseley Barracks, purposely-built by the Dominion Government to house «D» Company of the Infantry School Corps (1886 to 1888). The Royal Canadian Regiment (The RCR) began as the Infantry School Corps (21 December, 1883) and evolved to four battalions located at Garrison Petwawa, ON, Garrison Gagetown, NB and London, ON. The RCR has a lineage back to 1863-64, when militia units were raised in Woodstock and London, ON.
The RCR Museum is one of the oldest Canadian museums. On 2nd June 1886, the House of Commons of the Dominion of Canada approved in its fourth session – fifth parliament, an expenditure of $30,000 for the London Infantry School. The works were eventually placed under the care of Henry James (1839 – 1893), the Chief Architect for the Militia Department. By the end of 1888, the construction was completed and the troops took quarters. The 1886 floor plans show a room specially designated to become a museum, adjacent to a “reading room” and to an office for the “professor”; no other armouries or military buildings erected in Canada included such a designation before. Successive renovation projects brought the museum to today’s footprint, occupying the entire west wing of the historic building.
The museum collection is vast and includes a large variety of artefacts: regimental memorials, silverware, uniforms, medals, original art, weapons, military equipment, archives, musical instruments, etc. The museum welcomes visitors in the old archway entrance, an expanded permanent gallery and a costumer friendly gift shop are high profile attractions in the city of London, ON. Attractive programs, high standard visitor services and events are scheduled year-round.
Everyone is welcome to visit during opening hours. For groups larger than 8 people we recommend booking a group tour at least 3 weeks in advance.
Website: www.thercrmuseum.ca
Type: Military Museum | Living History Site
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