Unlike my elementary school self, I’m rather fond of pioneer museums. I quite enjoy these trips through history even if my childhood possessions are looking uncomfortably closer in time to the museum exhibits than to my current possessions. So, on a rainy, cool May long weekend I took another such trip at Heritage Acres Farm Museum.
It was our first camping adventure of 2025 and as is too often the case on May long weekends, the weather was unpleasant. Lucky for us, Heritage Acres Farm Museum is only 6 km away from Cottonwood Campground where we were staying. With most of the artifacts inside the many buildings on site, it was a perfect distraction for a soggy day.
From a distance, you’d have no reason to think Heritage Acres is anything but an ordinary family grain farm. The windbreak hedges around the perimeter and tin roofs gleaming in the sun are a common sight across the prairies. Even the battery of wind turbines doesn’t seem out of place here. Only upon closer inspection would you recognize that the lone grain elevator isn’t quite right.
Entering the museum grounds, you are guided to a gravel parking lot in front of the Snyder House. A white, century farmhouse with picket fence, the Snyder House serves as the administrative office for Heritage Acres Farm Museum. This is where you’ll pay your admission fees, perhaps buy a souvenir from the modest gift shop, and get your first taste of what the museum has to offer.
It also piqued my interest since I have Snyder, with a ‘y’, maternal blood. My roots are in Ontario, however, and I doubt there’s any direct relationship to this branch of the global Snyder tree. Still, it was a cool connection that juiced my curiosity for the remainder of our visit.
Heritage Acres Farm Museum is the brainchild of the Oldman River Antique Equipment and Threshing Club. When the Oldman River Dam was built in the late 1980’s, the heritage museum was established to help preserve the history of the region and educate future generations. It’s been a labour of love for the club ever since and testament to the dedication and skill of the volunteers who have created this rather impressive attraction and community event hub.
Touring the grounds is self-guided and straightforward thanks to the robust and informative booklet you receive from the friendly volunteer manning the admissions desk. The various buildings range from historical structures relocated from the surrounding area to modern outbuildings housing myriad artifacts both big and small.
We were visiting on the opening weekend of the summer season and combined with the rain, some buildings were not yet open. For example, the concessions Quonset was locked up so I can’t comment on the snack offerings.
Additionally, much of the farm machinery remained inside making for tight confines as we toured around. I imagine that during the peak summer tourist season some of this equipment is displayed outside. Likewise, active displays like the model train were not operative and the victory garden had not yet been planted.
We nonetheless were able to see the vast majority of the exhibits without much trouble. I was impressed by the amount of documentation presented alongside the artifacts. There were plenty of descriptive placards explaining how items would have been used in their time. That’s not so odd for a heritage museum. But there was also plenty of local family history shared throughout the museum, from ranch brands to family trees.
This added personal touch surely means more to the locals than some city slicker, like me, visiting from afar. I just appreciated the effort to humanize the place. It’s one thing to display an item and say, “look at this interesting old thing.” It’s quite another to share a century and a half of family history, knowing full well the very descendants of some of these people could visit on any given day.
Several of the buildings are the standard fare you find at pioneer style museums: an old church, an old, single room schoolhouse, and old homesteads. None of these are especially unique, though they are no less interesting. There’s just something about seeing old school desks and textbooks that all generations find fascinating.
The same goes for household appliances and day-to-day living. Whether you’re older yourself and reminiscing or explaining to youngsters how strange life was in olden times, these vintage artifacts always intrigue.
Heritage Acres Farm Museum also houses some quirky exhibits like the Crystal Village. Crystal Villages is comprised of ten miniature buildings built from power line insulators encased in concrete. You’ve surely seen these glass “knobs” at your grandparents’ place or in or antique stores. Here, hundreds of them are repurposed as colourful, light filtering walls.
These buildings were created by Boss Zoeteman, once a prominent farmer in the area. A farm bearing his name is a centrepiece of the museum itself. These miniature insulator buildings are a bit odd, imho, but they do put on an interesting interior light show. Probably even more so if the sun is out.
If you do have young ones along for the tour and you’re concerned they may get bored or restless, there is a vintage playground logically located in front of the schoolhouse. Consisting of traditional metal climbing apparatus and a slide, it’ll give the kids a place to burn off excess energy.
As far as structures go, the two large barns and the grain elevator are by far the most impressive residents of the museum. You see similar buildings everywhere as you drive through the countryside, but rarely do you get to look inside them. Well, at least we suburbanites don’t.
Though far cleaner than working barns or elevators, you can appreciate the scale of the farming operations they once housed. The hay lofts alone are remarkable in size. The amount of hay stowed for the long, harsh winter can’t be fully grasped until you’ve stood inside the cavernous lofts in these barns.
Several of the buildings can be rented for personal events such as family reunions, birthdays, or club gatherings. A wedding and reception in the Zoeteman-Vogelaar Barn loft would be an incredible, and memorable, way to kick off a marriage. I trust the locals make good use of this special place.
The grounds offer ample parking for such large events. There is also space for dry camping, which I wasn’t aware of prior to our arrival. That said, with the wind turbines so close to the property make sure you are a good sleeper before committing to camping at Heritage Acres Farm Museum.
I’ve never been that close to a wind turbine before and you definitely can hear them. It almost sounds like you’re near a modest airport? I’d heard people complain about the noise but never experienced it myself. I wouldn’t be too keen on camping next to or directly beneath one of these giant windmills. Some of you may enjoy the constant hum of white noise, but not this guy.
Now, I mentioned earlier that touring the museum is self-guided, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you will be left completely alone. We were greeted on a couple of occasions by the sweetest, friendliest farm cat I’ve ever encountered in my life. Fergie (short for Ferguson) is one of three cats (we didn’t see the others) patrolling the museum grounds and is more than happy to share some rubs and pets with you. If Fergie had been in the gift shop, I’d have bought her in a flash!
I did, however, see a mouse scurry across the floor inside the grain elevator, so perhaps Fergie needs to focus a bit less on lovings and a bit more on the task at hand. Regardless, if you love cats be sure to say hello to this delightful creature.
As much as I enjoyed our visit to Heritage Acres Farm Museum, I left feeling a bit of disappointment that we went when we did. The museum hosts several events throughout the summer including, but not limited to, a car show and the RCMP Musical Ride. Our visit came too early to see the museum at its peak.
As for our shoulder season visit, it was still well worthwhile. Yes, for more than just the cat. Mucky and chilly though it was, we quite enjoyed ourselves, exploring the farming past of southwest Alberta. At $10 per person over 14 years of age, we spent a solid two plus hours viewing old machinery, artifacts, and learning about the history of the Oldman River Dam region.
While Heritage Acres Farm Museum gives off a humble vibe, almost like a roadside attraction, it is nonetheless a functioning, quality museum. This is no desperate attempt to draw in sucker tourists that stumble in unawares. Whereas the big city pioneer museums are often too polished and too busy, Heritage Acres is a perfect mix of genuine relics and rural charm.
If you find yourself in the Pincher Creek area, I highly recommend visiting Heritage Acres Farm Museum. Better yet, plan to attend one of their scheduled events and enjoy the full experience. I look forward to doing so myself one day. It’ll be the best field trip you’ve been on in ages.