Fires, floods, mining disasters – the result of Mother Nature or something more? Were they the result of a curse laid over a lover spurned for the untold riches of Elk Valley coal? Stories told through Fernie’s long history of the curse and its’ lifting, are some of the most entertaining.

In the summer of 1964 Fernie Mayor James White and Ktunaxa elder Joe Dennis smoked a peace pipe in a ceremonial lifting of the Fernie curse. The 50th anniversary of this historic event is being celebrated this year at the Fernie Museum with numerous programming activities and events.

Speaker Series – A series of discussions examining the curse from various perspectives. Presenters to include artists, authors and local Ktunaxa.

Interpretive Trail Signage – A series of five trail markers located around Fernie featuring historic photos and information of community catastrophes. Developed in partnership with the City of Fernie the signs will be installed on local walking trails.

Museum Gallery Exhibit – Fold it up and put it away; A Curse Examined- New gallery exhibit in partnership with Toronto artist Gwen MacGregor (Mayor James White’s granddaughter); from June through September.

Curse Lifting Community Celebration – August 15/16/17 – Weekend events to include a heritage-themed family street dance, a luncheon and play presentation, Museum Gallery exhibit official opening/reception and guided walking tours.

The Fernie and District Historical Society invites your business to help us celebrate this rich historic event and to assist us in preserving and interpreting our community’s history by becoming a Celebration Sponsor.

A program of this magnitude has not been undertaken for a number of years at the museum. Our concentration has been on finishing the building renovation and finalizing the main floor exhibit. Now we are able to get back to our focus of presenting Fernie’s past in creative and innovative ways that appeal to a wide range of audience.

Fernie and District Historical Society

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