A front-row seat to Canada 150: chair travels around province for anniversary

A chair rescued from the side of the road is being toted around the province to help Nova Scotians celebrate Canada 150.

Bria Stokesbury, curator at the Kings County Museum, pulled the small antique chair from the remnants of her neighbour's spring cleanup a year and a half ago.

Now, the chair — believed by local artisans to have been built the same decade as Canada's Confederation — has become an opportunity for the museum to reach out to the broader community.

"[People] take it out, borrow it for a couple of days and [photograph] it in a place or location or event that means something special to them to celebrate the important aspect of this country," Stokesbury told CBC's Information Morning.

Stokesbury said the chair, which is painted to look like a Canadian flag, was originally meant to form part of an interpretive exhibit at the museum. 

The idea for the chair's road trip around the province was born out of the community museum's limited budget, and the fact that people can easily take it along on their travels. 

"It's small, it's lightweight, it's easy to transport," Stokesbury said.

She estimates the chair has been to roughly 30 locations around the province since February.

While many of the images are lighthearted, Stokesbury said it's also afforded people the chance to showcase more bittersweet memories. 

"One lady took it to Echo Lake, a place she used to go fishing with her dad when she was a little girl. He passed away a number of years ago and she wrote a very poignant letter to us saying it brought back very fond memories of time spent with her father," she said.

"So you do get some really moving stories coming out of it, and what more could you hope for from a project with a little chair that was just saved and repurposed from the spring cleanup?" 

Those interested in taking the chair out for a photo can contact the museum online or by phone at 902-678-6237.