Located in Gatineau, Quebec, just across the Ottawa River from Ottawa, the nation's capital, the museum's current building opened on June 29, 1989, and has been proclaimed as an architectural landmark; however, it has also been criticized for the severe cost overruns. The museum's focus is upon the history of Canada from the era of the First Nations until the present. Notable features include the massive First Nations Hall, the walk-through Canadian history, the Children's Museum, and the large IMAX-Omnimax movie theater. The recreation of a native Haida village is a spectacular sight, capturing the scene of a Pacific coast villiage with massive totem poles, village buildings and a rainforest backdrop.
The building housing the museum is a work of art itself. Designed by renouned aboriginal architect Douglas J. Cardinal, the building captures the undulating natural shapes of the landscapes, and uses materials indigenous to the area.
The museum was first founded as the as a display hall for the Geological Survey of Canada, which was accumulating not only minerals, but biological specimens, and historical artifacts. Originally located in Montreal the museum was moved to Ottawa in 1895. In 1911 it moved into the new Victoria Memorial Museum Building. In 1968 the museum was split into the Museum of Nature and the Museum of Man, but both remained in the same building. In 1982Pierre Trudeau's government announced that the Museum of Man would be moved to its own separate facility in Hull. In 1989 the museum moved in to the new facility and was renamed the Museum of Civilization.
Its role in pursuing the strategic direction of the CMC is to ensure that the Museum's research strengths are maintained and that they evolve to meet the changing needs of its communities.
The CMC is heir to a tradition of research and collecting that extends back to the Geological Survey of Canada, from which the CMC evolved.
The CMC strives to maintain a level of excellence in existing areas of research activity, as well as leading in the development of new areas of research activity within its mandate.
The Museum of Civilization is run by the Museum of Civilization Corporation, a Crown corporation that also manages the Canadian War Museum and the Canadian Postal Museum.
In 1989 the museum moved in to the new facility and was renamed the Museum of Civilization.
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