The Sexsmith & District Museum Society
With a number of vintage commercial and residential structures
still in place, Sexsmith resembles a northern prairie village during
the 1930s. At the centre is the blacksmith shop. Filled with
original artefacts, it reveals the daily activity of a typical Peace
River country blacksmith.
The Sexsmith Blacksmith Shop Museum is situated in the centre of
the town and has been preserved as a museum. The Town of Sexsmith
was first incorporated as a village in 1929. The Sexsmith Blacksmith
Shop was built in 1916, before the community became a village. It
was built by Dave Bozarth who also operated the shop and lived in
the back of the shop until 1920.
The Sexsmith Blacksmith Shop was taken over by Nels Johnson, a
young Swedish boarder. Johnson had worked as a blacksmith in Edson
before he arrived in Sexsmith. In 1927, Dave Bozarth sold the
blacksmith shop to Nels Johnson who ran it until 1974. Danny Shannon
purchased the blacksmith shop and kept everything as it was until
1986 when the town of Sexsmith purchased it. The Sexsmith Museum
Society has stored the shop, maintains it, and provides
interpretation. The Sexsmith Blacksmith Shop is the oldest building
in the community.
The non-profit society operates the Blacksmith Shop Museum.
Summer hours: Monday to Friday 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon, and 1 p.m.
until 4:30 p.m.; weekends from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
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