Hamilton Museums & Galleries

Visit the magnificent home of Sir Allan Napier MacNab, one of Canada’s first premiers. Discover mid-19th-century Hamilton on your tour of more than 40 rooms on three floors. Experience life in a grand country home: for the MacNab family and the servants working below stairs. Leave time to browse in the Museum Gift Shop, featuring Canadian handmade crafts, souvenirs and special gifts. Enjoy a meal at the Coach House Restaurant and visit the Hamilton Military Museum and the restored Kitchen Garden, all located in Dundurn Park.

Prominently situated in a walled garden, Whitehern is an outstanding example of a mid-nineteenth-century urban estate originally owned by a wealthy industrialist. The house today has a multi-layered character that reflects the alterations made by three generations of the McQuesten family. It contains elements from many time periods–Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian–all overlaid with original possessions dating up to 1939 when the Honorable Thomas McQuesten was Minister of Highways.

The Gage Homestead, built in 1796, captures the way of life during the early 19th century. The Gages worked the land with their ten children and became a strong voice in the hamlet of Stoney Creek. During the War of 1812, the family fled to the cellar as the Battle of Stoney Creek raged outside. The Battlefield Monument stands as a symbol of peace and commemorates those soldiers who died on June 6, 1813. Nestled under the Niagara Escarpment, this historic site is located on 32 acres of parkland linked to the Bruce Trail.

Take a peek into life at the beginning of Canada’s industrial revolution. Housed in a 147-year-old waterworks, the Hamilton Museum of Steam & Technology preserves two 70-ton steam engines. One engine operates every day. These may be the oldest Canadian-built engines surviving in the nation. The Waterworks Pumping Station is a National Historic Site and a Civil and Power Engineering Landmark. Various permanent and changing exhibits.

Touch, build, experiment, invent, and imagine in a friendly, child-centred setting. Located in Gage Park, at the park’s northeast corner, Hamilton Children’s Museum has been stimulating curiosities and providing opportunities for family learning for over 27 years. Our creative, hands-on exhibits encourage children and their favourite adults to explore a variety of topics including: the physical and natural sciences, our senses, and the arts. Special programs are also available.

Fieldcote is a cultural heritage centre with an emphasis on the collection, preservation and exhibition of local history, the promotion of fine arts and the celebration of natural heritage through beautiful landscaped gardens and walking trails. Adult workshops and children’s activities are available upon request. The site offers rotating exhibitions featuring art and history, a summer concert series, award-winning pesticide-free gardens and a meeting place.