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The Albert County Museum in Hopewell Cape, New Brunswick, is the home of the Prime Minister R.B. Bennett Commemorative Centre. R.B.’s story is told throughout the eight buildings that make up the museum. The traditional museum exhibits portray R.B.’s life from his birth through his education and careers to his political life and beyond. The production of this exhibit allows the inclusion of other resources into the story and provides the opportunity for R.B.’s story to reach a much wider audience. Through this project we bring together the whole story of R.B. Bennett into a single source of information that can be used as a resource for students and educators alike in their quest to understand the complexities surrounding the political climate during the Great Depression.
A look at where R.B. came from and the various influences on his childhood sheds light on the compassion and generosity of his complicated life. A complicated life, not a contradiction.
R.B.’s accomplishments are often overlooked, but not as much as his personal generosity towards the people of Canada. His legacy helped shape Canada into the great nation that it is today. The Statute of Westminster that saw our Parliament gain its independence from Great Britain, the Relief Act of 1932, the creation of the Canadian Wheat Board, the Canadian Radio Broadcasting Act (forerunner of today’s CBC) and the creation of the Bank of Canada are just a few of the accomplishments of this often forgotten influential Canadian.
In the end it will be clear what we mean when we say: “Not bad for the son of a shipbuilder from Albert County.”
