Bethune Memorial House (french: Maison commémorative Bethune), a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of t ...

in Gravenhurst,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada, commemorates the life and achievements of Dr. Norman Bethune. Impatient and restless, he was inspired by a sense of duty to others and a love of the outdoors. In Bethune, these characteristics were the seeds of a battlefront surgeon, communist, humanitarian, inventor, teacher and artist. The historic site explores the roots and examines his legacy. Dr. Bethune spent the last two years of his life in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, serving as a teacher and as a surgeon of the communist

Eighth Route Army The Eighth Route Army (), officially known as the 18th Group Army of the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China, was a group army under the command of the Chinese Communist Party, nominally within the structure of the Chinese ...

History

The house was built in 1880 to serve as the

manse A manse () is a clergy house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist and other Christian traditions. Ultimately derived from the Latin ''mansus'', "dwelling", from '' ...

of Knox Presbyterian Church. Malcolm Bethune became the minister of Knox Church in 1889 and, a year later, his son Norman was born in the manse. The Bethune family remained in Gravenhurst until 1893, when they moved to

Beaverton, Ontario Beaverton is a community in Brock Township in the Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario, Canada. History Beaverton was first settled in 1822. The settlement is located on Lake Simcoe at the mouth of the Beaver River. It was called Calder's M ...

. Thereafter, the house was occupied by a succession of ministers. In 1973, the house was purchased by the federal government's Department of External Affairs. Restoration of the building was subsequently undertaken by

Parks Canada Parks Canada (PC; french: Parcs Canada),Parks Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Parks Canada Agency (). is the agency of the Government of Canada which manages the country's 48 National Parks, th ...

, which is now responsible for its operation. In August 2002, then-

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Adrienne Clarkson Adrienne Louise Clarkson (; ; born February 10, 1939) is a British Hong Kong, Hong Kong-born Canadian journalist who served from 1999 to 2005 as Governor General of Canada, the List of Governors General of Canada#Governors General of Canada, 1 ...

visited the house and also unveiled a bronze statue of Dr. Bethune erected by the Town of Gravenhurst. The statue is located on Gravenhurst's main street, alongside the notable Opera House. File:BMH Visitor Centre.JPG, Current visitor centre for Bethune Memorial House, built in 2012 and opened in May 2013. File:BethuneMemorialhouse.jpg, Bethune Memorial House former visitor centre, demolished in May 2011. File:Norman Bethune's study in Gravenhurst.JPG, Malcolm Bethune's (Dr. Bethune's father) study in Bethune Memorial House

Affiliations

The museum is affiliated with the

Canadian Museums Association The Canadian Museums Association (CMA; french: Association des musées canadiens, ''ACM''), is a national non-profit organization for the promotion of museums in Canada. It represents Canadian museum professionals both within Canada and internat ...

, the

Canadian Heritage Information Network , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = Logo of Canadian Heritage Information Network.png , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = , picture_width = , picture_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = ...

, and the

Virtual Museum of Canada The Digital Museums Canada (DMC; , ''MNC'') is a funding program in Canada "dedicated to online projects by the museum and heritage community," helping organizations to build digital capacity. Administered by the Canadian Museum of History (CMH) ...

References

External links

*
Norman Bethune Memorial Sites
{{coord, 44, 55, 16, N, 79, 22, 35, W, region:CA-ON_type:landmark, display=title Norman Bethune Museums in the District Municipality of Muskoka Birthplaces of individual people Biographical museums in Canada National Historic Sites in Ontario Historic house museums in Ontario

History

Affiliations

See also

References

External links