Seagram Museum (Waterloo, Ont.)

The Seagram Museum was built on the site of the original Joseph E. Seagram distillery in Waterloo, Ontario, which was purchased by the Bronfman family in 1927. Opened May 16, 1984, the museum was the vision of Charles Bronfman, Co-Chairman of the Board of The Seagram Company, Ltd. Plans for the museum were announced in January, 1981 and construction began that spring. Architects for the building, which adapted a late 19th century rack warehouse, were Barton Myers Associates. The entire project was overseen by Peter Swann, "consultant to Seagram on matters of culture and the arts." Swann later became the museum's first director.

The Seagram Museum was conceived to serve four goals. First, to preserve historic distillery buildings dating to the 1890s. Second, to make a social, cultural, and economic contribution at the regional and national levels. Third, to interpret the history of distilling, and the company. And fourth, to create a centralized archive of the company and distilling industry. Once in operation, the museum was "devoted to the history and technology of wine and spirits"and interpreted the history of The Seagram Company, the distilling industry and related industries. In addition to developing their collections, the museum mounted temporary and permanent exhibits, and hosted many special events and celebrations.

On March 27, 1997, the Seagram Museum closed. As the repository for the records of The Seagram Company, Ltd., the Hagley Museum and Library received the vast majority of the museum's post-1927 records. Other parts of the collection were dispersed to appropriate repositories including the University of Waterloo, the City of Waterloo, Wilfred Laurier University (Waterloo), and Brock University (St. Catherines, Ontario). Records pertaining to the Bronfman family and the Seagram Company after 1928 were donated to Hagley and are described herein. A finding aid describing the University of Waterloo's holdings is located in the case file for this accession.

In 1998, the City of Waterloo purchased the museum building and portions of the Seagram distillery complex for $4 million. Today the former museum houses the Waterloo Maple, a software development company that is part of Canada's booming "technology triangle."

From the description of Seagram Museum Collection 1682-1996 (bulk, 1930-1990). (Hagley Museum & Library). WorldCat record id: 122456819