Exhibitions The Stuff of Legend: The Luxton Family in Banff and the Bow Valley The opening of the exhibition The Stuff of Legend fulfills a long-held dream of the board of the Eleanor Luxton Historical Foundation. The mandate of the Foundation is the preservation of the history of western Canada, with emphasis on Banff and the Bow Valley. When we developed the idea of the exhibition, The Stuff of Legend; The Luxton Family in Banff and the Bow Valley, we found a strong ally in the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. The result is the story of one of the area’s earliest and arguably most interesting pioneer families, which opens April 27, 2008 at the Whyte Museum. The exhibition is centered around Norman Luxton, adventurer in the extreme, business man, newspaper publisher, and close ally of the Stoney Indians. Norman was raised in the newspaper business, his father being a partner in the founding of the Winnipeg Free Press, western Canada’s largest and most influential newspaper of the day. Norman came to Alberta to work for the Calgary Herald, but yielded to his thirst for adventure when the opportunity came to make a landmark voyage across the Pacific Ocean, in an adapted dugout canoe, the Tilikum, in 1901. The trip was hazardous in the extreme, and resulted in serious health problems for Norman. He came to Banff to the Brett Sanatorium for treatment, and decided to stay in the fast growing mountain village. His brother Lou joined him and helped him develop several businesses, including active trade with the Stoney First Nations in animal pelts, trophy heads, and colourful beadwork and costumes. In 1906, Norman’s love of adventure resulted in his participation in the round-up for some 700 buffalo from a herd in Montana, thus beginning the restoration of that almost extinct icon of the Canadian plains. He was also a leader in the development of Banff Indian Days and the Banff Winter Carnival. Three strong women had considerable influence on Norman: Annie McKenzie McDougall, his mother-in-law; his wife, Georgina McDougall; and daughter Eleanor; all three are also featured in the exhibition. Their stories start at Morleyville, the site of the McDougall Mission to the Stoneys. The McDougalls, the first non-native family to settle in southern Alberta, came there in 1873, ten years before the arrival of the railroad. As the wife of trader David N. McDougall, Annie was a true pioneer. Her story is an epic in itself. Georgina was raised in the small village that grew up around the Mission, learning the language and customs of the Stoneys, and through her family grew Norman’s close association with the native people which began shortly after he came to Banff in 1902. Norman and Georgina’s only child, Eleanor had an outstanding and varied career as historian, teacher, writer, lecturer, and, as a mechanical draftsman, worked on locomotive design for the Canadian Pacific Railway. Two of her books, Tilikum: Luxton’s Pacific Crossing, and Banff: Canada’s First National Park have been republished recently. The exhibition has been in the making for two years. To supplement the staff of the Whyte Museum, the Foundation brought in Sandra Weizman as project manager, and exhibition designer Sunniva Geuer, both of whom are known and respected throughout the museum community in Canada. Much research has been done to authenticate details of the story. We are delighted that we have been able to work closely with the Stoney people to develop their part of the story in their own words. The exhibition will run from April 27, 2008 to October 2009. It is our hope that you will find The Stuff of Legend; The Luxton Family in Banff and Bow interesting, informative, and perhaps even inspiring. Visit the Whyte Museum website for information on events associated with the exhibition.