Seven museums in Manitoba will receive funding as part of Manitoba 150.

The Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre (CFDC) in Morden is one of the seven, known as Manitoba's Signature Museums. Premier Kelvin Goertzen announced Monday morning that each museum will receive $23,800 as a grant towards school and youth programming, exhibits, improving visitor experiences or other improvements to these facilities.

"Museums help to provide us with a deeper understanding of the past. Museums provide us the opportunity to gather and celebrate, and more importantly to learn and to reflect," says Goertzen. "There is no better time than in the celebration of our sesquicentennial to provide additional support to Manitoba's Signature Museums so they can continue to share the stories of our past, which provide important learning opportunities for Manitobans and visitors of all ages."

In partnership with the Manitoba government, the Manitoba 150 Host Committee has provided funding to events and projects across the province. As Manitoba 150 concludes, it will provide $166,600 to Manitoba's Signature Museums to help support their work to capture and preserve the province's history.

"We have so many wonderful and important stories to share, and we know that these seven great facilities and their dedicated staff and volunteers will make excellent use of this additional financial support to help tell the stories of our past and provide learning opportunities for the future," says Culture and Heritage Minister Cathy Cox. "Manitoba's Signature Museums are well-known for their excellent programming, high-quality exhibits and visitor experiences, and we look forward to how they will continue to capture and preserve Manitoba’s history for generations to come."

The Signature Museums program was established in 1998 through the designation of selected museums with the potential to be significantly enhanced as heritage tourism attractions. The seven museums, all designated as Travel Manitoba Star Attractions, are the Mennonite Heritage Village (Steinbach), the Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum (Brandon), the New Iceland Heritage Museum (Gimli), the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada (Winnipeg), the Manitoba Agricultural Museum (Austin), Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum (Winnipeg) and the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre (Morden).