The Metchosin Schoolhouse was opened in the spring of 1872 and is the first school building opened in British Columbia after confederation. Classes began with Mrs. Elizabeth Fisher teaching seven girls and three boys.
The school closed in 1914, reopened in 1942, closed again in 1949 and opened one last time in 1953. It reopened 19 years later on March 25, 1972 as a museum, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the schoolhouse building.
In 2019, with generous grants from BC Heritage and Mr. Eric Clay, the schoolhouse museum contents were packed away, and restoration of the building began, a slow process that took over three years. The updated museum now has a firm concrete foundation, electrical wire and heating, fixed siding, and new coats of paint. A lift has been installed and now the museum is wheelchair accessible. The inside of the museum focuses solely on the education of young people. All of the artifacts and displays represent and belong to the curriculum and pedagogy of teaching and learning in the schoolhouse and there are many stories and interpretation about them.
The Metchosin Schoolhouse Museum received its heritage status in 1997. The museum’s roots are in volunteerism and pride in the history and heritage of the area.
