Mennonite Historical Society

of British Columbia

MHSBC is a community-funded organization, and we depend on your support. Your donation helps preserve our Mennonite stories and heritage for future generations. Funds are used to keep our archives open to public users; upgrade equipment; support our few staff members; bring you the latest research on Mennonite history through the Roots and Branches newsletter; and to sponsor special events. Tax-deductible receipts are provided.

We acknowledge that Abbotsford and surrounding area are within the ancestral,
traditional and unceded territory of the people of the Matsqui and Sumas Stó:lõ First Nations.

MHSBC Offices: 1818 Clearbrook Road, Abbotsford, B.C. V2T 5X4
At the Mennonite Heritage Museum


Phone: 604-853-6177; Fax: 604-853-6246; Email: MHSBC archives
Hours: 10:00 am - 4:00 pm, Monday - Friday (except statutory holidays)

For Mennonite events across Canada see the Canadian Mennonite website.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Attic Treasures Market

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Poland Tour 2023

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Messages from Aileen Friesen Co-director of the Centre for Transnational Mennonite Studies at The University of Winnipeg

I’m pleased to share that the documentary Conform: The Mennonite Migration to Mexico of the 1920s is now freely available for viewing on YouTube.

Produced by Refuge 31 Films and the Plett Foundation, Conform tells the story of the nearly 8,000 Mennonites who left Manitoba and Saskatchewan for northern Mexico in the 1920s, leaving their established farms and communities for life in a new country that offered rights and freedoms they considered critical to the exercise of their faith and their traditional way of life.

Written and directed by Andrew Wall, Conform won the prize for best documentary feature at the Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival earlier this year.

- - - - - - - - - - -

After selling over 2,000 copies, CTMS has printed a second edition of Paul Toews’s lectures exploring the history of Mennonites in Ukraine. In light of the current war in Ukraine, we have renamed the book The Mennonite Story in Ukraine: The Heritage Cruise Lectures, and I have added a new essay reflecting on the current situation. Renaming the book is an acknowledgement of how the war has caused a seismic shift in our understanding of this history, while simultaneously creating new challenges for its future.

Russian Mennonite Story

ORDER ONLINE: https://www.therussianmennonitestory.com/

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The Russlaender Mennonites: War, Dislocation, and New Beginnings

July 14–15, 2023 IN-PERSON AND LIVESTREAMED

A Conference Hosted by the Centre for Transnational Mennonite Studies at The University of Winnipeg

Russleander Mennonites

CTMS Annual Conference Details

Between 1923 and 1929 some 21,000 Mennonites from the Soviet Union left a land decimated by violence, famine, and epidemic. They found shelter in far-off Canada, where government, church communities, and private businesses supported their immigration. These migrants, popularly known as the Russlaender Mennonites, made Canada their home. For the past hundred years, they have influenced the shape of Canadian Mennonite communities through their family networks, churches, economic pursuits (as labourers, professionals, and entrepreneurs), and in the world of politics, faith, arts, and service.

This centenary conference has invited papers from a variety of disciplines that explore the development of the Russlaender, from late imperial Russia, through war, revolution, and upheaval in the early Soviet Union, to their relocation to Canada. Papers might address factors that drove their immigration to Canada, and the inter-generational evolution of their identity and communities in Canada.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Memories of Migration: Russlaender 100 Tour
Relive Your History on a Cross-Canada Train Tour!

Russlaender 100 Tour

This three-part Russlaender Centenary Tour will re-enact the historic migration of 21,000 Mennonites from Russia to Canada beginning in 1923. With the help of established Mennonites, the migrants found new homes in Canada in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution. This tour celebrates the faith of these newcomers, memorializes the challenges of resettlement, and acknowledges race and displacement in Canadian history.

For information and registration: https://tourmagination.com/russlaender-100/.
Registration deadline extended to September 30 2022!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

See the MHM website at: www.mennonitemuseum.org.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Volunteer at the Mennonite Heritage Museum Gardens!

MHM Coffee Shop Website

MHM Cafe

MHM House Barn

House Barn Tours

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

YouTube link for Louise Bergen Price's MHM Book Launch “The Canada Coat” recording of the event.

YouTube Link for for Dr. Richard Toews' recorded Virtual Book Launch, The Confession.

Center for Transnational Mennonite Studies, University of Winnipeg presents "Packing for Canada,"
a fascinating presentation on Russlaender Mennonite material culture.
A recording of the event is now available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2EEgrZhX9Y.

The Center for Transnational Mennonite Studies, University of Winnipeg, presents 11 sessions of "MCC at 100" On YouTube.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

You can make your donation to MHSBC online with our convenient PayPal feature.

PayPal provides the option of paying with your credit card or as a PayPal client. PayPal will email a receipt, your donation confirmation.



Sponsor an MHSBC Event

If you, your group, or company is interested in sponsoring an MHSBC event, please contact us at MHSBC Archives, or 604-853-6177.

Sponsorship Details

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Pier 21 The Musical Pier 21 The Musical

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

How to become a member of the MHSBC?

You can pay your $35.00 MHSBC membership fee online with our convenient PayPal feature:

You can pay a $750.00 MHSBC lifetime membership fee online with our convenient PayPal feature:

PayPal provides the option of paying with your credit card or as a PayPal client. PayPal will email a receipt, your membership confirmation.

According to the Canada Revenue Agency, MHSBC membership fees are not tax deductible. Members receive Roots and Branches three or four times a year. Members enjoy a discount on the price of MHSBC events. The annual general meeting of the society is held in April or May.

Other ways to become a member:

Print the MHSBC Annual Membership Form, fill in your data, and mail to MHSBC.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The MHSBC / MHM YouTube Videos for the Anabaptist Story

MHSBC Introductory Video with Jennifer Martens: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCB87-Sa-T8DmyfVOcIjeTNQ/

MHM Introductory Video with Jenny Bergen: https://youtu.be/C2TnhT5dLzs

Presentation by Richard Thiessen: https://youtu.be/nXuVgWhu15g

Anabaptist History
Anabaptist History Share Your Story.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -