Harry Piers
Encyclopedia
Harry Piers, was a long-serving and influential historian and curator at the Nova Scotia Museum
in Halifax
, Nova Scotia
. Piers was born on February 12, 1870 in Halifax
.
In 1893 he edited Mary Jane Katzmann's Akins Prize-winning History of the Townships of Dartmouth, Preston and Lawrencetown, Halifax County, N.S. posthumously for publication.
He became the second curator of the Nova Scotia Museum in 1899 when he succeeded David Honeyman. Piers also served as librarian of the Provincial Science Library from 1900 and as Deputy Keeper of Public Records of Nova Scotia from 1899 until 1931, when the Public Archives of Nova Scotia opened. He died on January 24, 1940 and is buried in Halifax at Camp Hill Cemetery
. He was succeeded as curator of Nova Scotia Museum by Donald Crowdis
.
Piers worked with precision and diligence for many years as virtually a one-man-museum for Nova Scotia. His obituary in the Halifax Chronicle Herald noted, “Many called him a 'human book of knowledge'. His tall stately figure was familiar in the community life of Halifax and he played a prominent role in numerous activities in the City and Province.". Piers' museum work was multi-disciplinary, collecting artifacts
and specimen
s for human and natural history. His collection documentation set high standards of research and description that were ahead of their time and stand out today as instructive examples of museum
work. A Parks Canada historian in recent times lauded him as a “renaissance man of this province's cultural history. It matters not where the modern researcher penetrates-- history, archaeology, material culture, geology, botany-- it is almost certain that you will find his footprint of decades ago. At a time when nobody else cared, he and his museum did, and between them they preserved and recorded much that would otherwise have vanished utterly."
A portrait of Piers hangs at the Nova Scotia Museum
where a meeting room is also named in his honour.
Nova Scotia Museum
Nova Scotia Museum is the corporate name for the most decentralized museum in Canada - 27 museums across Nova Scotia, including over 200 historic buildings, living history sites, vessels, specialized museums and close to a million artifacts and specimens...
in Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
. Piers was born on February 12, 1870 in Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
.
In 1893 he edited Mary Jane Katzmann's Akins Prize-winning History of the Townships of Dartmouth, Preston and Lawrencetown, Halifax County, N.S. posthumously for publication.
He became the second curator of the Nova Scotia Museum in 1899 when he succeeded David Honeyman. Piers also served as librarian of the Provincial Science Library from 1900 and as Deputy Keeper of Public Records of Nova Scotia from 1899 until 1931, when the Public Archives of Nova Scotia opened. He died on January 24, 1940 and is buried in Halifax at Camp Hill Cemetery
Camp Hill Cemetery
In 1844 Camp Hill Cemetery on Robie Street in the heart of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada replaced the city's first cemetery known as the Old Burying Ground that had been established almost 100 years earlier in 1749...
. He was succeeded as curator of Nova Scotia Museum by Donald Crowdis
Donald Crowdis
Donald Crowdis iwas a retired museum curator, broadcaster, and one of the world's oldest bloggers. Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia on December 24, 1913, he became curator and later director of the Nova Scotia Museum in 1940, succeeding Harry Piers. He served at the museum for 25 years focusing on the...
.
Piers worked with precision and diligence for many years as virtually a one-man-museum for Nova Scotia. His obituary in the Halifax Chronicle Herald noted, “Many called him a 'human book of knowledge'. His tall stately figure was familiar in the community life of Halifax and he played a prominent role in numerous activities in the City and Province.". Piers' museum work was multi-disciplinary, collecting artifacts
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
and specimen
Specimen
A specimen is a portion/quantity of material for use in testing, examination, or study.BiologyA laboratory specimen is an individual animal, part of an animal, a plant, part of a plant, or a microorganism, used as a representative to study the properties of the whole population of that species or...
s for human and natural history. His collection documentation set high standards of research and description that were ahead of their time and stand out today as instructive examples of museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
work. A Parks Canada historian in recent times lauded him as a “renaissance man of this province's cultural history. It matters not where the modern researcher penetrates-- history, archaeology, material culture, geology, botany-- it is almost certain that you will find his footprint of decades ago. At a time when nobody else cared, he and his museum did, and between them they preserved and recorded much that would otherwise have vanished utterly."
A portrait of Piers hangs at the Nova Scotia Museum
Nova Scotia Museum
Nova Scotia Museum is the corporate name for the most decentralized museum in Canada - 27 museums across Nova Scotia, including over 200 historic buildings, living history sites, vessels, specialized museums and close to a million artifacts and specimens...
where a meeting room is also named in his honour.