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About us
About Us
The Museum of Ontario Archaeology is a unique Canadian museum devoted to the study, display, and interpretation of the human occupation of Southwestern Ontario over the past 13,000 years. The Museum is located beside the Lawson Site, which was occupied in the 16th century A.D.
Our mission: We share, interpret, and care for the archaeological record to advance an understanding of Ontario’s heritage.
The Museum of Ontario Archaeology grew out of a collection of artifacts started by Wilfrid Jury and his father Amos Jury (1861-1964). Wilfrid and Amos acquired Indigenous artifacts collected in and around Lobo township by local farmers and the Jurys themselves. Their displays became popular at fairs, such as the Western Fair, and at temporary exhibits. In 1933, when plans for the Lawson Memorial Library were made, Ray Lawson (a prominent businessman and owner of the Lawson Site) requested that space be provided for the Museum of Indian Archaeology and Pioneer Life, and for it to be curated by the Jurys.
In 1973, plans were made to develop the Lawson Site and to create a permanent home for the ‘Wilfrid Jury Collection of Indian Artifacts’. To facilitate the revitalization, Dr. William D. Finlayson was appointed Executive Director. Finlayson envisioned a university-based archaeological research centre with a display gallery and public programs that would include the ongoing excavation of the site. A partial reconstruction of the Lawson Site would take shape beside the newly constructed Museum. The museum’s name was changed to The Museum of Indian Archaeology (London) in 1978, and opened its door at its current location at 1600 Attawandaron Road, next to the Lawson Archaeological Village, in 1981.
The name was revised to the London Museum of Archaeology in 1991, and again in 2005 to the Museum of Ontario Archaeology. In December 2018, the museum took over operation of the Sustainable Archeology: Western collections and research facility constructed on site in 2012, now operated as the Sustainable Collections Repository and research wing of the MOA.