Fashion History Museum

Like food and shelter, clothing is a necessity as well as a cultural expression. The fashion industry employs millions of people around the world and is a driving force behind the global economy. But fashion is also ephemeral, whimsically responding to changes in technology, taste, the economy, and social mores. The journey fashion takes from inception to production and from popularity to outdated is a fascinating story worthy of being told. The Fashion History Museum is a charitable not-for profit organization, founded in 2004, that captures the story of fashion through exhibitions using its collection of over 10,000 garments and accessories dating from the 1660s to the present. Alongside historical dress, the museum is building a contemporary Canadian designer collection as well as a comprehensive library and archives of fashion related publications and documents. Since 2004 we have been creating exhibitions that have travelled throughout Canada and as far afield as Hong Kong and Bahrain. In June 2015 we opened galleries in the old post office in the former town of Hespeler Ontario, now northern Cambridge. Three galleries in the museum are each changed once or twice a year to feature different topics and eras of fashion history.