An aviation milestone: 100 years since the first commercial bush flight in Canada

From the outset, the museum’s team proved a perfect partner. Members of the team worked with us on documentary research, fact checking, analysis of various display options, and verification of texts and captions. This support lent our local project an elevated quality and increased reach.

After discussing the direction of the project, the partners decided to develop a digital exhibition within an outdoor touchscreen kiosk. The kiosk would be located close to Lac-à-la-Tortue, where La Vigilance had landed 100 years earlier. In addition, the kiosk was to be part of an art installation consisting of a sculpture representing La Vigilance, created by a local artist. In order to protect the installation over the winter months, and to provide more people with access, it was decided that the kiosk should be located inside the Gisèle-M.-Beaudoin municipal library during the winter.

The City of Shawinigan immediately offered financial support up to $32,575, and Canadian Heritage provided $33,175 via the Legacy Fund. Research and writing were undertaken by Culture Shawinigan, the para-municipal organization tasked with showcasing local heritage.  

We envisioned a slate of events in support of the centennial anniversary. To us, this was an opportunity to acquaint Shawinigan residents with an important but little-known aspect of their history. We also hoped to give the region’s many tourists an opportunity to learn a bit more about local history.

Thanks to the support of Shawinigan’s municipal libraries, Notre-Dame Elementary School, volunteers with a passion for aviation history (with special thanks to Dorothy Jean Lupien and John J. Henney), and the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, throughout the summer of 2019 we were able to host a series of events, workshops, and activities around the theme of aviation. A lecture by museum curator Rénald Fortier exploring the history of Canadian aviation, La Vigilance, and the beginnings of bush flying, was a special highlight.

Today, our digital exhibition gives visitors and residents a new way to explore the history of aviation in Shawinigan, along with the important role played by Lac-à-la-Tortue in the development of aviation in Canada. Users of our touchscreen kiosk also learn about the role of the Laurentide paper mill in the establishment of industry at Lac-à-la-Tortue, key aviation players within the region, the development of the local aviation industry, as well as the first flight of La Vigilance to Lac-à-la-Tortue.

This iconic flying boat crashed into an Ontario lake in 1922. Recovered in 1967 by a team from the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, the wreck and its reproduction can be viewed today at the museum. During the summer of 2019, I had an opportunity to go and see this famous airplane. After a year talking about La Vigilance, experiencing it firsthand was an emotional moment — a moment shared with my six-year-old son, who was keen to see “the Shawinigan airplane.” This aircraft has now found its virtual way back to its home base for its hundredth anniversary — due, in no small part, to the support of the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, to which we offer our warmest thanks.