In my last progress report, the upcoming exhibit at Casa Loma seemed loomed large. It seemed strange to think that the objects I had spent so much time with would soon be in cases, able to be viewed and enjoyed by people outside of interns and curators behind closed office doors. Now the soft opening of the exhibit is a week away, the artifacts mounted, the object labels adjusted and hung with double sided tape. This last few weeks flew by in a flurry of masking tape, bubble wrapped glass doors needing to be installed, and just enough hiccups to keep things interesting.
With the artifacts on loan from various institutions all accessioned, we were waiting one last last special addition to arrive. On loan from the Royal Military Institute is a 1914 Cyclists Uniform, which is supposed to be one of the few remaining in pristine condition. I was lucky enough to be there when it arrived and got to rush downstairs with Alyssia to meet the curator of the RMI and excitedly trail back upstairs behind him holding the sacred uniform box, like a parade of nerdy museum people. When it was unboxed in Alyssia's office, the experience did feel very special. Here was a uniform worn on the battle field by a real person over a hundred years ago, but it looked as if it was made yesterday due to the extraordinary care of the RMI. While military dress has always been held to a high standard of respect by those who wear it and those who recognize it, it was extraordinary to see an object that had once seen regular use relegated to a relic status. It felt wrong to touch the jacket to mount it on the mannequin for display. Though the original owner is unknown, seeing an object that has been so carefully cared for made the connection to whoever had once worn it that much clearer. Being able to see this jacket and spend time with it creating an accession file has been one of the most special memories of this internship so far.
The arrival of the jacket was one of the last things for the exhibit to arrive on time. The custom built display cases were delayed several times, and when they finally arrived one glass doors were missing completely, and another was cut the wrong size. The risers for the objects were the incorrect size. However, these mishaps were very valuable for me to witness because it showed me the process behind planning an exhibit and how even the most flawless plan will somehow go askew. Due to the delay in the cases arriving, I got to assist Alyssia in mapping out where they could go when they finally arrived. We also spent extra time going over the layout for each case, so I could get a sense of the theme of each one. The exhibit itself is focusing on Camp X during WWII and the role of 2 Intelligence Company Senate. Some cases focus on Camp X itself, others the people involved there. Railway debris tells the story of resistance workers trained to sabotage German lines. An empty suitcase recalls the tale of an undercover spy working in Belgium who would have to flee to escape being captured. I had never considered the material culture of war before, and how objects that may have seemed replaceable or irrelevant during their initial uses become rare tangible representations of remarkable stories of courage and bravery.
When the cases finally did arrive, it was installation time! I had never considered how familiar I was going to become with masking tape before this internship. We used it to initially map out where the cases would go, and I spent an entire afternoon taping squares on to risers and the backs of cases where didactic panels, artifacts, and object labels will soon go. There are eight cases and 3-6 risers each, and each riser was soon adorned with the green tape. This process showed me how deliberate each choice is in an exhibit, down to how many inches between object labels. These seemingly small choices are extremely important to ensure all focus is on the artifacts so that their stories can be effectively conveyed.
Another interesting task was creating armature for bullets that needed to be mounted in the case. These bullets were found discarded on the beaches of Camp X and would have been used in training. At the time, they were seen as disposable and irrelevant and were left to be buried at the periphery of the camp. Fast forward to me in Alyssia's office, delicately trying to wrap wire around these rusted tiny pieces of metal, each one receiving careful attention so they are not damaged in the process. Wrapping wire around bullets is not as quick a process as one would think, and as I handled each one I had time to consider who fired each one. What training exercise were they part of? Would they be shipped off to active battle? Did they survive?
One of my last intern shifts of this semester was spent polishing the glass of these new full cases. It was strange to see objects I had spent so much time with at a desk writing files about now mounted precisely in cases, arranged thematically. Though my role in this exhibit has been small, I feel extremely proud of what I have accomplished. With additional hours spent researching the history of Camp X, the key players and the larger global context of the war, I feel I have gained a newfound appreciation for the history of World War II. I think it will be hard for me to ever see another bullet or badge without thinking about the person who once used it and what meaning, if any, it held for them. I will also spare a thought for the poor curator's fingers, definitely sore from bending all the wires needed to keep the objects neatly in place in the case.
Internship Breakdown:
Total hours worked to date: 50
Hours breakdown:
November 8th- arrival of Cyclist uniform, accessioning, mapping out exhibit (4 hours)
November 12th- remote research about 2 Intelligence Company Senate, Camp X (4 hours)
November 15th- creating armature for bullets, organizing accession files (4 hours)
November 19th- remote research about Corps of Guides, Cyclists, Joe Gelleny (6 hours)
November 22nd- exhibition install (4 hours)
November 29th- cleaning of cases, discussion of case contents and history of Camp X (4 hours)
November 30th- remote research into material culture of war (4 hours)
Readings:
Auslander, Leora, and Tara Zahra, eds. Objects of War: The Material Culture of Conflict and Displacement. Cornell University Press, 2018. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctt1w0dddh.
FERGUSON, SUE, and HAZEL WILLIS. 2003. “FORGOTTEN TRUTHS ABOUT CAMP X: On the Shores of Lake Ontario, a Second World War Spy School Flourished.” Maclean’s (Toronto) 116: 48–48.
Government of Canada, National Defence. “2 Intelligence Company Senate.” Canadian Army. /Gouvernement du Canada, October 27, 2021. https://www.army-armee.forces.gc.ca/en/4-canadian-division/2-intelligence-company/index.page.
Hodgson, Lynn-Philip. 2000. Inside-Camp X : Camp X, the Top Secret World War II “Secret Agent Training School” Strategically Placed in Canada on the Shores of Lake Ontario Port Perry, Ont: Blake Books].
MacLaren, Roy. Canadians behind Enemy Lines: 1939-1945. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2004.
Schechter, Brandon M. 2019. The Stuff of Soldiers : A History of the Red Army in World War II through Objects Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press,. https://doi.org/10.7591/9781501739804. (Note: my internship does not focus on Russian soldiers but this book was useful for its usage of material culture to examine the belongings of soldiers)
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