The weekly history lesson: PAMA

If you are a history junkie, then the Peel Art Gallery Museum and Archives (PAMA) is a place I recommend you visit some time! PAMA is a museum, art gallery and archives for all of Peel Region.

Located in beautiful Brampton, PAMA was formerly called the Peel Heritage Complex, and it opened its doors in 1968. The original facilities were the Peel County Courthouse, the Peel County Jail, the Peel Count Office Building and the Registry Office. The courthouse and the jail were both built in 1867, and the Registry Office opened in 1890. The Peel County Office Building opened in 1959. When the facility opened on November 17, 1968, professionally designed exhibits were showcased. The focus was on a mixture of the Peel Region rural past life and life of the present.  

The Region of Peel took over the complex in 1984, and architect Carlos Ventin was brought in to redesign the Peel County Jail and the Peel County Registry Office and build a new building. The well designed architecture won the 1986 City of Brampton Award of Excellence, Development Design Awards and the Ontario Renews Award from the Ministry of Housing for Non-residential Renovation in 1987.  

When Great Depression displays were featured, the complex drew criticism from some folks who lived throughout the era. By 1987, a estimated 18000 visited the facility and by 1989, attendance grew to 24000. In the spring of 2010, the Peel Heritage Complex closed its doors for renovations, and it reopened as the Peel Art Gallery Museum and Archives in 2012.

Here is the official website for PAMA:

http://pama.peelregion.ca/en/aboutpama/welcometopama.asp

I recommend reading up on all the interesting info and details about PAMA! I promise you won't be disappointed!