Knaut-Rhuland House Museum
The Knaut-Rhuland House is a late eighteenth century two and-a-half storey wooden structure and recognized as a Municipal, Provincial and National Historic Site. Located on Pelham Street, in the heart of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, the house is set immediately on the sidewalk, and is situated close to its neighbours. The building is currently a museum. The Knaut-Rhuland House was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada in 2002.
We are hiring - Curator-Manager
The Lunenburg Heritage Society (LHS) is seeking applicants for the position of a Curator-Manager for the Knaut-Rhuland House Museum (KRHM) a vibrant historic house museum which provides visitors with an insight into early residential life in Lunenburg.
Lunenburg is a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the South Shore, founded in 1753 as one of the first British colonial settlements in Canada. Famous for its iconic, brightly painted 18th and 19th century wooden buildings, the historic fishing port features a working waterfront, rich seafaring history, and is the home port of the Bluenose II sailing ship. The KRHM is located at 125 Pelham Street in the heart of Lunenburg in a late 18th century home, a National Historic Site of Canada.
The Lunenburg Heritage Society is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment. We encourage applications from all qualified individuals.
"Why Work Here?"
● Opportunity to lead and shape the future of a National Historic Site located in Old Town Lunenburg, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
● High degree of autonomy and direct impact on the museum's success.
● Work in the vibrant, historic community of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.
● Engage deeply with local history, culture, and community.
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Details about the job:
As the only full- time employee, the Curator-Manager will report to the Chair of the LHS Board or their designee and work collaboratively with the LHS Board of Directors to provide leadership and management to advance the mandate, vision, values, and strategic direction of the museum and society.
LOCATION : Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
SALARY : Starting at $25/hour, commensurate with experience and education
JOB TYPE : Permanent Full-time (37.5 hours/week)
LANGUAGE REQUIRED : English; French is an asset
Telework : No
The main responsibilities of the position include:
● Provide overall leadership and strategic direction for the museum's operations, programming, and sustainability in collaboration with the LHS Board of Directors.
● Organize and implement the display, storage, security, preservation, and maintenance of the collection and keep clear and accurate records.
● Manage projects related to researching, curating, and presenting exhibitions including improving the display, curation and regular rotation of museum artifacts and collections.
● Document and monitor environmental conditions in display and storage areas.
● Monitor the care and maintenance of the building and grounds including the security system and after-hours access.
● Recruit, train, and supervise summer students including shift scheduling, setting, and monitoring of performance objectives.
● Manage marketing, advertising and communications on behalf of the museum including the website and social media.
● Support the implementation of educational and public programming activities.
● Assist with research enquiries from outside agencies and the public.
● Work to increase the museum’s profile through collaboration with the local arts and heritage community, business partners, and the public.
● Write grants for municipal, provincial, and federal government funding and engage in fundraising activities as required.
● Manage the KRHM gift shop including developing policies and procedures, ordering stock, ensuring the fulfillment of orders, and preparing daily sales reconciliations.
● Develop policies and procedures as required.
● Maintain a strong, positive working relationship with the LHS Board and, when requested, attend Board meetings, provide status reports and updates, and participate in strategic planning discussions.
● Assist with budget preparation as requested; submit payroll to the Treasurer for approval.
● Other duties as required.
Qualifications, Skills and Experience:
REQUIRED
● Post-secondary education in Museum Studies, Museum Management, Curatorial Studies; or post-secondary work in a related field plus a post-secondary degree or coursework in museum studies.
● A sound knowledge of Canadian museums standards, ethical practices, policies, and procedures.
● Strong administrative skills and experience using Microsoft Office.
● Experience using social media platforms as marketing and advertising tools.
● Excellent written and verbal communication skills, and interpersonal, organizational, and time management skills.
● Experience organizing, creating, and delivering interpretive programming.
● Willingness to engage actively with LHS board and committee members, other museum/heritage groups, educational institutions, and museum visitors.
● Willingness to participate in professional development opportunities.
● Certified in First Aid / CPR or willingness to obtain.
● No criminal record. Must be able to provide Criminal Record and Vulnerable Sector checks.
● Ability to work occasional weekends or evenings.
ASSETS
● Minimum of 1 to 2 years of professional experience in the cultural heritage field.
● Knowledge of museum database management.
● Experience writing grant applications, managing projects and/or executing fundraising activities.
● Knowledge of Nova Scotia history.
● Previous supervisory experience.
How to apply:
Email your resume and cover letter with references to:
KnautRhulandHouseMuseum@gmail.com Attention Hiring Committee
by 16FEB2026
Candidates invited for an interview will be asked to submit a two-page portfolio showcasing their roles on three different projects of varying types. Projects may include, but are not limited to, exhibition design or installation, programming, collection work, special event coordinating, etc.
For additional information about the Lunenburg Heritage Society and the Knaut-Rhuland House Museum, please visit our website at https://lunenburgheritagesociety.ca
Visiting the museum
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The Knaut-Rhuland House Museum is located at 125 Pelham Street in the heart of Lunenburg.
The Knaut-Rhuland House Museum provides visitors with an insight of early residential life in Lunenburg from 1753 to 1910. Interpretation is provided on the settlement of Foreign Protestants, Lunenburg as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Lunenburg Architecture. Traditional crafts were also an important component of residential life in Lunenburg and museum interpreters and volunteers demonstrate these crafts as well as host free beginner workshops through the summer.
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Hours of operation
*NEW Opening Date for 2025* May 17 – Sept 4
11 am – 5 pm (7 days a week)
September
Daily: Noon to 4 pmFree admission, however donations are gratefully accepted.
Knaut-Rhuland House circa 1793
For more than a century, the Knaut-Rhuland House was part of a town estate, with a large barn or stable, gardens and orchard, and perhaps other features such as chicken coop, smoke house, outhouse, root cellar, well and fences. A 1762 town plan shows that Phillip Knaut owned half the block bounded by Lincoln, King and Pelham Streets. This was a large lot in a prestigious location, indicating Knaut’s local prominence. Later, the Rhuland and Creighton families made changes to both the house and the land. Parts of the estate were sold for the Post Office and Customs House built in 1893 and the Odd Fellows Opera House built in 1907. Today the Knaut-Rhuland House occupies less than 20% of its original site, and the house now looks onto Pelham Street rather than onto the original estate.
The House's Heritage Value
The Knaut-Rhuland House is valued for its age, architectural style and previous ownership by well-known residents of Lunenburg. On the exterior it has many of the features of the New England Colonial style, yet it is unmistakably Georgian in its interior layout and floor plan. Knaut-Rhuland House was built in 1793-1794 by Benjamin Knaut, a merchant and sheriff of Lunenburg. He was the son of one of the most prominent foreign Protestants to settle Lunenburg in 1753, Philip Augustus Knaut. Philip Knaut was the first elected member from Lunenburg to the Nova Scotia Assembly of Representatives.
Benjamin Knaut sold this house in 1813 to Conrad Rhuland, a mariner and privateer. Rhuland was the grandson of another of Lunenburg's original settlers. Rhuland made significant changes in the downstairs front parlour, reflecting the regional Vernacular German style of the first quarter of the 19th century. In 1823, Rhuland sold the house to John W. Creighton. As a member in the Assembly for Lunenburg County, Judge of Probate, President and Speaker of the Legislative Council, and finally as a Member of the Executive Council (Cabinet), Creighton was an important provincial politician from 1830 until his death in 1867. The house remained in the Creighton family until 1906.
In 1907, the house was sold to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and then to the Lunenburg Heritage Society in 2000. It is now a museum that serves as an example of early life in Lunenburg
The house was designated a National Historic Site by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada in 2002 due to its historical importance. It has also been designated a Registered Heritage Property by the province of Nova Scotia and a Municipal Heritage Property by the Town of Lunenburg. It is one of the best-preserved eighteenth-century houses in Canada, built in the Colonial, Palladian style.
Character-defining elements of the Knaut-Rhuland House include:
thick stone foundation;
post and beam frame built around two massive central chimneys;
six-over-six windows, in a balanced five-bay façade around a central doorway;
a medium pitched roof and plank wall;
hand-blown cylinder glass in some windows;
wide cornerboards, bracketed under returned eaves;
side and transom windows around the central front door;
simple trim ornamentation;
early nineteenth century latches and hinges, mouldings and ceiling cornices, & fireplace surrounds.
Garden
The garden, once a lovely, shaded garden (see image on right), is closed for the 2024 season as we undertake necessary upgrades to the property's drainage and make repairs to the foundation (see Conservation Efforts for more information).
In the early 2000s, James Aulenbach, Head Gardener, designed and spent many hours developing a beautiful and very colourful garden in our backyard with the help of many Society volunteers. James passed away in 2017, a bench donated in his memory by Sue Kashanski in 2021, will return to the garden when it is reconstructed.
Donations and Loans Policy
The Lunenburg Heritage Society is actively soliciting donations and loans of historical artifacts that will help us portray and interpret the early history of the Town of Lunenburg at the Knaut-Rhuland House Museum. We are looking for artifacts that:
pertain directly to the Town of Lunenburg and specifically to the settlement established by the Foreign Protestants of the era from 1753 to Confederation in 1867;
relate directly to the Knaut, Rhuland and Creighton families during the years in which they occupied the House from approximately 1793 to 1910.
We are particularly interested in obtaining furniture, textiles, paintings, silver, porcelain, household tools, implements and furnishings that will help us tell the story of the House during the early years of the settlement of Lunenburg and its development as a prosperous community engaged in ship-building, privateering, fishing and trading throughout the world, as well as its contribution to political life in Nova Scotia.
For further information, please contact the Knaut-Rhuland House Committee.
