Events

Current Events

A Special Performance with Julie Arsenault

Join us from 6:00-9:00 PM on September 7th, 2024 for an intimate 45 minute concert on the museum’s gun platform with Toronto-based singer/songwriter Julie Arsenault! The concert will be accompanied by light refreshments, drinks supplied by Daft Brewing, and a silent auction to support the Murney Tower Museum’s upcoming Centennial.

For this event, our doors will open for at 6:00 PM to give visitors a chance to experience the museum, participate in a silent auction, and enjoy some refreshments. The concert will begin at 7:00 PM. Afterwards, visitors are invited to continue exploring the museum and take part in our silent auction.

All ticket sales and funds raised from the silent auction will be collected in support of the museum’s 2025 Centennial celebration.

Don’t miss out on this unique concert experience, combining music, heritage, and Murney Tower’s historic architecture.

For more information about the event and to purchase your tickets, please click here.

Past Events

We have had many interesting events at the Tower in our 99-year history. We are always open to creative ways to engage our community. Here is a small sample of some of the fun we have had in recent years.

Murney Fest

Murney Fest is a special summer event that takes place in late July/early August and includes special indoor and outdoor activities designed to celebrate the museum’s birthday. Participants get a special chance to engage in special activities and explore the tower in a unique way.

Murney Fest is a great way to connect with local museums and community organization, play some games, participate in workshops, and engage with Kingston and Murney Tower Museum’s histories.

Kids Take Over the Museum

Kids Take Over the Museum is a special event where everything in the museum is made just for kids! Children aged 5-12 (plus their chaperone) can join us and the Museum of Health Care at Kingston for a range of programs and activities that explore local heritage.

Kids can be curators for a day, make heritage and science-inspired crafts, and play educational games! Each timeslot includes two activities that take part at the Murney Tower Museum and the Museum of Health Care. Two museums, two activities, twice the fun!

Sunset Painting

Led by a local artist, sunset painting sessions take place during the summer months outside Murney Tower. Participants have a chance to get together in the park, enjoy the sunset, and capture Murney Tower using acrylic paint. The sessions include materials and instruction.

Photo by Neil Pond Photography

Eggs-tream Easter Fun at the Museum

Eggs-tream Easter Fun is a special Easter event that takes place in Murney Tower every year during Easter. Organized in collaboration with the Museum of Health Care at Kingston, this family-friendly event includes a special Easter egg hunt and arts and craft activities. Photo credit: Neil Pond.

Photo by Neil Pond Photography

Holiday Event

This special holiday event includes a fun art and craft station, a tree decorating activity and a holiday-themed treasure hunt. The tower is decorated for this special event and holiday songs fill the air.

Halloween Event

Our special Halloween-themed event involves an exclusive tour of the Murney Tower and a treasure hunt. In this event, participants get a chance to venture inside the tower at night to discover its secrets and play a fun game to win a special prize.

C&C: Curator & Collections

Are you interested in exploring Kingston’s cultural and military history through artifacts? We’ve got you covered.

C&C: Curator and Collection series provides an in-depth exploration of the Murney Tower Museum’s objects and archives. Each session focuses on a different item from the museum’s collection carefully selected by our curator. Through an engaging conversation, the museum’s Curator takes participants on a voyage into 19th-century life in Kingston. The event is free and held onsite every other Thursday throughout the summer.

Paranormal+Siege+College.jpg

Paranormal Siege: Murney Tower

Join us for an evening filled with historical and paranormal intrigue. In these special weekend events organized by the Phantoms of Yore, visitors explore the history of the Tower and dig into the supernatural. They enter the darkness of the old fortification, revel in its secrets and learn the basics in paranormal investigations. 

Phantoms of Yore is a ghost hunting group that explores the paranormal at historic sites throughout Eastern Canada. Based in Ottawa, their mandate is to foster an interest in historical sites while using a passion for paranormal folklore to encourage deeper exploration of Canadian history. The group has organized special events at the Murney Tower since 2018.

Screen Shot 2021-03-17 at 9.25.26 AM.png

History Speaker Series

Our parent organization, The Kingston Historical Society, offers a monthly lecture series on varying topics in Canadian history. For instance, Dr. Tim Cook from the Canadian War Museum recently delivered a talk entitled “Forgetting, Remembering and Remaking Canada’s Second World World War.” You can find these fascinating talks for free on the Murney Tower’s YouTube channels here. You can see the schedule and register for upcoming lectures in the series here.

An unforgettable evening at the Tower with games and drinks. This event was a collaboration with Minotaur Games and Daft Brewing that brought together tourists and locals on the barracks level of the Tower, allowing them to experience the Tower in a

An unforgettable evening at the Tower with games and drinks. This event was a collaboration with Minotaur Games and Daft Brewing that brought together tourists and locals on the barracks level of the Tower, allowing them to experience the Tower in a new way.

For several years our museum offered escape room games at night allowing the public to come and try to “Escape Murney Tower” with the award winning company Improbable Escapes. Our unique little Martello created the perfect escape room setting and a t

For several years our museum offered escape room games at night allowing the public to come and try to “Escape Murney Tower” with the award winning company Improbable Escapes. Our unique little Martello created the perfect escape room setting and a totally immersive experience that was incredibly popular.

For five years the Murney Tower Museum joined all the museums of Kingston alongside Kingston Trolley Tours in collaborative entries in Kingston’s Nighttime Santa Parade. Hundreds of Kingstonians each November were greeted by museum volunteers marchin

For five years the Murney Tower Museum joined all the museums of Kingston alongside Kingston Trolley Tours in collaborative entries in Kingston’s Nighttime Santa Parade. Hundreds of Kingstonians each November were greeted by museum volunteers marching happily down Princess Street spreading holiday cheer.

This banquet and history lecture was held in 2019 and 2020 at the Royal Military College by our parent organization, the Kingston Historical Society. Museum interpreters and volunteers attended in historical dress to share the history of the Murney T

This banquet and history lecture was held in 2019 and 2020 at the Royal Military College by our parent organization, the Kingston Historical Society. Museum interpreters and volunteers attended in historical dress to share the history of the Murney Tower with those in attendance.