This week on Ask A Historian, Matthew Wilkinson joins Lisa Abbott, Manager, Museums of Mississauga and Small Arms Inspection Building, as they discuss the many amazing current and future programs planned for the Museums of Mississauga.

They revisit some of the staple programs, some returning favorites, and new programs that delve into the history of not only the buildings of Mississauga, but the people who have called Mississauga home.

Lisa has worked for the City of Mississauga for over 14 years in a variety of roles supporting the creative sector and community development. As part of the original team to open Celebration Square, she worked with event organizers to expand their audiences and create meaningful experiences for residents. She has been the lead for several City initiatives including the SaugaBusks program, PanAm and ParaPanAm Cultural Events and Installations, Culture Days, Music Monday and National Youth Arts Week. In partnership with the City’s Environment team, she worked with the Blackwood Gallery in 2018 to bring The Work of Wind: Air, Land, Sea to Lakeside Park and the surrounding industrial blocks. She has been the Manager for the Museums of Mississauga and the Small Arms Inspection Building since 2019, bringing new exhibitions to Mississauga and expanding museum programming city-wide through a lens of equity, diversity and inclusion.

Prior to working for the municipality, Lisa worked as a stage manager for live theatre productions working and touring across Canada and the US for Disney, Livent, Mirvish Entertainment, the Canadian Opera Company, The Stratford Festival, Classical Kids and Opera Atelier. In addition to stage management, she worked as a playwright, director, producer, actor, scenic painter, props builder, grant writer, and caterer for not-for-profit productions in Toronto. Lisa has an Honours Degree from Queen’s University for Drama.

#ApartTogether we celebrate the historic museums throughout Mississauga for #MuseumMonth!


You are invited to email us questions you have about Mississauga and we encourage you to send a short (less than 1 minute) MP4 video of your question, which we may feature in one of our “Ask a Historian” videos.

Any questions not featured in our videos will receive a written response from Matthew.

We would also love to feature questions from young Mississauga residents who are curious about their city and will feature a dedicated video to these inquisitive kids.

Send your questions to us at: [email protected]