Irving Oil donates $1.5 million to New Brunswick Museum capital campaign

A rendering shows the exterior of the facility from Douglas Avenue. (Rendering by PLAY-TIME, Courtesy of Diamond Schmitt)

Irving Oil said it is donating $1.5 million to the New Brunswick Museum “Making History Now” capital campaign.

The museum launched the capital campaign in July 2025, seeking to raise $35 million by 2027.

“This extraordinary gift from Irving Oil is a powerful vote of confidence in the future of the New Brunswick Museum,” said Tracy Clinch, chair of the Museum’s Board of Directors, in a Wednesday news release. “Irving Oil has a long-standing commitment to our province, and their leadership support brings us significantly closer to realizing a museum that will serve New Brunswickers for generations.”

The Museum’s revitalization project, which broke ground in August 2024, will expand the structure to nearly 165,000 square feet, making room for exhibition galleries, a public auditorium, a rooftop terrace, discovery centres, Indigenous engagement spaces, and research and teaching laboratories.

“We are proud to support a project that will be vital in showcasing the rich history of our home province,” says Irving Oil president and CEO Jeff Matthews in the release. “For more than 100 years, New Brunswick has been our home as we have successfully grown our business. The transformation of Canada’s oldest continuing museum will leave a lasting legacy in preserving our provincial heritage. As New Brunswickers, we have so much to be proud of.”

Construction on the museum is scheduled to be completed in 2028.

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