Vancouver Police Museum

Photo Credit: rick

The Vancouver Police Museum (formerly Vancouver Police Centennial Museum) opened its doors to the public in 1986, the year of Vancouver’s Centennial celebrations. The museum is housed in a building that was once both the Coroner’s Court and autopsy facilities (until 1980) and the City Analyst’s laboratory (until 1996). It was designed by architect Arthur J. Bird, and today it is a municipally designated heritage building.

The Vancouver Police Museum preserves, collects, and interprets the history of the Vancouver Police Department. The museum provides an educational opportunity for people to experience the history, tactics and challenges of the Vancouver Police Department both past and present. The museum offers educational programs for the children.

The museum collection consists of approximately 20,000 objects, photographs, archival documents, confiscated firearms, counterfeit currency, papers, artifacts, memorabilia, and published materials relating to the history of policing in Vancouver.