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Located in Valcourt, in the Eastern Townships of Quebec, the
Museum presents the life and work of the great inventor and entrepreneur
Joseph-Armand Bombardier. This privately funded museum also describes the
evolution of the snowmobile industry, in large part launched by this Quebec
visionary.
Who was Joseph-Armand Bombardier?
An unusual and exceptional mechanic, Joseph-Armand Bombardier developed and
invented an impressive number of specialized vehicles throughout his life
both for transport over snow and for all-terrain travel. Many of his
inventions were awarded patents.
The entrepreneur-inventor capitalized on his research at the end of the
1930s by manufacturing and marketing his larger snow vehicles. In 1942 he
founded L'Auto-Neige Bombardier Limitée, which soon began producing a wide
variety of industrial tracked vehicles.
The peak of Joseph-Armand Bombardier's career came with the invention of the
individual snowmobile, marketed under the Ski-Doo®2 brand name. With it came
the birth of a new industry and new winter sport.
Joseph-Armand Bombardier's accomplishments inspired the creation of the
Museum.
Posthumous tribute
Following Joseph-Armand Bombardier's death in 1964, the J.-Armand Bombardier
Foundation was created by his family to pursue the humanitarian work he
supported financially throughout his life. The Foundation later decided to
honour the inventor's memory by assembling the largest collection possible
of vehicles, tools, and machine drawings that show his prolific ingenuity.
Launch and growth
The J. Armand Bombardier Museum opened in 1971, with an inauguration
ceremony attended by then Premier of Quebec, Robert Bourassa, and the
celebrated inventor's widow Yvonne L. Bombardier, President of the J. Armand
Bombardier Foundation.
The first exhibition presented the history of
Joseph-Armand Bombardier through his inventions. Meanwhile, the Garage
Bombardier, the inventor's first workplace, became a historical annex to the
Museum in 1970 at the moment of its construction.
In 1990, the Museum inaugurated two new exhibition halls, once again in the
presence of Premier Robert Bourassa, as well as the inventor's daughter
Janine Bombardier, President of the J. Armand Bombardier Foundation.
One of the two new halls presented, for the first time, the history of the
snowmobile industry around the world and the vehicle's technological
evolution from 1960 to the present.
This permanent exhibition of model snowmobiles, winter clothing, racing
vehicles, and informational displays helps visitors understand the different
aspects of the industry. The other new hall is devoted to temporary
exhibitions on subjects relating to the Museum's themes.
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