Kings County Museum
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| Established | 1981 |
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| Location | 37 Cornwallis Street, Kentville, Nova Scotia |
| Type | Municipal Museum |
| Website | www.kingscountymuseum.ca/ |
The Kings County Museum is a museum located in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada exploring the history of Kings County, Nova Scotia. It is housed in the restored 1903 Kings County Courthouse. The Museum hosts a variety of permanent and changing displays about Kings County. It is also home to the Parks Canada National Commemorative New England Planters Exhibit.
The courthouse was built in 1903, replacing a wooden courthouse from 1850 located just to the north which was so decrepit it was subsequently used as a shed to store apples. The new courthouse was built by Wolfville builder and architect Leslie R. Fairn. It combined Courts, County municipal offices and Land Registry as well as providing offices for Probate, Prothonotory, Treasurer, County Clerk and Sheriff. Fireproof safety vaults were built into the walls and were said to be "the best in the province". The Courthouse was built at a cost of $20,000 from brick and decorative pressed brick made in Avonport, Kings County and sandstone quarried at nearby Cumberland County. The courthouse opened officially with the first meeting of Kings County Council in the new building on January 12, 1904. The first major trial at the courthouse was in June 1904 when it hosted the trial of William Robinson for the axe murder of his wife. Found guilty in a dramatic trial, during which lightning struck the courthouse's brand-new ornate cupola, Robinson was hanged on September 12, 1904 in front of a rowdy crowd at the jail beside the courthouse, the last hanging in Kings County. Trials were held in the building until 1980 when a new 2.5 million dollar municipal complex containing courts, county offices and a jail was constructed in Kentville.
The Kings Historical Society was founded in 1978. The Kings Historical Society is a non-profit organization which owns and operates the Kings County Museum. When the courthouse closed in 1980, the Society successfully campaigned to save it from demolition and restore it to serve as a county museum. raising $64,000 for restoration and $15,000 for neglected repairs. It officially opened to the public as the "Old Kings Courthouse Museum" on May 27, 1981, timed to coincide with the Apple Blossom Festival, marked by the museum's first exhibit, a history of the Festival and the success of Kentville's Dominion Atlantic Railway in attracing tourism.
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