Pugwash Park Commissioners

Pugwash Park Commissioners preserves and operates Thinkers Lodge National Historic Site in Pugwash Nova Scotia. Thinkers Lodge is open to the visiting public and holds regular conferences. Welcome to Thinkers’ Lodge! Located on the Northumberland Strait at the mouth of the Pugwash River Estuary Thinkers Lodge was declared a National Historic Site in 2008. The Pugwash Conferences of Science and World Affairs got their start here in 1957 when Cyrus Eaton hosted 22 scientists from both sides of the Iron Curtain to discuss the threat of Nuclear Weapons. Cyrus Eaton a native of Pugwash bought the 'Pineo Lodge' in 1929 together with some adjoining buildings and land along the river after two successive fires had destroyed the river front. He then donated the property to a Nova Scotia non profit incorporated by an act of the Legislature. The property was expanded and enhanced by Andrew Cobb one of Nova Scotia's famous architects. The Lodge operated as a bed & breakfast from 1931 to 1964 and the nearby Lobster Factory operated as a teahouse. In 1955 Mr Eaton decided to change the mission to focus on educational programs. Conferences workshops and educational events have been held here continuously since 1955. The most famous conference was the first Pugwash Conference on Science and World Affairs in 1957 that lead to a Nobel Peace prize in 1995. Shared by the conferences and Joseph Rotblat its spiritual leader. Rotblat's Nobel prize is on display at the Lodge. Thinkers Lodge has been completely restored over the last ten years and enhanced with interpretive displays that help tell the story of how history was made here. Recent programs have featured the global threats of Nuclear War and Climate Change. In addition Thinkers Lodge hosts activities designed to build community in and around Pugwash.