The museum stands on a small island near the mouth of the Nottawasaga River. The island was created by silt collecting around the hull of a sunken schooner, the Nancy. During the War of 1812, the vessel was requisitioned by British forces to act as a supply ship for their military bases. After the American victory at the naval battle of Lake Erie, this British ship-the only one left on the Upper Lakes-was tracked down and sunk by the Americans while it hid in this spot on the Nottawasaga.