Heritage institutions: data tables

These tables provide information on finances, attendance and personnel, of non-profit and for-profit heritage institutions in Canada. These institutions include museums, art galleries, historic sites, exhibition centres, planetariums, observatories, aquariums, zoos, botanical gardens, arboretums and conservatories.

Data for 2004 should not be compared with previously published data for Heritage Institutions since significant changes were made to the survey.  Key trends can still be determined as this release includes data for the two previous survey years, 1999 and 2002, using the 2004 methodology.

The new Survey of Heritage Institutions collects data on for-profit as well as not-for-profit heritage institutions in Canada. The data are collected using a sample, which represents 95% of total revenue earned by heritage institutions. It also includes a limited set of financial data from administrative sources for institutions whose combined revenues represent the remaining 5% of total industry revenues.

Data are collected using the Business Register, a central Statistics Canada database of businesses that have been classified using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). This industry-based classification is a departure from the activity-based classification used previously by the Culture Statistics Program. Some heritage institution activity which was previously included in the survey is now excluded if this represents secondary activity within a non-heritage organization. An example might be an art gallery that is part of a university.

Despite these changes, a number of data points for two earlier survey years have been produced so that key trends can still be determined.  These “backcasted” data represent estimates of historical data that would have been produced using this new coverage and methodology for those years. 

These backcasted estimates should be used with caution.  Nevertheless, they are our best estimates using all the information available of the data that would have been produced if we had collected data using the new methodology and coverage.

For further information on all survey changes and collection and processing methodologies, see “The new culture of the Culture Statistics Program” at 87-004-XIE2003003.pdf.

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