The first HMCS Cornwallis opened in Halifax on 1 May 1942 as a training base for new recruits.  It moved to Deep Brook near Digby, Nova Scotia in April of 1943 and was the largest naval training facility in the Commonwealth during WWII.

The base closed after the war but reopened shortly afterwards and was the basic training facility for RCN recruits and then all English-speaking recruits for the Armed Forces till 1994 when the base was closed, and basic training moved to St. Jean, Quebec.

When the base closed, several items from St George’s Chapel were brought to HMCS STAR by our Padre, LCdr Don Lee.  These items were returned to Cornwallis for display in a museum which operated there from 1997 to 2017 and were returned to STAR in 2018 when the museum itself was closed.

Our display includes items from the chapel including a brass missal stand, candlesticks, vases, etc.