Inside the front lobby of the Prince of Wales 快盈v3 Heritage Centre on Tuesday morning, everything looks pristine.

Carpets are being vacuumed, sunlight shines through the windows and employees are ready to greet visitors once the building opens for the day.

Behind the scenes, there is another troupe of people bringing the museum to life.

A conservation team, archivists, a graphic designer, multimedia specialist and exhibit designer have been researching, writing, uncovering photos and designing displays that will soon line the museum鈥檚 walls as part of a new exhibit.

This week, after nearly three years in the making, the team is putting the finishing touches on 鈥淲e Took Care of Them: Special Constables in the NWT,鈥� which will reveal the stories of Indigenous people who helped the RCMP patrol the North in the 1900s.

鈥淚n the Canadian imagination, at least for me, I think of these Mounties going out in the Arctic, whereas the real story is I think more interesting,鈥� said museum director Sarah Carr-Locke. 鈥淭hey had guides, they had people leading them through those patrols and the people were the special constables.鈥�

According to Carr-Locke, the idea for the exhibit arose a few years ago in the legislative assembly when Inuvik-Boot Lake MLA Alfred Moses brought up the important role special constables played.

The Prince of Wales 快盈v3 Heritage Centre, which falls under the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, agreed to look into the project and eventually partnered with the Department of Justice and RCMP to make it happen.

鈥淪ince then, what鈥檚 happened is a great collaboration,鈥� said Carr-Locke.

Paul Andrew, who Carr-Locke said was contracted to help with the project, worked with a member of the RCMP to conduct 19 interviews with special constables or their descendants.

Meanwhile, Carr-Locke and exhibit designer Rae Braden travelled to Ottawa and Regina to explore oral histories and archive collections.

The museum鈥檚 archive team dug up its own photos and received more contributions from family members for an image wall within the exhibit.

A number of people also donated old RCMP uniforms, clothing made by women from the communities and even an old dog bowl from Fort Reliance.

鈥淭hen Rae does the magic of making an exhibit with that,鈥� said Carr-Locke.

Working with the museum鈥檚 graphic designer and multimedia specialist, Braden visualized how the exhibit would unfold.

鈥淚t鈥檚 almost like a storybook,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here should be a beginning, where we introduce the ideas and then take people on a bit of a journey through the space to give them a sense of why these special constables were so important.鈥�

Between the late 1930s to mid-1960s, the goal of RCMP patrols was often to check-in on communities and assert Canada鈥檚 sovereignty in the North, according to Carr-Locke.

But many Mounties had no experience in the North and needed help.

Whole communities from across the NWT pitched in to teach them how to live, including women who made clothes and cooked, Carr-Locke said.

鈥淲hat we heard over and over again in the interviews is 鈥� 鈥楾hey would have died without us,鈥欌�� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really trying to honour that history and honour the role of these people.鈥�

With the research done, photos printed and objects mounted, Braden said now is the 鈥渇un鈥� part.

On Tuesday morning, she could be seen scurrying around the exhibit space, where a ladder and table of tools still stand and pieces of paper taped to walls map out how the final product will look.

鈥淎ll of the little pieces of that puzzle are starting to click in together,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really just fine-tuning how we鈥檙e installing things.鈥�

The exhibit officially opens to the public Aug. 3, when Daniel Dubeau, acting commissioner of the RCMP, will make a guest appearance.

Special constables and their families are also being invited to take part in a pre-opening and dinner.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 really who we鈥檙e making this exhibit for,鈥� said Braden. 鈥淪o that鈥檚 kind of our real test - hoping that they come in and they see themselves or they see their family represented in a way that we鈥檙e trying to honour.鈥�