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Only top-level descriptions Vancouver Island (B.C.)
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Colonial correspondence : correspondence of the Government of the Colony of Vancouver Island, 1849-1866 and of the Government of the Colony of British Columbia, 1858-1871

  • GR-1372
  • Series
  • 1852-1872

GR-1372 is an artificial series, created by the Provincial Archives of British Columbia in the 1920s and 1930s from records of the governments of the Colony of Vancouver Island (1849-1866), the Colony of British Columbia (1858-1866) and the United Colony of British Columbia (1866-1871). The records, consisting of correspondence inward to and among officials and departments, were originally organized more or less chronologically as records of the department or agency to which they were sent, e.g. Colonial Secretary, Attorney-General, Commissioner of Land and Works, etc. Letters when received were logged into a register and assigned sequential numbers with the last two numbers of the year appended, creating the file number, e.g. 105/62. Some of these registers still exist, e.g. GR-0625. The correspondence was often accompanied by enclosures such as reports, sketches and maps which were considered part of the file.

Sometime during the 1920s and 1930s, Archives staff undertook to re-organize these records into a single alphabetical series organized primarily by the name of the originating office or sender (road tolls and petitions are notable exceptions). Formerly separate records were intermingled and the original order was lost. The records were indexed using new file numbers assigned for that purpose. These are the F numbers written in red crayon on the records. Starting with the number 1, each folder of records in the new alphabetical sequence was assigned a number as well as the individual files (items) within that folder, e.g. F33/1.

It appears that later insertions into the alpha sequence, after the initial assignment of numbers, were dealt with by using letters (e.g. F85a, F85b), or a number in parentheses (e.g. F79(1), F80a(1)). When an F file required more than one folder, either letters were added to subsequent folders, (e.g. F102, F102a, F102b) or numbers in parentheses were used (e.g. F142b(1), F142b(2)). The F numbers on the documents, however, were not affected by the change in numbering as they formed one continuous sequence (e.g. F102, files 1-9; F102a, files 10-22; F102b, files 23-30b).

Some of the correspondence was transcribed by Archives staff. These typed transcripts are either in the file folders together with the originals or in a separate file folder following the file folder with the originals. Most of the transcripts were not microfilmed and consequently do not appear on the microfilm reels. The records were microfilmed 1978-1980.

See attached finding aid for more information about the history, contents, and indexing of this collection.

Provincial Archives of British Columbia

Requisition book

  • GR-0427
  • Series
  • 1863-1864

This series consists of a requisition book from the Colony of Vancouver Island Police and Prisons Department.

Vancouver Island (Colony). Police and Prisons Dept.

Correspondence and other material

  • GR-1227
  • Series
  • 1972-1976

This series contains files from the Public Information and Education Division. The records consist of correspondence of the Minister of Lands, Forests and Water Resources on controversial matters including: multiple use in the Nitinat Triangle (1972) and Fry Creek (1972-1973) areas, and the Eden Fire (1973-1975). This series also contains the report of the Committee for Ranger District Organization (1976) which was appointed as a result of the Eden Fire controversy.

British Columbia. Forest Service. Public Information and Education Division

Ranger meeting agenda

  • GR-1269
  • Series
  • 1949

This series contains the agenda of discussion topics at the Vancouver Forest District Ranger Meeting held February 21-25, 1949.

British Columbia. Vancouver Forest District

Board of Education minutes and other records

  • GR-1467
  • Series
  • 1865-1869

This series contains records of the Vancouver Island Board of Education and its successor, the British Columbia Board of Education. Records include minutes of Board meetings, letterbook of correspondence outward, account book of text books and other school supplies, and a notebook regarding Vancouver Island schools and visits to them by Superintendent of Education. The letterbook of correspondence and notebook of school visits in handwritten by Alfred Waddington.

Vancouver Island (Colony). Board of Education

Estates in bankruptcy

  • GR-1823
  • Series
  • 1866

Estates in bankruptcy, 1861-1866. Prepared in March, 1866, as "A return of Estates in Bankruptcy as required for the Legislative Assembly by Resolution dated Nov. 30, 1866". This volume is indexed and gives the names of estates, dates, and details regarding proceedings involving the estates, 1 vol.

Vancouver Island. Supreme Court of Civil Justice

Colony of Vancouver Island Supreme Court of Civil Justice bench book

  • GR-2031
  • Series
  • 1863-1865

Series consists of one bench book for Colony of Vancouver Island Supreme Court of Civil Justice chancery cases heard by Chief Justice David Cameron between January 1863 and August 1865.

Vancouver Island. Supreme Court of Civil Justice

Vancouver Island Supreme Court of Civil Justice bench book

  • GR-2032
  • Series
  • 1853-1856

Series consists of one bench book for Colony of Vancouver Island Supreme Court of Civil Justice civil and criminal cases heard by Judge David Cameron at Fort Victoria from November 1853 to January 1856 and one criminal case at Nanaimo in May 1854. It also includes civil cases heard at Victoria in the Inferior Court of Civil Justice in 1856. The volume additionally served as a criminal record book for 1853, a cause book for 1856, and a Registrar's record book for 1853. It opens with a notation that Judge Cameron's commission was read and that he took his seat on 6 October 1853. The Registrar also notes that he received the court seal from Judge Cameron.

Vancouver Island. Supreme Court of Civil Justice

William Law Ogilby fonds

  • PR-2208
  • Fonds
  • 1892

The fonds consists of an illustrated diary written in a school exercise book of William Law Ogilby's experience as a chainman on a survey of a portion of the western boundary of the Esquimalt & Nanaimo Railway Belt on Vancouver Island. A photograph, presumed to have been taken on the survey, depicts Ogilby and two other men at their camp at an unidentified location.

Ogilby, William Law

Provincial Police correspondence

  • GR-0105
  • Series
  • 1918-1923

The series consists of Provincial Police Inspector's files created between ca. 1918 and 1923. The files are numbered from 50 to 106 and are subject files containing letters addressed to the Superintendent, Inspector and Chief Constable. The correspondence relates to the Victoria Police District.

British Columbia. Provincial Police Force

British Columbia Cement Company Limited fonds

  • PR-2319
  • Fonds
  • [ca. 1900-1983]

The fonds consists of the records of the British Columbia Cement Company and mainly relates to the company cement plant at Bamberton, B.C. Other locations of company activity and the creation of records were Tod Inlet in Saanich, B.C., Texada Island, B.C. and the Vancouver Island locations of Cobble Hill and Horne Lake. The records were created ca. 1900 to 1982, though predominantly after 1950. The fonds includes records from the 1960s and 1970s when the company became a subsidiary of Ocean Cement Ltd.

From the 1920s to the 1960s, the products of the British Columbia Cement Company were used to build much of the infrastructure of the province. Before 1958 the B.C. Cement Company was virtually the sole supplier of cement in British Columbia.

Most prominently, record types include: technical drawings, maps, plans, diagrams and architectural drawings; correspondence and memoranda; equipment manuals, operating guides, catalogues and bulletins; photographs; research reports and technical studies; cement plant shift log books; weekly and monthly reports on labour, production and manufacturing costs; daily journals for materials purchased (stores received); reports of chemical data regarding cement testing; budget papers and financial reports, and deliveries log books (journal recordings of product sold). Other record types include: company publications and employee newsletters; quotations for goods and services; complete technical journals and magazines, (and individual articles); news clippings; company annual reports; brochures, pamphlets and flyers; committee minutes; conference proceedings; staff lists and seniority lists; org charts; plant operation flow charts and stock certificate books.

A large number of the records (including textual materials, technical drawings, maps and photographs) were generated by the activities of cement production. These include records related to quarrying; rock and materials handling; the kiln, dry mill and wet mill operations; the electrical department; the purchase and consumption of fuel including coal and oil; cement packing; chemical testing, quality control and research; the sale and shipping of cement; the purchase, operation and maintenance of equipment, and environmental monitoring. Records were created in departments of the plant including the laboratory, by the plant chemist and research and quality control staff, at the quarries, the wet mill, the dry mill, the mixing department, the kiln department, electrical department, and the cement packing plant. Other company activities that generated records include mineral exploration, property acquisition and appraisal, and the transition to closing the plant. There are relatively few records from before the 1950s.

The records were also generated by routine business activities including company administration, corporate planning, annual reporting, union agreements and labour-management relations, budgeting, auditing and financial issues, personnel and staff training. Records were created by company executives, by staff in the plant main office, by the plant manager, the plant engineer, the purchasing agent and personnel manager.

A relatively small number of records were inherited from predecessor companies. These include records which originated with the Vancouver Portland Cement Company Limited, founded by Robert Pim Butchart, which produced cement at Tod Inlet. Some records originated with the British company, the Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers (London) and its subsidiary, the Portland Cement Construction Company Limited, which purchased the land and built the Bamberton cement plant ca. 1911-1913.

Records concerning Tod Inlet include photographs ca. 1905-1913, of the first arrival of machinery and early photos of the cement plant. There are also plant technical drawings and maps relating to the Tod Inlet area, and textual records concerning B.C. Cement Company's continuing ownership of property in Saanich. Records for the Bamberton plant and townsite date from 1911; these include photographs of historic value of the first development on the site in 1912-1913. Many photos were taken by professionals, and it appears they were created and maintained by company staff in order to document the history of the company. Records for Blubber Bay on Texada Island (ca. 1929-1949) include photographs, textual material, and technical drawings. Records relating to Cobble Hill, B.C. (ca. 1950-1975) relate to investigation for mineral deposits, company property holdings, mapping, quarry operation, and the building of the private haul road from Cobble Hill to Bamberton.

The fonds also consists of records for locations where the company owned properties or carried out exploration for minerals, aerial photography and mapping. These include Davies Bay on Texada Island, and Vancouver Island locations including Horne Lake, Deep Bay, and Harris Creek in the Cowichan Valley.

The records include a history of British Columbia Cement Company by a long-time company employee, Robert H. (Bob) Moffatt. It was researched, written and updated between 1976 and 1981.

British Columbia Cement Company Limited

Duncan Macphail fonds

  • PR-2155
  • Fonds
  • 1938-1965

The fonds consists of photographs from the late 1930s to the early 1950s, taken by Duncan Macphail, a portrait and commercial photographer. Most of the photographs were taken in the Victoria area, a smaller number in other south Vancouver Island locations and in Vancouver. They cover a vast range of subjects, including: Victoria street scenes, interiors and exteriors of buildings and business operations, industrial infrastructure, portraits, community and school events, and special events such as the visit of Princess Elizabeth to Victoria in 1951. It appears that Macphail did commercial photography for the B.C. Department of Highways (possibly in the early 1960s) but it is not known if these photographs are in the fonds. In addition to Macphail's commercial and portrait photography, the fonds consists of a small number of “art” photographic prints, matted for display in exhibitions. These cover various subjects, including totem poles. One is tagged with "Exhibited - First Annual Exhibition of Photography, Canada Pacific Exhibition. Vancouver, 1938." Macphail's original indexes are in container 000358-0037.

Macphail, Duncan

Alberni Land District lot register

  • GR-2622
  • Series
  • 1872-1947

This series consists of an Alberni Land District lot register for lots 1-291 on Vancouver Island. The earliest entries are from 1872 and the volume was superseded by 1947 (i.e. no further entries were made after 1947). The register lists lots in numerical order and records the alienation of land from the Crown (by purchase, pre-emption, lease etc.). Information may include the name of the purchaser, dates and numbers of certificates issued (including Crown Grants), dates and amounts of payments, and reference numbers to correspondence files and field books. A summary of the auction sale of subdivided lots from the Eastern portion of District Lot 1, is shown on pp. 86-90. The volume contains an alphabetical index of names.

British Columbia. Dept. of Lands

Comiaken Land District land register

  • GR-2626
  • Series
  • 1859-1885

This series consists of a Comiaken Land District land register for Range 1, Section 1 to Range 3, Section 19 on Vancouver Island. The volume date 1859-1885.

The register is arranged numerically by Range and Section and records the alienation of land from the Crown (by purchase, pre-emption, etc.). Information may include the name of the purchaser, dates and numbers of certificates issued (including Crown Grants), dates and amounts of payments and reference numbers to correspondence and field books. The volume includes an alphabetical name index.

British Columbia. Dept. of Lands and Works

Comox Land District land register

  • GR-2627
  • Series
  • 1862-1933

This series consists of a Comox Land District land register for Sections 1-113 and lots 1251 on Vancouver Island. Earliest entries are from 1862 and the volume was superseded in 1933 (i.e. no further entries were made after 1933). The land is listed numerically within the sections or lots and records the alienation of land from the Crown (by purchase, pre-emption, lease, etc.). Information may include the name of the purchaser, dates and number of certificates issued (including Crown Grants), dates and amounts of payments, and reference numbers to correspondence files and field books. The volume contains an alphabetical name index.

British Columbia. Dept. of Lands

Cowichan District land register

  • GR-2630
  • Series
  • 1872-1929

This series consists of a Cowichan Land District land register, Sections I- 21 (including Saturna Island) on Vancouver Island. The earliest entries date from 1872 and the register was superseded in 1929 (i.e. no further entries were made after 1929). The register lists the sections in numerical order and record the alienation of land from the Crown (by purchase, pre-emption, lease, etc.). Information may include the name of the purchaser, dates and numbers of certificates issue (including Crown Grants), dates and amounts of payments, and reference numbers to correspondence files and field books. The volume contains an alphabetical name index.

British Columbia. Dept. of Lands

Operational records

  • GR-0973
  • Series
  • 1912-1979

This series consists of Vancouver Forest District operational records, 1912-1979. The series has been arranged into 11 sub-series: timber sale sketches; special use permit sketches; park use permit letter and sketches for Mount Seymour; scaling and royalty records including timber leases, timer licenses, fee ledgers, records of accounts, crown grants, and other material; statistical graphs; logging inspection legers for various ranger districts; pole and piling return from Anton Pole and Lumber Co.; payroll accounts of Fraser River Repair Station; a variety of disbursement ledgers; scaling and royalty deposit accounts; and general accounts under section 113 of the Forest Act.

Timber sale sketches contain X and A files, in three colour spirit duplication. These show tenure boundaries, physical features, some contour lines and cultural features such as roads and railways and are in file number order. Special use permit and park use permit sketches are similar to the timber sale sketches.

British Columbia. Vancouver Forest District

Water notices and other material

  • GR-1377
  • Series
  • 1909-1914

This series contains water licences issued for Victoria Water District, 1909-1912, by W.S. Drewry, Chief Water Commissioner, pursuant to the Water Act, 1909. The records include water notices and approval of plans. This volume was also used by the Board of Investigation to make water rights determinations, ca. 1913-1914.

British Columbia. Water Rights Branch

Mining lease records

  • GR-1141
  • Series
  • 1884-1951

The series contains records relating to mining leases (3 vols.). Volumes 1 and 2 are entitled Records of Mining, Leases and are registers of leases issued. They are arranged by Mining District. Included are entries for lease number, date and description of the lease, name of lessee, lot and locality of the lease, annual rental and other fees, expenditure requirements, date of assignment and assignee, letter reference numbers and cancellation information. Volume 3 is a record book of applications for mining leases recorded at Victoria, B.C., for the Stikine and Liard Mining Divisions of Cassiar District and Victoria District.

British Columbia. Dept. of Mines. Administrative Branch

Records of the Government Agent

  • GR-1401
  • Series
  • 1908-1912, 1936

This series contains records of the Government Agent from Cumberland relating to coal and petroleum prospecting licences for lands covered by water opposite the foreshore of Denman Island, Comox harbour, and for other lands in the Sayward and Coast Land Districts. The records consist of correspondence, notices, and plans. These records were filed in a transfer case with the Dept. of Lands on which was noted "Documents from Government Agent, Cumberland, December 18, 1939, to be destroyed under Public Documents Disposal Act. To be retained in this box pending decision of Deputy Minister of Lands."

British Columbia. Government Agent (Cumberland)

Records with regard to Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway belt lands

  • GR-0791
  • Series
  • 1916

This series consists of the records of the Commission of Inquiry Into Certain Claims Respecting Lands Situated Within the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Land Belt, 1916. This commission was also known as Settlers' Rights Commission. Commission records include correspondence, claims submitted by settlers to the Commission and other miscellaneous records. No report has been found.

British Columbia. Commission of Inquiry Into Certain Claims Respecting Lands Situated Within the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Land Belt [1916]

Nanaimo Historical Society oral history collection

  • PR-1896
  • Collection
  • 1963-1972

The collection consists of oral history interviews pertaining to early Nanaimo, southern Vancouver Island, and nineteenth century Victoria politicians.

Nanaimo Historical Society

Susan Mayse oral history collection

  • PR-1988
  • Collection
  • 1982-1984

The collection consists of oral history interviews about Victoria and Vancouver journalists and Vancouver Island people and events. Collection includes interviews with Arthur Mayse and H.H. (Torchy) Anderson.

Mayse, Susan, collector

Provincial Police correspondence and accounts

  • GR-0092
  • Series
  • 1858-1868, 1898-[ca. 1933]

The series consists of records created by the British Columbia Provincial Police Force between 1858 and ca. 1933.
The records include correspondence and other material regarding financial matters such as budgets, estimates, vouchers issued, revenue returns, bills, statements and receipts. The records also include correspondence and lists regarding stores, uniforms, equipment and supplies; vehicle reports and some colonial era records relating to Victoria and Vancouver Island police, prison, fire department and prisons.

British Columbia. Provincial Police Force

Central Coal Company fonds

  • PR-1269
  • Fonds
  • 1951-1963

The fonds consists of correspondence and accounts books of the Central Coal Company.

Central Coal Company

Coal Tyee history project collection

  • PR-1789
  • Collection
  • 1978-1984

The collection consists of interviews pertaining to the history of coal mining on Vancouver Island.

Coal Tyee Society

Voter's lists and poll books for Vancouver Island

  • GR-0484
  • Series
  • 1860

This series consist of voters lists and poll books for the Vancouver Island House of Assembly elections, 1860-1866. Includes electoral districts of Nanaimo (1865), Esquimalt (1865), Victoria District and Victoria Town (1865, 1866) and Sooke (1866).

Vancouver Island (Colony). Sheriff

Customs Dept. letter book

  • GR-1733
  • Series
  • 1858-1876

The series consists of a letter book created by the Collector of Customs in the Vancouver Island Customs Dept. between 1858 and 1871 and the Canada Customs Department between 1871 and 1876. It contains copies of correspondence outward from the Customs Houses in Victoria and New Westminster. There is an index to the volume.
The Collector of Customs was based as follows:
A.C. Anderson, Victoria, July 1858 - April 1859
W. Hamley, Victoria, April 1859 - June 1859
W. Hamley, Queensborough, New Westminster, June 1859 - December 1868
W. Hamley, Victoria, January 1869 - June 1876

Vancouver Island (Colony). Customs Dept.

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