These photographs were taken by an unknown photographer from Department of National Deference Public Relations (Pacific Command) during the 1945 Polar Bear Exercise. This exercise was held in northern British Columbia in February and March 1945, using some 1,150 soldiers of the 6th Division. The intent of the exercise was to test the effects of "wet cold" conditions on military men and material. The scenario for the Polar Bear Exercise was that: "Action will be based on reports of a Japanese force having been landed at Bella Coola from submarines, having rendered useless RCAF installations at Bella Bella, and giving positive indication that this force is composed in great part of construction personnel with a comparatively small protective element; the assumption being that it will try to construct a useable road from Bella Coola to permit movement inland of a larger fighting force to follow at some later date". The exercise itself was conducted in three overlapping phases. Between 12 February and 5 March the force moved from Prince George to Anahim Lake, chiefly using an array of motor transport but with some pack horses. The second phase ran from 4 March to early April. This was a series of marches from Anahim Lake to Bella Coola and return; a secondary force of 19 men split off from the main body and, travelling by snowmobile and snowshoe, traversed the Rainbow Mountains to Bella Coola; on the return march this detachment was increased to 120 men and dubbed "Y" Force. The third phase was removal of all troops by vehicle from Anahim Lake to Williams Lake. These photographs are believed to document the return from Bella Coola.
Fonds consists of 1 copy of a typed transcript featuring Winnifred Emily Warner Russell (nee Large) being interviewed by her daughter Bev Christensen. Content of transcript includes the topics of nursing training in Vernon (1923-26) and nursing in Grace Hospital in Vancouver, and General Hospitals in Prince George, Prince Rupert, and Smithers up until 1957. No audio recording gifted.
Willard Freer, a packer and guide in remote northern BC, kept a daily diary from 1942 to 1975 that provides a detailed record of life in northern BC and southern Yukon Territory. This collection consists of digital replicas of Willard Freer's diaries from 1942 to 1975, along with accompanying transcripts created by Jay Sherwood, who authored a book about Freer's life.
Excerpts describing the Freer Diaries from "Kechika Chronicler: Willard Freer's Northern BC & Yukon Diaries, 1942-1975" by Jay Sherwood (2023), pages 14-17:
In a letter that [Willard Freer] wrote in 1935, he stated that he had started keeping a diary when he left home. Unfortunately, his early diaries have been lost. In the summer of 1939, while Freer was away working, the BC Provincial Police investigated his neighbour Frank "Shorty" Weber as a suspect in a local murder. The police seized Freer's diaries from his trapping cabin as potential evidence. Freer wrote to the police requesting the return of his diaries, but he never received them. Fortunately, Freer had made copies of his diaries for the summers of 1932 and 1934. His diary for 1934 is particularly important because he was a member of the Bedaux Expedition.
Freer's existing diaries begin in the spring of 1942, when he was still living in the Ingenika River valley, and continue until 1975. The notebook for 1950 and 1951 is missing, and the January to September 1961 section has been removed. ...
Throughout his adult life, Freer wrote a daily journal. The entries are usually brief and direct, with minimal philosophizing. They are often repetitive, describing daily routines. However, the cumulative narrative of Freer's diaries provides a rare look into the history of one of British Columbia's most remote areas.
The pantheon of people recorded in Freer's diaries include many notable individuals who lived and worked in the Kechika River valley and along the Alaska Highway. Willard's journals provide details about specific events in the lives of these people. There are many references to the famous bush pilots Stan Bridcut and George Dalziel. He notes several prospectors who are well-known in northern BC and Yukon.
Willard's work involved extensive travel through northern BC and Yukon. His diaries provide details about the locations he visited. In particular, Freer kept an important record of travel on the Davie Trail between Fort Ware and Lower Post. For every overnight trip he made, Freer recorded the campsite he used, and the amount of time he spent travelling each day.
During the 1940s and 1950s, the Kaska and Kwadacha Tsek'ene still followed their traditional yearly rounds in the Kechika drainage. Freer's diaries detail the lives and routines of numerous Indigenous people over many years. Some of them are mentioned over a hundred times in Freer's diaries. By all accounts, Willard had good relationships with the Indigenous people. In the remote northern BC and Yukon region, where there were few people, working co-operatively was important.
Willard lived and worked at Skook Davidson's Diamond J Ranch during most of the 1940s and at intervals in the 1950s, so his journals provide considerable information about Skook and life at the ranch.
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Freer's diaries contain considerable information about daily life in the lodges along the Alaska Highway.
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Freer was involved in many important projects in northern BC and Yukon. He was a member of the famous 1934 Bedaux Expedition. Freer was a packer for BC and federal government survey crews for several summers; worked on the British Columbia-Yukon Boundary Survey for four years; was employed on Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) crews for several years; and spent three field seasons on the BC government's Forest Inventory program. Willard also packed for a couple of large mining exploration companies and was a hunting guide for Robin Dalziel and other guide outfitters.
Freer's diaries can also be used to monitor events like the weather and snowfall. In the winter, when he lived at Skook's ranch or at his cabin, he recorded the temperature in the morning, at midday, and in the evening. He also noted snowfalls. Willard recorded the date that the Kechika froze over in the fall, and when the ice melted off the river in the spring. He also noted his first observations of birds in the spring.
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The diaries of Willard Freer, which chronicle over thirty years of life in northern BC, are a unique account, providing a gateway to many of the people who lived there and some of the important events that occurred.
Collection consists of a 50th anniversary video about the history of the West Fraser Timber Company Ltd.
Fonds consists of textual records, 24 photographs, 6 video recordings, 4 microcassettes, and 1 floppy disc from the 27-28 March 1998 We're All Here to Stay Delgamuukw forum.
This fonds illustrates Walt Taylor’s activities as a social activist in the Okanagan region of B.C. in the 1970s, and his involvement with political-environmental activist movements in the Bulkley Valley-Telkwa-Smithers area c.1980s-1990s. The Taylor fonds includes records of the Skeena Round Table for a Sustainable Society, the Northwest Study Conference Society and the Waging Peace Society; as well as, background research compiled for Taylor’s publication "Waging Peace for a Living: An Action Plan for survival of life on earth", (Victoria: Trafford Publishing, 1999). The Taylor fonds also contains records of significance relating to proposed economic developments, such as open-pit mining, fishing and forestry policies and nuclear power; and documents pertaining to political-environmental actions conducted by Northern BC stakeholders such as First Nations (Gitskan and Wet'su'wet'en) and NGO’s such as the Telkwa Educational Action Committee of Householders. Types of records comprising this fonds include correspondence to and from activist organizations; circulars to society members; background papers on social activist issues; background reports on BC First Nations environmental and land claims issues, background studies on environmental & economic impacts of industrial developments proposed for Northern BC, newspaper clippings, and various publications.
Taylor, WaltThe Vivian Antoniw Collection consists of textual and photographic materials including Antoniw’s graduate thesis research work c.1960 on Northwest Coast totem poles, particularly near Hazelton, Kitimaat area. Materials include textual records, thesis, photographs, slides, artistic sketches by Antoniw and grey literature related to Northwest Coast art.
Antoniw, VivianCollection consists of digitized home videos created by the Viksten family. The videos include scenes of Horsefly Lake and the Williams Lake Stampede.
The Upper Fraser Historical Geography Project was conducted by UNBC faculty and a team of researchers between 1999 and 2002. The lead researchers were Aileen Espritiu, Gail Fondahl, Greg Halseth, Debra Straussfogel, and Tracy Summerville. The project resulted in the creation of 93 oral history records and their transcripts. Participants included regional forest industry executives, politicians (including former MLA Ray Williston, local mayors and Fraser Fort George Regional District representatives), forest industry workers, and former and contemporary Upper Fraser community residents. The oral histories document the rise, consolidation and demise of the forestry-based settlements along the Upper Fraser River between 1915 and 2000.
Fonds consists of maps, plans, and drawings collected by faculty in the UNBC School of Planning and Sustainability. The majority of these maps reflect the planning history of the City of Prince George and include large format, hand-drawn plans created by the City Planning Department from the 1970s and 1980s. Maps from City of Prince George Official Community Plans are also included.
Growing collection of strike ephemera from students, CUPE staff, and faculty members at UNBC. Collection includes picketing signs, strike buttons, photographs, art, and videos from pickets and UNBC Faculty Association events during the 2015 and 2019 strikes, as well as posters and other ephemera from the UNBC Occupiers group.
Fonds consists of 26 large-format video recordings entitled "UNBC Updates" related to early history of UNBC; also includes footage of Civic Centre February 1993
CKPGCollection consists textual material, objects, and ephemera related to the history of the University of Northern British Columbia.
University of Northern British ColumbiaFonds consists of 4 audio recordings of interviews related to the opening of the University of Northern British Columbia, including Jean Forsythe, Russ Clinton, John Chapman, and Charlie Lasser. All were interviewed by T. Cattell.
Collection consists of 2001 UNBC Commerce Graduating Class yearbook.
The collection consists of textual records, publications, photographs, a videocassette, and ephemera that record the establishment and development of the University of Northern British Columbia.
Collection includes approximately 940 slides taken during the construction of the Tumbler Ridge Electric Railway during the early 1980s. Locations include the Anzac siding, the BC Rail Stuart subdivision, the Chetwynd subdivision, the Parsnip River area, Quintette, the Table River area, railway pipeline crossings, and the Wolverine River area, among others.
Includes an audiocassette and a CD copy of an interview conducted by Kent Sedgwick with Trelle Morrow on the history of architectural design in Prince George.
Morrow, TrelleThis 16mm film of Eagle Lake Sawmills was produced by Torajiro Sasaki in July 1952, likely commissioned or with permission from the sawmill owners, the Spurs. The film depicts logging and sawmilling operations at the Eagle Lake Sawmill, as well as shots of the bunkhouses, exterior shots of the mill, and the beehive burner. Employees of the mill are shown at work. In 1952, Eagle Lake Sawmill used both machinery and horses in their operations.
Sasaki, TorajiroSubject areas identified in this collection include: church and hospital buildings (including nurses quarters); group photos featuring doctors, nurses, and hospital workers; grave markers; landscapes; processing of oolichan fish; and various church-related events such as weddings and church openings.
Thomas Crosby Mission Ships
This fonds illustrates the Honourable Iona Campagnolo’s careers as a broadcaster, a theatre producer, community leader, a politician, a feminist, a social activist, a speaker, a lecturer, a Chancellor, an advocate, a consultant and Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia. Types of records reflective of her various careers include: speeches, correspondence, itineraries, contracts, draft manuscripts, newspaper clippings, background material, photographs and ephemera. The Honourable Iona Campagnolo fonds has been divided into the following thirteen series:
1) Photographs
2) Theatre & Community Development
3) Political Career
4) Non-political Activities
5) McMaster International Health Centre
6) Women in Power Project
7) University of Northern British Columbia
8) Fraser Basin Council
9) Miscellaneous – First Nations Material
10) National Speakers Bureau
11) Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
12) Honours & Awards
13) Political Papers
This Collection consists of photographs documenting early development of the Central Interior including such subjects as: homesteading, railway construction, packing & freighting, modes and routes of transportation, schools, mercantile development, leisurely activities, sports, natural resource development and exploitation, political movements, town-site development and policing. This collection also provides a look at history of the Taylor-Baxter Family - a long time pioneering family of this region, including: A.K. & Lillian Bourchier; Hugh & Hermina "Minnie" (nee Wessel) Taylor and family; Herbert & Sarah (nee Wessel) Glassey; and Bob & Violet (nee Taylor) Baxter and family.
Collection consists of 1 document on lichens entitled "Common Lichen of the Prince George Area and Their Importance to Caribou," prepared by Susan Stevenson for Northwood Pulp and Timber Limited, British Columbia Fish and Wildlife Branch.
Stevenson, SusanCollection consists of textual records related to Stuart S. Holland, Associate Engineer, Department of Mines.
Holland, Stuart S.Collection consists of one photograph album containing 28 photographs featuring images of landscapes and water views; fishing scenes; structures; automobiles; persons; Hudson's Bay Company posts; First Nations and wildlife in and about the Stuart Lake area.
Collection consists of records created and collected by Robert "Bob" Stowell (1922-2018) and his son Bill Stowell over the course of their careers in the British Columbia forestry industry.
Bob Stowell spent the majority of his 50+ year forestry career with The Pas Lumber Co. (B.C.) Ltd. in Prince George, BC as their Woodlands Manager between 1965-1991. Bob Stowell's records from The Pas Lumber Co. (B.C.) Ltd. include photographs, company histories, speeches, memoranda, correspondence, reports, and news clippings.
Bill Stowell worked for numerous forestry companies across British Columbia over the course of his forestry career (1977-2018). His collected material predominantly consists of forestry-related clippings from newspapers and periodicals, along with forestry-related publications like pamphlets, booklets, and reports. Represented among Bill Stowell's records are correspondence, memoranda, reports, and ephemera from Tolko Industries Ltd. and other various forestry companies.
Stowell, RobertFonds consists of ledgers recording accounts and maintenance notes of the S. B. Trick Lumber Co. and one photograph of the Ambrose Trick Sawmill.
S. B. Trick Lumber Co.Fonds consists of records reflecting the activities of the Dezell and Rustad families. Fonds includes materials related to the Rustad Bros. & Co. Ltd. company and mills as well as materials related to the forest industry in British Columbia and Canada. Fonds includes mayoral records from Bea and Garvin Dezell when Garvin served as Mayor of Prince George as well as materials celebrating Bea Dezell's life created by her family. Fonds also includes fundraising efforts for the Northern Medical Programs Trust. Finally, fonds includes a collection of "spruce" dollars and commemorative coins.
Dezell, GarvinThis collection consists of a variety of materials relating to the activities of the Royal Canadian Legion Prince George Branch. For more information of the Royal Canadian Legion BC/Yukon Command, please visit their website at http://bcyuk.legion.ca/
Fonds consists of Royal Bank of Canada records from branches across Northern British Columbia and the Yukon.
Royal Bank of CanadaCollection consists of 1 video recording (VHS) entitled "Uncorrupted : The Story of Rose Prince." The documentary, originally shown on EWTN, asks "Will Rose Prince be British Columbia's First Saint?" Director/Producer Ken Frith travels across British Columbia, Canada on twelve occasions to interview people about Rose Prince. Each journey is recorded as a short travel log showing the environment in which the interviewee lives. In addition, the film records the events taking place at the annual July pilgrimage to her gravesite at Lejac and the fact that miracles are being associated with the use of dirt from Rose's grave.
Collection consists of the typescript of "Excellence in Teaching," by Robert Bernoff.
Bernoff, RobertCollection consists of 2 taxidermied polar bear pelts (1 adult & 1 cub) intended for educational display.
Kitchen, RipRichard (Dick) Corless came to Prince George in 1913 from England, where upon he became an undertaker and a car dealer. He operated his funeral home business at the corner of Quebec and Fourth Avenue in Prince George. All of the funerals that he performed were recorded in a ledger, including deaths by the influenza pandemic of 1918. Mr Corless transferred his business to Assman’s Funeral home in 1931 and his ledger remained with a family member who subsequently donated it to the BC Archives.
The Prince George Genealogical Society became aware of the ledgers’ existence, and a member viewed it in the BC Archives in Victoria. Because of its fragile condition it was not suitable for photocopying; however, the BC Archives considered that it might be eligible at some point for micro-filming.
In July 2007 the Corless Ledger, was transferred from BC Archives to the Northern BC Archives and Special Collections at UNBC. Subsequently, this ledger was digitized and these images were lent to the Prince George Genealogical Society for transcription.
This funeral ledger consists of significant information on deaths in Prince George, BC, from the years 1916 to 1931. The ledger contains personal information regarding individuals who have died, including their name, cause of death, age, residence, ethnicity and the date of their death.
Fonds consists of 2 boxes of audio recordings and 1 binder related to the Oral History Programme Project conducted by Rhys Pugh in the summer of 1999.
Consists of 165 black and white photographs depicting Northwest Coast communities including Bella Bella, Rivers Inlet, Port Simpson, and Prince Rupert between approximately 1900 and 1920. Also includes postcard images of ships and boats on the North Coast belonging to the Large family, from Reverend Large's son Dr. R.G. Large. Also includes 39 colour slides ca. 1960 of ship scenes and weather balloon launches from the Dr. R.G. Large family.
Large, R.W., Rev.Collection consists of 1 publication entitled "Retain 2000: Conference Proceedings: Retention in Education Today."
Collection consists of 17 oral histories, and transcripts generated for the Living Landscapes Red Rock Community History Project and copies of photographs. Recordings by Lorita Doudiet; Doris Holzworth; Torben Lindstrom; John Marcoll; Kate Marcoll; Eric Patterson; Bill and Mary Payne; Tom Payne; John Ryser; Mabel Rutherford; Margaret Shatzko; Krystyna Simpson and Marge Slater.
Northern BC Archives & Special CollectionsFonds consists of photographs, scrapbooks of newspaper clippings and memorabilia, correspondence, reports and other textual material. The photographs relate to Mr. Williston’s life from childhood to the late 1990s, the scrapbooks document Mr. Williston’s years in political office, and the textual materials relate to both Mr. Williston’s public life and private interests.
Williston, Ray GillisThe collection consists of 9 photographs and copies of photographs showing scenes of Prince Rupert and area, groups of townspeople, a stone totem pole at Metlakatla, and a man poling a dug-out canoe probably on the Skeena River. It includes two newspaper clippings, one from the BC Saturday Sunset dated September 14, 1912 and another from The Globe dated Saturday March 23, 1907. The bound volumes of the Prince Rupert Empire newspaper were transferred to Special Collections. See accompanying note.
Prince Rupert Daily NewsCollection consists of records created, received, and collected by the Prince George Women's Centre, the Prince George Women's Collective, the Prince George Women's Equal Rights Association, the Prince George Women's Resource Centre, and the Prince George Women's Connection. This collection also features some materials on the Daughters of Lilith organization.
Prince George Women's OrganizationsThe Prince George Railway & Forestry Museum Society Collection consists primarily of textual, photographic, and cartographic records related to the regional developments of the railway industry in Northern BC. A predominant portion of the collection is made up of material from the Canadian National Railway; other railways represented include the Pacific Great Eastern Railway, the British Columbia Railway (BC Rail), the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, the Grand Trunk Railway, the Intercolonial Railway, and the Okanagan Express. Significant geographical areas covered include Prince George, the Peace River Region, Terrace, Bulkley Valley, Hazelton and Prince Rupert.
The forestry industry is represented in the collection with operational and financial records from Fyfe Lake Sawmill Ltd., which operated southwest of Prince George in the 1950s.
The collection has been organized into series according to creator, each of which also has been arranged to subseries, file and item level, where applicable. This collection consists of eight series, as follows:
1) Canadian National Railway
2) Grand Trunk Railway
3) Pacific Great Eastern Railway
4) British Columbia Railway (BC Rail)
5) Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR)
6) Intercolonial Railway
7) Fyfe Lake Sawmill ltd.
8) PGRFM
9) Photographs
Collection consists of oral histories gathered as part of Dr. Mike Evan's oral history project with the Prince George Metis Elders Society. Includes consent forms, transcripts, and the recorded oral histories on their original cassette tapes.
Evans, Michael JohnCollection contains photographs depicting community life in Prince George, B.C. Images depict holiday events, sports teams, government buildings, businesses (hotels, banks, retail, newspaper office), riverboats, railroad construction, fishing, a cemetery, street scenes, aerials, and landscapes. Also includes photos taken outside of the Prince George vicinity including Prairie Creek, Thomas Creek and Barkerville, B.C.
Fonds consists of textual material, some photographic material and 2 videocassettes which pertain to various aspects of the PG Community Foundation: the PG Citizen of the Year Award; Minutes and Correspondence ; and Publications and Ephemera all dating from ca.1995-2005.
Collection consists of 760+ images in 3 photo albums depicting Gray's travels throughout Northern BC and Alberta and 6 computer discs consisting of digital copies of these photographs.
Types of materials comprising this collection include: 2 journals, 2 newspaper articles, personal documents, 398 photographs, 2 plans, 2 autograph books, 2 wallets. Textual Series includes 1 diary and partial drafts of diary entitled "Diary of the Charles E. Bedaux Tractor Expedition from Edmonton to Telegraph Creek 1934" and a notebook by A.H. Phipps entitled "A.H. Phipps Memoirs of the Charles E. Bedaux Sub-Artic Expedition of 1934". Reports have been digitized and are accessible on the Archives Digital Collections website.
Phipps, Alfred Hugh