In 2013, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) announced the opening of 10 million pages under its Block Review Project. LAC is happy to announce that the count is now up to 20 million pages open as a result of this initiative.

This project is allowing greater access to many LAC archival government records covering a myriad of federal departments and documenting all operations and functions of the Canadian federal government.

Of particular interest is the opening of approximately two million pages documenting the federal government’s centennial celebrations in 1967. The records, held by the Expo 67 fonds and the Exhibitions Branch of the former Department of Trade and Commerce, cover all aspects of the preparations and operations of Expo 67. They complement previously opened material in the records of the Centennial Commission. Together, they constitute a body of archival records ready for research, as Canadians prepare to celebrate our sesquicentennial in 2017.

Also opened are over four million pages from the former Canadian Department of Trade and Commerce, documenting Canada’s international trade functions from the 1880s to the 1980s. Canada’s international trade relations with the Commonwealth and other countries have been an important government function from the time of Confederation to the present. The records provide evidence of this long and illustrious history, documenting our trade relations with specific countries and all international trade functions.

The Expo 67 and international trade records are just two of a number of federal government collections to which the block review is now allowing greater access.

Native People of Canada Pavilion – Expo 67 (MIKAN 3192403)