Monthly Archives: January 2017

Tips for aviation accident research, part 2

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By Mathieu Sabourin

In our previous blog post on civilian aviation accidents, we covered the main search principles for finding files on this topic in our archives. We showed you that records could generally be found in four record groups:

  • Department of National Defence fonds: R112 (1923–1936)
  • Department of Transport fonds: R184 (1936–1984)
  • Canadian Aviation Safety Board fonds: R13086 (1984–1989)
  • Transportation Safety Board of Canada fonds: R1009 (1990–present)

Let’s take a look at the characteristics of the first two record groups so you can better focus your searches.

Department of National Defence fonds

After the First World War, the Royal Canadian Air Force served as a civilian airline for the government and was therefore responsible for investigating aircraft accidents. The Civil Aviation Branch was created for this purpose in 1923.

At the time, the Department used a subject-block numeric classification system. Blocks 1021 and 1100 (all the files starting with these numbers) were reserved for aviation accident records. For example:

Screenshot of the results of an archives search. A big red arrow indicates the reference to Block 1021.

Example of a file from Block 1021.

Continue reading →

Glenn Gould podcast images now on Flickr

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Colour photograph of a very well used wooden chair.

Gould’s folding piano chair (MIKAN 4111968)

Thirty-four years after his death, Glenn Gould’s extensive catalogue of recordings, and the bold artistic vision behind them continue to resonate with music fans the world over. His irreverent interpretations of piano repertoire and perplexing idiosyncrasies have become the stuff of legend.

Visit the Flickr album!

Inuit women and seals: a relationship like no other now on Flickr

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Seals are a central part of life and an essential source of locally-harvested food for Inuit peoples. Many traditions, customs, beliefs and oral histories revolve around the seal. Inuit peoples were and still are in an important and direct relationship with this animal. Inuit hunters have great respect for the spirit of the seal, an animal that is so heavily relied upon. Every single part of the seal is used, as the harvesting must be sustainable, humane and respectful. Most importantly, cold and harsh arctic climates demand that people have the right shelter and clothing to keep warm and dry, and seals help meet this need through their skins, fur and oil.

A black-and-white photograph of a woman standing in front of a tent, hanging seal boots to dry on a clothesline.

Inuit woman “Aasivak Evic” hangs kamiits (sealskin boots) to dry, Pangnirtuuq (Pangnirtung), Nunavut. George Hunter. Canada. National Film Board of Canada. Photothèque (MIKAN 3198727)

Inuit women developed highly skilled techniques in order to treat and use seal in various ways throughout the seasons. They scraped the skins clean of blubber with an ulu (a traditional, women’s knife with a crescent-shaped blade).

Visit the Flickr album!

Sir Sandford Fleming: a great Canadian

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By Andrew Elliott

The year 2017 marks the 190th anniversary of the birth of Sir Sandford Fleming (1827–1915). Born in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, Fleming became a truly great Canadian. He was a successful surveyor, draftsman, and engineer. Among many accomplishments, he is noted for designing one of the first Canadian postage stamps, for helping to link Canada together by directing construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and for bringing international standard time to Canada and the world.

An oil painting of an older man with a white beard wearing a dark suit with a red cravat and a brown fur coat.

Sir Sandford Fleming, painted by John Wycliffe Lowes Forester, 1892 (MIKAN 2895065)

Like his British contemporary Charles Dickens, Fleming had an abundance of energy and productivity that would put a 21st-century individual to shame. Fleming recorded every aspect of his life, and was a great collector. He had a fine library and the walls of his house were covered with European art. Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is fortunate to hold the vast majority of records pertaining to Fleming’s life. It is a rich collection of text, photographs, and art, and has been with LAC since 1915.

After receiving an education in Kennoway and Kirkcaldy from the Scottish engineer and surveyor John Sang, Fleming immigrated to Canada from Scotland in 1845. To finish his certificate in engineering, Fleming prepared maps of Peterborough, Hamilton, Cobourg, and Toronto in 1849. After this, Fleming’s career took off.

In 1849, Fleming helped found the Royal Canadian Institute in Toronto, a professional society of architects, surveyors, and engineers. At the age of 30, in 1857, he was appointed engineer-in-chief of the Ontario Northern Railway.

Six years later, in 1863, the Canadian government appointed him chief surveyor of a proposed route for the Intercolonial Railway linking Upper Canada and Lower Canada to the Maritime colonies. He subsequently became chief engineer.

A black-and-white studio photograph of a group of men in various poses, facing in different directions.

The Intercolonial Railway group with Sir Sandford Fleming seated on the right. Photograph by William James Topley, March 1870 (MIKAN 3378651)

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Library and Archives Canada releases its latest podcast episode, “Glenn Gould: Remixing the Classics”

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Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is releasing its latest podcast episode, “Glenn Gould: Remixing the Classics”.

Thirty-four years after his death, Glenn Gould’s extensive catalogue of recordings, and the bold artistic vision behind them continue to resonate with music fans the world over. His irreverent interpretations of piano repertoire and perplexing idiosyncrasies have become the stuff of legend. In this episode we speak with Kevin Bazzana, author of the award-winning biography Wondrous Strange: The Life and Art of Glenn Gould. He tells us about Gould’s extraordinary career in music and the surprising secrets revealed to him about Gould’s private life while conducting research at Library and Archives Canada.

Subscribe to our podcast episodes using RSS, iTunes or Google Play, or just tune in at Podcast–Discover Library and Archives Canada: Your History, Your Documentary Heritage.

For more information, please contact us at bac.balados-podcasts.lac@canada.ca.

Guest curator: James Bone

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Banner for the guest curator series. CANADA 150 is in red along the left side of the banner and then the bilingual text: Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? and under that text is Guest curator series.Canada: Who Do We Think We Are?

Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? is a new exhibition by Library and Archives Canada (LAC) marking the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. This exhibition is accompanied by a year-long blog series.

Join us every month during 2017 as experts, from LAC, across Canada and even farther afield, provide additional insights on items from the exhibition. Each “guest curator” discusses one item, then adds another to the exhibition—virtually.

Be sure to visit Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? at 395 Wellington Street in Ottawa between June 5, 2017, and March 1, 2018. Admission is free.

A square sepia stamp. Each corner has the number three indicating the cost. A ring around the center reads, “Canada Postage Three Pence” with a crown between the top words. In the center of the circle is a beaver beside running water with a mountain and trees in the background.

The Three-Pence Beaver designed by Sir Sandford Fleming, 1851 (s002250k) ©Canada Post.

The beaver was seen as a good stand-in for the average Canadian: industrious, tenacious… and with great building skills. This is one reason why it appears on the nation’s first postage stamp.

The Three-Pence Beaver designed by Sir Sandford Fleming, 1851

Tell us about yourself

I acquire and process philatelic archives from private, or non-governmental, sources. Although LAC holds the extremely important Post Office Department fonds containing the records of Canada Post, the study of philately is one that happens entirely in the private sphere. So to complement the official records, LAC also collects the records of stamp designers, engravers and artists along with those of printing companies, Canada’s philatelic study societies and prominent philatelic researchers and exhibitors.

I recently represented LAC at the 2016 British North America Philatelic Society Exhibition in Fredericton, New Brunswick where I sought to foster knowledge of LAC’s holdings and how to use them, while also making a pitch that members of the society could have archival records of interest to LAC’s growing collection.

I did not entirely expect to find myself at LAC. After completing my undergraduate studies in 2006, I received a full scholarship for a year to continue my studies in Chinese language at Beijing Normal University in preparation for a planned MA program in Chinese history. However, illness and a change of direction brought me into the workforce. I worked in technical support in London, Ontario and later supervised a technical support team in Montréal for several years before returning to graduate school. Continue reading →

Protecting Fort Anne – One of Canada’s First Parks

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By Vasanthi Pendakur

Fort Anne National Historic Site in Annapolis Royal sits at the edge of the Annapolis and Allain Rivers in Nova Scotia. The park, established 100 years ago, is Canada’s first federally administered national historic site (Fort Howe in New Brunswick is the first historic site). This designation is thanks to the efforts of Annapolis Royal residents to protect the fort for future generations and the desire of the federal Parks Branch to create national parks.

Black-and-white photograph of a stone archway and the view through it showing a large fenced building in the background with land in front. A woman and five children are pictured in the centre, seated on the ground.

View of arch connecting outside works of Fort Anne, Annapolis, N.S. with magazine and showing Officers’ Quarters in the distance (MIKAN 3305260)

Fort Anne is significant for its role in the French and British wars during the early settlement of Europeans. Both the French and the British gained control over the land at different times before the French built their fort at Port Royal in 1702. Pierre-Paul de Labat, an engineer and lieutenant in the French navy, designed the fort located at the edge of the Annapolis and Allain Rivers.

A map showing the location and shape of the Annapolis Royal area.

A general plan of Annapolis Royal surveyed by Capt. John Hamilton in 1753 (MIKAN 4128803)

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Inuit women and seals: a relationship like no other

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By Julie Dobbin

Seals are a central part of life and an essential source of locally-harvested food for Inuit peoples. Many traditions, customs, beliefs and oral histories revolve around the seal. Inuit peoples were and still are in an important and direct relationship with this animal. Inuit hunters have great respect for the spirit of the seal, an animal that is so heavily relied upon. Every single part of the seal is used, as the harvesting must be sustainable, humane and respectful. Most importantly, cold and harsh arctic climates demand that people have the right shelter and clothing to keep warm and dry, and seals help meet this need through their skins, fur and oil.

Black-and-white photograph of an Inuit woman inside an igloo wearing a floral print parka and tending a seal oil lamp, with a young Inuit child wearing a fur parka.

Woman tending a seal-oil lamp inside an igloo, Western Arctic, probably Nunavut, 1949 (MIKAN 3202745)

Inuit women developed highly skilled techniques in order to treat and use seal in various ways throughout the seasons. They scraped the skins clean of blubber with an ulu (a traditional, women’s knife with a crescent-shaped blade) then stretched and dried them, as seen in this photograph of Taktu.

A colour photograph of an Inuit woman wearing a red cloth jacket, crouching on a rocky coastline and scraping fat from a seal skin with an ulu (a woman’s knife).

Taktu cleaning fat from a seal skin, Kinngait (Cape Dorset), Nunavut, summer 1960 (MIKAN 4324316)

Continue reading →

Images from the Peter Winkworth Collection now on Flickr 

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The Peter Winkworth Collection at Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is a nationally significant, rare and valuable art collection that documents more than four centuries of Canadian history. This comprehensive collection is a testament to Peter Winkworth’s commitment to preserving Canada’s early art forms and heritage.

Peter Winkworth inherited his love for collecting from his family. He had all the qualities and attributes necessary to make a great collector: knowledge, a keen eye, resources and a sustained passion. After a devastating accident that cost him his leg, Winkworth began studying Canadiana seriously and devoted the next 50 years of his life to building one of the largest private collections of Canadiana art. He passed away in 2005 at the age of 76.

In 2002, with the assistance of funds from the Government of Canada, the National Archives of Canada purchased more than 700 watercolours and drawings, more than 3,300 prints and nine paintings from Winkworth’s London-based collection. In 2008, LAC acquired a further 1,200 works of art from his collection, thus keeping the bulk of this irreplaceable treasure intact. These works of art are now preserved at LAC for future generations to discover.

Visit the Flickr album!

Guest curator Meaghan Scanlon

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Banner for the guest curator series. CANADA 150 is in red along the left side of the banner and then the bilingual text: Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? and under that text is Guest curator series.Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? is a new exhibition by Library and Archives Canada (LAC) marking the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. This exhibition is accompanied by a year-long blog series.

Join us every month during 2017 as experts, from LAC, across Canada and even farther afield, provide additional insights on items from the exhibition. Each “guest curator” discusses one item, then adds another to the exhibition—virtually.

Be sure to visit Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? at 395 Wellington Street in Ottawa between June 5, 2017, and March 1, 2018. Admission is free.

Les voyages du sieur de Champlain…, Samuel de Champlain, 1613 and its map, the Carte geographique de la Nouvelle Franse faictte par le sieur de Champlain [Geographical map of New France by Samuel de Champlain, 1613]

Les voyages du sieur de Champlain…, 1613 and its map Carte geographique de la Nouvelle Franse faictte par le sieur de Champlain [Geographical map of New France by Samuel de Champlain], engraved by David Pelletier in 1612. (MIKAN 3919638) (AMICUS 4700723)

Les voyages du sieur de Champlain…, 1613 and its map Carte geographique de la Nouvelle Franse faictte par le sieur de Champlain [Geographical map of New France by Samuel de Champlain], engraved by David Pelletier in 1612. (MIKAN 3919638) (AMICUS 4700723)

Explorer Samuel de Champlain saw Canada as a land of potential. He published this book, with an eye-catching map, to advertise its possibilities to investors. The beautiful drawings of plants are probably his own. Continue reading →