Version française The Library and Archives Canada (LAC) Blog is starting a new chapter. After nearly 15 years and over a thousand blog posts on this site, we are preparing to launch a … Continue reading →

Version française By Laura M. Smith Within the walls of Library and Archives Canada’s Winnipeg facility, we find an accession from Parks Canada containing numerous field notebooks used by its … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier The story of Sulo W. Alanen begins in the northern Ontarian village of Nolalu, a small settlement outside of Thunder Bay that emerged largely due to the … Continue reading →

Version française By Dylan Roy “Get on your bike and ride,” my mother often told me in my youth when I would ask for a lift somewhere. Although I would … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray In 2022, I wrote about researching my great-grandfather’s attendance at the 1936 unveiling of the Vimy Memorial. A year later, I shared another instalment, and … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier We make surprising connections throughout our lives. Things we thought were confined to our work or social circles unexpectedly surface in other areas. For me, … Continue reading →

Version française By Brian Virostek This article contains historical language and content that may upset some readers, including an illustration of a public hanging. For more information, please consult our … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier The 1950s were a decisive decade for consumerism in the western world, particularly in the Americas. Economic growth, technological advancements and mass media have a … Continue reading →

Version française By William Benoit and Alyssa White This article contains historical language and content that may be considered offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and … Continue reading →

Version française By Marc St. Dennis This article contains historical language and content that may be considered offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Brun del Re This year, Théâtre Cercle Molière, a professional theatre company located in the St. Boniface neighbourhood in Winnipeg, is celebrating its centenary. This anniversary is … Continue reading →

Version française By Théo Martin Did you know that Le Cercle Molière, one of the oldest Canadian institutions in performing arts, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year? Library and … Continue reading →

Version française By Muhamed Amin In 1994, as part of its 40th anniversary, Sports Illustrated announced its “40 for the Ages” list of most influential figures to have significantly altered … Continue reading →

Version française By Tom J. Smyth As we mark the fifteenth anniversary of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, LAC is proud to launch a web archival collection documenting … Continue reading →

Version française By Elaine Young Did you know that Canadian vessels over a certain size have had to be registered with government authorities as far back as the 18th century? … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray From fantasy to historical fiction, contemporary authors are incorporating the topic of banned and challenged books in their writing. In Rebecca Yarros’s popular Fourth Wing, a … Continue reading →

Version française By Stacey Zembrzycki This four-part Black Porter Perspectives blog series is inspired by a striking and haunting set of images found within the Department of National Defence (DND) accession … Continue reading →

Version française By Jeff Noakes The image above comes from a series of photographs of Black sleeping car porters from during and after the Second World War. This series documents … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray A few months ago, I stumbled upon something unexpected while digging through the archival database of the Office of the Chief Press Censor. Established by … Continue reading →

Version française By Forrest Pass February 15, 2025, is the sixtieth birthday of the National Flag of Canada. The media and heritage institutions—including Library and Archives Canada—often mark the flag’s … Continue reading →

Version française By Andrew Elliott In the first post of the Black Porter Perspectives series, Rebecca Murray highlighted a wartime photograph that identified a railway sleeping car porter: Jim Jones of Calgary. In … Continue reading →

Version française By Sali Lafrenie “What a trip. It was as if I had been shot through a time tunnel from the fields of Willowdale to a field of dreams. … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray Library and Archives Canada (LAC) holds over 30 million images in various formats, including born digital images, negatives and photographic prints. A single archival photograph … Continue reading →

Version française By Andrew Elliott As mentioned in Part 1 of this blog post, Allan Fleming mostly provided background consultancy work to the Canadian National Railway Company (CN) after its … Continue reading →

Version française By Andrew Elliott Introduction For some reason, few people discussed the design process for the Canadian National Railway Company’s (CN) logo that came after the initial creative spurt … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier Alberta Sugar Makes Delicious Things to Eat is a booklet created by Canadian Sugar Factories some time in the 1930s to promote its production of … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray When I opened the Canadian Army Recipe Book, I didn’t just look for sweets—my eyes also landed on a variety of savoury recipes for breads, … Continue reading →

Version française By Dalton Campbell Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has a collection of approximately 300 labour union charters dating from the 1880s to the 1980s. A sample of the charters has been digitized: … Continue reading →

Version française By Mathieu Rompré The year 2024 marks the 40th anniversary of the tabling of the final report of the Royal Commission on Equality in Employment, also known as the … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier As part of my work as a reference archivist at Library and Archives Canada (LAC), I often find myself delving into the many documents in … Continue reading →

Version française By Sacha Mathew Did you know that you can easily make your own military heritage display by using the tools and digitized records found on the Library and … Continue reading →

Version française By Andrew Elliott “Imagination is our third partner.” – Cooper & Beatty, Allan Fleming, 1958 Introduction In the history of corporate logos, one stands out above many others … Continue reading →

Version française By Dylan Roy This article contains historical language and content that may be considered offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier Canada joined the First World War on August 4, 1914, alongside Great Britain and the rest of the British Empire. What began as a mobile war quickly turned … Continue reading →

Version française By James Bone French inscription on Canadian postage stamps began in July 1908, appropriately in time for a series of stamps commemorating the three-hundredth anniversary of the founding … Continue reading →

Version française By Yannick Lacroix In 2024, Library and Archives Canada (LAC) launched Track my archival order (TMAO)—an online feature that allows you to track the status of your archival … Continue reading →

Version française By Ellen Bond I walked up to Tanya Talaga at a Know History conference in June 2023, after her keynote speech about her search for her great-great-grandmother, Annie … Continue reading →

Version française By Michelle Foggett-Parker International Read an e-Book Day, celebrated on September 18, serves as a reminder of the transformative impact digital books are having on reading habits worldwide. … Continue reading →

Version française By François Larivée Library and Archives Canada has recently acquired a fonds related to religious heritage: the Desmarais et Robitaille fonds. The Desmarais et Robitaille company specialized in the … Continue reading →

Version française By Dylan Roy Sometimes you come across a record that doesn’t necessarily make sense at first glance. This was my experience when I first looked at the archival … Continue reading →

Version française By Dalton Campbell Labour Day first became a national holiday 130 years ago in 1894. In April of that year, labour leaders met with Prime Minister Sir John … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier LeBreton Flats was once one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Ottawa. It began as the home of many lumber mills as early settlers sought to … Continue reading →

Version française By Ellen Bond Photos surround us every day. Whether its framed photos hanging on a wall, advertisements seen as you drive by, or folks taking selfies, images are … Continue reading →

Version française By Sali Lafrenie With the Olympic Games winding down and the Paralympic Games winding up in 2 weeks, it’s time for a paralympic preview. The 2024 Paralympics will … Continue reading →

Version française By Sali Lafrenie The Olympics are heating up! With the games underway, now is the perfect time to dive back into our Olympic coverage here at Library and … Continue reading →

Version française By Sali Lafrenie Picture it. Paris, 1924. You’re at the Summer Olympic Games. And there are roughly 3,000 other athletes there with you. What sport are you playing? … Continue reading →

Version française By Brittany Long The 1960s and 1970s were marked by global turbulence, with terrorist attacks, airplane hijackings, and kidnappings frequently dominating the headlines. Against this backdrop of uncertainty, preparing … Continue reading →

Version française Are you new to researching your family tree? Not sure how to start exploring your roots? We are here to help! Visit our new How to begin your … Continue reading →

Version française By Dalton Campbell In 2008, broadcaster and author Silver Donald Cameron and videographer Chris Beckett started The Green Interview. They would go on to record a series of … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray Who doesn’t love a slice of rich, moist chocolate cake? That’s what I thought when I took on the challenge of trying out a recipe … Continue reading →

Version française By Karyne Holmes This article contains historical language and content that may be considered offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

Version française This blog is part of our Nations to Nations: Indigenous Voices at Library and Archives Canada series. To read this blog post in Cree syllabics and Standard Roman Orthography, visit … Continue reading →

Version française By Isabelle Charron This article contains historical language and content that may be considered offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

Version française By Elizabeth Kawenaa Montour This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. … Continue reading →

Version française By Evan Dalrymple Many people know about the Friends of the Ottawa Public Library and their book stores across Ottawa, but the Friends of Library and Archives Canada … Continue reading →

Version française By Beth Greenhorn This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

Version française By Meaghan Scanlon Library and Archives Canada (LAC) recently acquired a copy of the book Relation de ce qvi s’est passé en la mission des pères de la Compagnie … Continue reading →

Version française By Beth Greenhorn This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

Version française By Elizabeth Kawenaa Montour This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. … Continue reading →

Version française By Dylan Roy You probably don’t know me, but you might recognize my hands from previous blog posts in this series by Ariane Gauthier. If you haven’t read the … Continue reading →

Version française By Elizabeth Kawenaa Montour This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. … Continue reading →

Version française By Rebecca Murray Please note that many of the visuals for this article were taken from digitized microfiche; as such, the image quality varies, and individual item-level catalogue … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier In 1924, the Department of Agriculture published the booklet Mangeons du fromage canadien : Recettes et menus. It highlights the health, nutritional and economic benefits of … Continue reading →

Version française By Ethan M. Coudenys Shells were falling, machine guns were firing, and horses were whinnying as the final cavalry charge of the Great War on the Western Front … Continue reading →

By Valentina Donato I have always had an interest in artefacts that share a story. Throughout my undergraduate studies at the University of Ottawa, I surrounded myself with history by … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Brun del Re and Stéphane Lang Did you know that famous novelist Gabrielle Roy, known for Bonheur d’occasion (1945) (published in English as The Tin Flute, 1947), La … Continue reading →

Version française By Richard Yeomans On August 4, 1914, Britain formally declared war on Germany, a decision that brought Canada into the theatre of conflict in Europe because of its … Continue reading →

Version française By Forrest Pass For those of us stuck in the throes of a Canadian winter, it seems cruel to add an extra day to the month of February. … Continue reading →

By Mary-Francis Turk At Library and Archives Canada (LAC), we never judge a book by its cover (or its content, for that matter)! We want to make sure that readers … Continue reading →

By Liane Belway Readers and writers across Canada will celebrate Freedom to Read Week this February 18–24. This annual event raises awareness about access to books for all Canadians and … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier The Cook’s Recipe Manual is a collection of 300 recipes designed for military personnel who were part of the navy, army, air force munitions plants, … Continue reading →

By Stacey Zembrzycki This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. Please see our … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier I first learned about Marcel Gauthier a few years ago when I was visiting the Bény-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery, in France. Although we share the same … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier I learned about Marcel Gauthier a few years ago when I was visiting the Canadian cemetery in Beny-sur-Mer in France. Although we have the same … Continue reading →

Version française By Rian Manson In 1940, following the Dunkirk evacuation, the British situation was grim. The German Navy, operating from the French coast, was sinking cargo ships at a rate of … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier The New Galt Cook Book (1898) is a revised edition of a book that was popular in English Canada, particularly in the Galt region in … Continue reading →

Version française By Beth Greenhorn This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

By Tom J. Smyth What is web archiving and why do we do it? “Web archiving” is a specialized digital curation and preservation discipline that guarantees future access to unique … Continue reading →

Version française By Dylan Roy Are you fit, soldier? Do you have what it takes to make it in the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF)? War is upon the world since … Continue reading →

Version française By Beth Greenhorn This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. Please … Continue reading →

By Ariane Gauthier Many Canadian war graves and military cemeteries have been established around the world, as a result of the conflicts in which Canada has been involved since Confederation … Continue reading →

By Ethan M. Coudenys The Battle of the Somme began on July 1, 1916, at 7:30 a.m., but preparations for the attack took longer than expected. The advance was planned to relieve pressure … Continue reading →

By Ethan M. Coudenys This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please see our … Continue reading →

Version française By Ariane Gauthier La cuisinière canadienne, published in 1840, is one of the first cookbooks—perhaps even the very first—written and published in Canada. Its author wrote it for both … Continue reading →

By Ethan M. Coudenys Picture the scene of the moments leading up to a massive military advance. On the morning of April 9, 1917, a cold rain falls on the Douai plain … Continue reading →

By Julia Barkhouse This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to gender, racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please see … Continue reading →

By Ethan M. Coudenys Cartography is the practice of drawing or making maps; during the First World War, this was vital for planning and preparing attacks and defensive actions. Battles in … Continue reading →

This blog is part of our Nations to Nations: Indigenous Voices at Library and Archives Canada series. By Karyne Holmes This article contains historical language and content that some may … Continue reading →

Version française By Dalton Campbell Dr. Philip Aron “Phil” Edwards earned five Olympic bronze medals in the 1920s and 1930s. It was the most career Olympic medals won by a … Continue reading →

By Forrest Pass Have you ever been so captivated by a research topic that you start seeing evidence of it everywhere? While doing research for the exhibition Unexpected! Surprising Treasures … Continue reading →

By Rebecca Murray When I was a relatively new acquisition at LAC, a mainstay of archival humour used to refer to new employees, I worked on a question from a … Continue reading →

In preparation for the release of the 1931 Census returns, some of us at Library and Archives Canada have done a lot of reading. We thought we’d share a few census … Continue reading →

By Martha Sellens Several years ago, I was contacted by a researcher who was looking for the first photograph taken on a Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) survey expedition. They … Continue reading →

By Sara Chatfield This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please see our … Continue reading →

By Andrea Eidinger In my last blog post, I talked about how important user experience (UX) feedback was to the development and improvement of Library and Archives Canada’s (LAC) new … Continue reading →

At Library and Archives Canada (LAC), we receive questions about why materials in our collections are organized the way they are. When it comes to the census returns, typically we … Continue reading →

By Rebecca Murray Has this ever happened to you? You started your primary research with abandon and came up empty, only to discover that the facts you were using were … Continue reading →

By Tom J. Smyth Introduction and program history Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is the nation’s designated national memory institution, with a legislated mandate to acquire, describe, preserve and provide … Continue reading →

This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please see our historical language advisory for more … Continue reading →

This article contains historical language and content that some may consider offensive, such as language used to refer to racial, ethnic and cultural groups. Please see our historical language advisory for more … Continue reading →