One of our biggest collections is BC Historical Books which features around 2,480 items as of June 2022. This collection combines the traditional tools of bibliography with the new tools of the digital world to transform our understanding of, and insight into, the history and life of British Columbia. The three bibliographies of British Columbia, published by the Social Sciences Research Center at the University of Victoria (B.C.) between the late 1960’s and mid-1970’s, provide the foundation for this ongoing project.

Volume I	Volume II	Volume III
A bibliography of British Columbia. Laying the foundations, 1849-1899, 1968	Navigations, traffiques & discoveries, 1774-1848 : a guide to publications relating to the area now British Columbia, 1970	A bibliography of British Columbia. Years of Growth, 1900-1950, 1975

The process of digitization is ongoing and we continue to add new items to the collection. We can go to the Advanced Search webpage and build an advanced search query to compile a list of new items added this year. First, we enter “2022” into the search box and select “Date Available” from the drop-down list of “Field”. Then we click “> Add Limits” and select “BC Historical Books” from the drop-down list of “Collection”.

After we click the search button, we would find that more than 80 items have been added to this collection this year.

Among the newly-added records, this pamphlet published by the Canadian Pacific Railway Company advertises the Pacific Coast Tours through the Canadian Pacific Rockies. It includes a folded map of the Canadian Pacific Railway ticketing routes and photographs of scenic places in the Rockies, for example, Lake Agnes and The Three Sisters.

Pacific coast tours through the Canadian Pacific Rockies, 1922

Another newly-added item is the Annual review of the National Archives of Canada 1999-2000 created by the Public Archives of Canada. It showcases the results of the National Archives of Canada’s activities in 1999-2000. We know from the “Notes” field that this publication includes reports in both English and French.

Annual review of the National Archives of Canada 1999-2000, 2000

The last item we are going to introduce is the biography of Alexander Mackenzie. This book “tells the story of that voyage in Mackenzie’s own words and is a stirring contribution to the literature of the American frontier. It is complete and unabridged.”

Alexander Mackenzie’s voyage to the Pacific Ocean in 1793, [1967?]

If you are interested in exploring further, please visit the  BC Historical Books to conduct searches.