Explore unique highlights from UBC’s Open Collections, as well as insights into the work of the Digitization Centre. From announcements of new projects and collections to behind-the-scenes looks at our digitization process, we share the stories and hidden gems that inspire us in our efforts to preserve and make accessible diverse materials.
1993 U.S.-Russian Presidential Summit at UBC
Posted on Jul 11, 2023 by Gage
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation and United States made an effort to attempt to establish better diplomacy as to step away from the tension of the Cold war to try and build a new era of cooperation. Part of this process was to establish a meeting between newly elected Presidents […]
Interesting By-laws of Vancouver in 1898.
Posted on Jul 04, 2023 by Gage
Our BC Historical books collection contains a copy of the City of Vancouver By-Laws from 1898. Reading from them almost one hundred and twenty-five years later, there are some odd legislative topics that pop-out from the more mundane issues such as building codes and health inspection. Below are some of the notable laws on the […]
Women at work during WWI.
Posted on Jun 27, 2023 by Gage
World War One is known for the apocalyptic destruction brought to Europe, North Africa, and the Near East brought by the clashing of Allied and Central powers. A large part of this was the emergence of the horrifying brutality of trench warfare and the weapon developments of such systems as airplanes, howitzers, and early tanks. […]
The Trinkets, Kitchenware, and Knickknacks of the Wallace B. Chung and Madeline H. Chung Collection.
Posted on Jun 20, 2023 by Gage
The Wallace B. Chung and Madeline H. Chung Collection in UBC’s Open Collections is home to many different objects from the early and mid-twentieth century. Many of these items are related to the Canadian Pacific Company and are from the steam ships, hotels, trains, and planes that took many passengers all over Canada and beyond. […]
Jell-o: the culinary curiosities of the twentieth century.
Posted on Jun 13, 2023 by Gage
Jell-o is an affordable dessert that has been enjoyed in Canada and the United States since its creation in the early 1900s. Throughout the years many people have tried experimenting with Jell-o to see what tasty creations they could come up with. This was especially true during the 1940s when many people were trying to […]
Early cartographic misconceptions of Western North America: The island of California and the Sea of the West
Posted on Jun 06, 2023 by Gage
While browsing through the older maps in the Andrew McCormick Maps and Prints collection, or some of the maps of the Americas in the Japanese Maps of the Tokugawa Era collection, you may notice a couple of strange errors. The first of which is that California, through the late 17th and mid 18th centuries, was […]
Cats and Dogs of the Uno Langmann Family Collection
Posted on May 30, 2023 by Gage
The Uno Langmann Family Collection of British Columbia Photographs has over six thousand images that are currently available online. They represent various aspects of B.C.’s social and cultural history during the 19th and 20th centuries. With all of the scary news that goes on in the world, why not take a moment to browse images […]
House Styles
Posted on May 24, 2023 by Gage
Many times, when we at the Digitization Centre are attempting to provide a date range for an image, we often rely on using details from within the image to make an estimate. One of the easier and more reliable details to watch out for are homes. The design of a house allows us to pattern […]
Food Prices of the 1900s in British Columbia
Posted on May 16, 2023 by Gage
With recent skyrocketing food prices, many people find themselves reminiscing of the grocery shopping of yesteryear. The BC Historical Newspaper collection provides many great snapshots of grocery store advertisements throughout the 1900s. Here is a collated selection of various newspapers advertising from around British Columbia. One advertisement was chosen for each decade, and multiple newspapers […]
UBC Library’s Colour our Collections Project
Posted on May 02, 2023 by Marina de Souza
As part of a project to bring the public closer to UBC’s digital and physical collections, UBC Library has joined the Colour Our Collections campaign along with other museums and libraries around the world. Organized by The New York Academy of Medicine, the Colour our Collections project first took off in 2016 to offer a unique way […]
