The collection contains materials related to Ian McDonald's Master's thesis research on the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Local 213 “Class conflict and political factionalism: a history of Local 213 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, 1901-1961," and related to the activities of his father, Les McDonald, a trade union activist who belonged to Local 213 but was eventually suspended for leading the Lenkurt strike of 1966. Les McDonald was also a multi-sport athlete, and is credited with introducing the triathlon into the Olympics; some materials in the collection relate to Les McDonald's involvement in various sport and environmental organizations, as well as some of his personal papers. In addition to what he received from his father, Ian McDonald was also given papers by former IBEW Local 213 business manager Art O’Keeffe and Barry Sharbo, a board member of the Canadian Union of Electrical Workers (UE), as well as Alfie Huston, the former President of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 213 from 1985-1988, which are included within the collection.

The collection is largely comprised of newspaper and photocopied journal articles, correspondence between members of IBEW Local 213, legal documentation, newsletters and other printed ephemera related to IBEW Local 213.

The collection also contains sound recordings of interviews with numerous figures in IBEW Local 213 created by Ian McDonald during his thesis research. McDonald's thesis, submitted for the completion of a Master of Arts in History at Simon Fraser University, can be found in the Summit database: http://summit.sfu.ca/item/6361.

The collection also contains background materials accumulated by McDonald while writing his book “The Red Baron of IBEW 213,” including digital sound recordings of interviews, research articles, notebooks, consent forms, a draft royalty agreement, a draft chapter and a press marketing questionnaire.

File contains meeting minutes and other correspondence related to the proposed formation of a provincial council for IBEW locals in British Columbia.

File contains various issues of "213 Live Wire," the newspaper of IBEW Local 213. A few copies of "Live Wire," the newspaper of the Canadian Union for Electrical Workers are also within the file, as well as some IBEW Local 213 business manager newsletters. Also contains a copy of the December 1964 issue of the Electrical Worker's Journal with handwritten annotations by Les McDonald.

File contains collective agreements for the IBEW Locals 213 & 230 (1944-1947, 1955, 1962 and 1963-1965) and British Columbia Electric Company Limited, Local 480 & 651 of the International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter workers and the Consolidated Mining & Smelting Company of Canada (1964-1966), and the Federation of Telephone Workers of British Columbia and Okanagan Telephone Company (1971-1973).

File contains material photocopied by Ian McDonald related to William F. Dunne, union leader and state legislator in Montana during the early 20th century as well as a former business agent of IBEW Local 213; of particular interest for McDonald are speeches given by Dunne.

File contains photocopied articles from the Labour Gazette regarding issues concerning electrical workers.

File contains a photocopied multi-part article from Western Business & Industry, "Red is for Danger," by Lawrence G. Ecroyd. Also contains handwritten notes by Ian McDonald.

File contains an IBEW constitution from 1974, and photocopied constitutions from the IBEW (1952) and Communist Party of Canada (1959).

File contains copies of IBEW Local Union 213's meeting minutes from January 15, 1955 and February 12, 1955, as well as copies of correspondence related to the suspension of union members in 1955.

File contains remarks made by Frank G. Hanson at Alex Dorland's funeral service, a photocopied letter of condolence from Sid McArton and handwritten notes by Ian McDonald from an interview about Dorland.

File contains a letter of resignation to the executive board from Local 213 president John Bezer, correspondence and reports from IBEW Local 213 business managers and photocopied versions of the same documents (kept for conservation reasons).

File contains Ian McDonald's archival research related to E. Tilford Fenton, member of IBEW 213 and executive board representative from 1912-13. Also contains a copy of an IBEW Pacific District Council Report from April 4, 1913.

File contains clippings related to labour issues and the contemporary Community party from Vancouver area newspapers.

File contains a photocopy of "Power Means Progress," a report by the British Columbia Power Commission.

File contains photocopies of member lists for the Building and Construction Industry Exchange, 1946 & 1962.

File contains a photocopy of George Green's "Some Pioneers of Light and Power," an article about electricity as a public utility in British Columbia published in the British Columbia Historical Quarterly.

File contains a photocopy of a "booklength feature" in The Canada West Magazine on the Collins Overland Telegraph, a telegraph system planned to stretch from San Francisco to London. The BC-Yukon section of the telegraph line is discussed at lenght.

File contains five Business Manager's newsletters for Local IBEW 213, while Art O'Keeffe was business manager and financial secretary. Issues include June 1964, June 1965, September 1965, December 1965 & March 1966.

File contains photocopied documents relating to the history of the B.C. Electric Railway Company: "Impressive Facts about the B.C. Electric Railway" (1926), "Chronology of the B.C. Electric" (1947, covering 1894-1947), "Chronological List of Generating Units" (1958, covering 1898-1956), "Historical Record 1944-1958," and "Chronological Developments in the Takeover [...] By the British Columbia Government" (covering 1961-1963).

File contains a photocopy of Charlie Caron's autobiography, describing his involvement in labour issues in Canada in the the 1930s primarily. Caron also provides a historical account of the activities of the Communist Party of Canada up to the 1970s.

File contains an essay written by Ian McDonald on the Lenkurt strike and his father's role within the strike; the full title is "Spontaneity Went Out With Spartacus: IBEW Local 213, Les McDonald, and the Lenkurt Strike of 1966." Ian McDonald considers the essay to be a continuation of his work on his 1986 Master's thesis, which discussed the IBEW before the Lenkurt strike.

File contains conference packages and resolutions from labour conferences in the mid-1960s; materials relate to the Labour-Management Conference of Economic and Technological Changes in the Sixties (May 19 & 20, 1965); 10th Annual Convention of the BC Federation of Labour (November 1-5, 1965); and the Sixth Constitutional Convention Canadian Labour Congress (April 25-29, 1966).

File contains published articles written by Les McDonald on labour issues and sport. Also contains handwritten notes by Les McDonald which may have been used for a LiveWire article.

File contains newspaper clippings related to Les McDonald's candidacy in provincial and civic elections.

File contains newspaper articles and biographical writings on Les McDonald's mountaineering and ski activities.

File contains newspaper articles and memoranda related to the privatization of Cypress Bowl Park's cross-country ski trails.

File contains letters related to Les McDonald's personal life, including eulogies written for Bill Stewart and Herb Crabtree, correspondence from and related to his father, and a copy of Charles Boylan's "Learn From the Teacher By Negative Example" with a dedication to Les McDonald. Also contains "Some Recollections of Les McDonald," by David Yorke.

The subseries contains materials collected by Alfie Huston, who served as the President of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 213 from 1985-1988. Materials include correspondence, newspaper clippings, convention reports, minutes, affidavits, court orders, settlement agreements, campaign materials, business office reports, newsletters, financial reports, discussion papers, safety bulletins, organizing committee resolutions, telegrams and membership lists.

File contains affidavits, telegrams, letters and other correspondence related to political matters within IBEW Local 213 during the 1950s, including the gathering of testimony against George Gee and Alex Dorland, and IBEW representative Jack Ross reporting back to IBEW International secretary J. Scott Milne about "a good Local going bad."

File contains various issues of "213 Live Wire," the newspaper of IBEW Local 213. A few copies of "Live Wire," the newspaper of the Canadian Union for Electrical Workers are also within the file, as well as some IBEW Local 213 business manager newsletters. Also contains a copy of the December 1964 issue of the Electrical Worker's Journal with handwritten annotations by Les McDonald.

File contains various issues of "213 Live Wire," the newspaper of IBEW Local 213. A few copies of "Live Wire," the newspaper of the Canadian Union for Electrical Workers are also within the file, as well as some IBEW Local 213 business manager newsletters. Also contains a copy of the December 1964 issue of the Electrical Worker's Journal with handwritten annotations by Les McDonald.

File contains articles from various Vancouver-area newspapers documenting the events of the Lenkurt strike in 1966. Also contains an obituary for Jim Kinnaird and a retrospective article in the Pacific Tribune written in 1986.