This fonds consists mainly of records assembled by McPherson over the course of his professional career. Material documenting McPhersons wartime activities predominates. The fonds contains two sous-fonds. One of these includes a scrapbook and from McPhersons father, Ewan. The other contains research, correspondence and interviews conducted by Kay Alsop in the mid 1990s. Alsop, a prominent Vancouver journalist, intended to write a biography of McPherson but was never able to find a publisher for the book. Alsop therefore decided to donate some of her research files as part of the McPherson fonds. The Alsop Sous-Fonds contains important records which McPherson had given to her, particularly those documenting the decision to intern Japanese-Canadians.

The fonds is comprised of materials related to Brown's personal life (mostly recorded through photography) and his various professional positions, particularly his role in the White Pass & Yukon Corporation and its expansion into containerized shipping.

Approximately one third of the fonds is materials that have been condensed by Brown's descendants and filed chronologically. This portion has been called the Chronological papers, and materials related to all other series may be found there, as well as a wide range of personal materials.

The rest of the fonds has been divided into 10 series of: general correspondence; papers from Brown's two government posts; his work for the White Pass & Yukon Corp.; his work for MacMillan, Bloedel, and Powell River; his work as director for other companies; subject files related to his interests; speeches and articles he wrote; personal papers; and slides (both personal and professional).

The fonds consists of Holderness' manuscript diary and expense account of a business trip to Canada and the United States in connection with the timber trade in 1837. He took particular note of his means of transport, which included steamer, railroads, schooners, canal boats, stage coaches, wagons, gigs and horses. The diary provides an excellent description of travel in North America at that time.

Fonds consists of records reflecting Fenton’s activities as the president of the Local 213 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in B.C. and the Executive Board representative of the First District of the Pacific District Council of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, spanning approximately from 1912 to 1913. These records are arranged in chronological order. Textual records in the fonds primarily consist of incoming correspondence from the U.S. to E.Tilford Fenton as the president of the I.B.E.W. in B.C., general circulars and reports from Pacific District Council, and administrative documents of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Personal correspondence of E. Tilford Fenton spans primarily from 1914 to 1915. These records are also arranged in chronological order. The fonds is arranged into the following four series: office correspondence; general circulars; administrative documents; and personal correspondence.

The fonds consists of a handwritten diary and reminiscences by Donald Graham (1876).

The fonds consists of a bound, handwritten transcribed copy of Robert Haswell's log of the Columbia, which chronicles two trips of her sister ship, the sloop Washington, to the vicinity of the Strait of Juan de Fuca in 1789. The fonds also includes a photostatic copy of Captain Robert Gray's log for the Columbia in 1791. It records voyages along the northwest coast of Washington State and British Columbia.

The fonds consists of a typed transcript of French's autobiography which chronicles his experiences with the Hudson's Bay Company forts in their early days. It also includes a monograph entitled Transportation and Transportation Routes in British Columbia, a fragment of a work on gold mining and his family history.

The fonds consists of correspondence, notices, minutes, and clippings recording the dispute between the Automotive Transport Labour Relations Association and the Teamster's Union Local 31 Vancouver (1970-1971) which precipitated the passage of Bill 33. The fonds also reflects the history of Carson Truck Lines and motor transport on the Cariboo Road and Fraser Canyon.

The fonds consists of minute books of the Guild from 1917 to 1967. The first monthly report of the Guild (March 1918) is included in the first minute book. Minutes of the Western Branch for 1966 and 1967 are also included.

The fonds reflects the efforts of Bob Williams’ political and business career. Records in the fonds relate to Williams’s various roles: teacher, M.L.A., community planning consultant, Minister, chair of ICBC, and Secretary of Crown Corporations. As such, the records relate both to Williams’ personal career as well as British Columbia's governmental systems of resource management, transportation, forestry, energy, housing, and recreation. Correspondence is featured throughout the fonds; other records types include reports, studies, speeches, notes, legal agreements, bills, acts, notebooks, daily journals, travel memorabilia, presentation materials, photographs, VHS tapes, audio cassettes, optical discs, news clippings, scrapbooks, and transcripts of interviews. The fonds is comprised of four series; Alderman and Member of Legislative Assembly records, Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Water Resources Records series, Crown Corporations Records series, and Business, Personal, and Academic Records series.

The Alderman and Member of Legislative Assembly Records consists of material related to Williams' roles as Alderman of the City of Vancouver and later as M.L.A. for East Vancouver. Records include letters, faxes, telegrams, newspaper clippings, reports, speeches, notes and other related material.

The Ministry of Forests Lands and Water Resources Records series relates to Williams's time spent on the provincial cabinet working under the government of Dave Barret. Records consist primarily of correspondence, especially between Williams and major corporations and individuals in the forest industry. Other records include reports, studies, news clippings, bills and acts, speeches, presentation materials, and transcripts.

The Crown Corporations records series is comprised of documents stemming from Williams' activities as chair of ICBC, and his work in the Crown Corporations. Many records relate to the construction of Surrey City Centre. Record types include correspondence, reports, legal documents, and news clippings.

The Business, Personal and Academic Records series contains records related Williams’ business career, personal memories and diaries, pictures and travel memorabilia, and his experiences meeting other politicians. Record types include planning consultant studies, correspondence, interviews, and materials from his academic career including course outlines and reading lists.

The fonds documents the company's activities in the ship building and maintenance business from ca. 1960 until the closure of the business in 1984. The fonds is arranged in four series containing invitations to tender, specifications, and drawings from various marine architects and government agencies, as well as invoices, advertising and technical publications from various suppliers.

The fonds consists of subject files, office files, printed material, videos, photographs, and slides relating to home economic topics such as cooking and kitchen and laundry planning presented by Beatrice Millar on behalf of the British Columbia Hydro Home Service Centre. Photographs consist of slides used in the BC Hydro home economics program, publication production photographs, as well as photographs of BC Hydro and Beatrice Millar in a television studio.

The fonds consists of diaries, scrapbooks, and correspondence spanning the period 1910-2003 and related to the professional and personal lives of three generations of the Bamford family—William Blackley Bamford, his son William Blackley Stanley Bamford, and his grandson William Huestis Bamford—as well as to members of the Lasell and Ord families, related by marriage to William Huestis Bamford. Diaries in the fonds include concise “five year” or “line a day” diaries, as well as more detailed daily journals and many cover aspects of the Bamfords’ professional and personal life.

Scrapbooks in the fonds, which contain newspaper clippings, ephemera, correspondence, photographs, notes, and other material, primarily reflect the Bamfords’ personal interests, but also interests their chosen professions and employers, including the Canadian Pacific Railway Company and the Bank of Montreal. Beyond the incoming and outgoing personal and professional correspondence included in the scrapbooks, the Esther Adelina Lasell Bamford series contains incoming correspondence related to a branch of the Ord family living in New Zealand.

The fonds is arranged into four series by family member: William Blackley Bamford; William Blackley Stanley Bamford; William Huestis Bamford; and Esther Adelina Lasell Bamford.

The fonds consists of financial records (1934-1953), stock certificates (1899-1901) and correspondence relating to financial matters. It also includes financial records of Ashcroft Irrigated Lands Ltd. (1952-1960), stock certificates (1953-1961) and correspondence relating to the development of East Branch Irrigation (1952-1956), as well as a 1918 report which includes photographs and plans. There are also drawings pertaining to a power house and dam (1949-1953).

The fonds consists primarily of Alan Haig-Brown's written and photographic works on the marine industry in Canada and internationally. Photographs document ships and boats, maritime scenes and personalities in fishing and ship-building. The geographical scope of the photographs includes British Columbia, Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii; Southern Coastal US (Texas and Louisiana); Thailand, China, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines; Netherlands; Brazil.

Textual records include annotated drafts for several of Haig-Brown's books, hand-written notes, newspaper clippings, design schematics and correspondence.

The fonds also contains audio recordings of interviews and oral histories with figures in the maritime trades.