The fonds consists of predominantly of photographs. Photographic coverage includes: N.R. “Buck” Crump as President of the CPR, CPR employees, the 1910 Rogers Pass avalanche, wrecks, fires, steamers, engines, stations, and scenery.

The collection consists of documents, archival records, photographs, ephemera and artifacts related to three broad themes: British Columbia history, immigration and settlement and the Canadian Pacific Railway Company. Included are the archival fonds of the Yip family and Yip Sang Company, the Dart Coon Club and Chinese Freemasons of Victoria, Hugh G. Robinson (regarding the S.S. Greenhill Park Explosion), Rev. MacDonnell (regarding the Clandonald colony of Scottish immigrants in Alberta) and the British Columbia Coast Steamship Service. Includes documents, ephemera and artifacts of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company, including records of travelers on CPR rail and steamships.

The collection reflects the forestry operations and projects undertaken by Western Forest Products and their predecessors. The majority of the material dates to the 1980s, with some material dating to as early as the 1950s and as late as the early 2000s. Much of the contents relates to MacMillan Bloedel Limited, in particular their tree farm licenses (TFLs), silvicultural practices, and some corporate information.

Tree farm license records include: project reports, working and management plans, and maps. Silviculture records include: growth and yield reports, environmental reports, literature, and summaries of silvicultural projects. Corporate records include meeting agendas and minutes, publications, and microfiche.

There are three main types of material in the collection: textual records, maps, and microfiche. The initial acquisition also included aerial photographs which have subsequently been transferred to the UBC Geographic Information Centre.

The collection consists of archival records, printed materials, photographs, maps, posters, artefacts and paintings all related to the Klondike Gold Rush. Records span the activities of individuals, organizations, companies, and government bodies related to the Klondike Gold Rush, the Yukon, Alaska, and the Northwest Territories from ca. 1860 to 2003. The collection documents the journeys of, and commerce created by individuals and groups of people from around the world who left their homes to join the Gold Rush; it also contains materials documenting the presence of Indigenous peoples throughout the Yukon.

The collection reflects the development of regional infrastructure and transportation in the Yukon and Alaska, including the creation of the White Pass and Yukon Route railway line. Many materials in the fonds originated from the construction and development of specific town sites and communities located in the Yukon, including Dawson City, Carcross, Forty Mile, and White Horse.

Other materials document the creative works of individuals seeking to record and share stories about the Klondike in various forms, including photographs, journals, poetry, music and theatre.

The collection is comprised of the following series: Textual Records, Photographic Materials, Cartographic Materials, Graphic Materials, and Objects. Each series is majorly comprised of the record type described in the title, and materials within each series are described at the item level.

Collection consists of documents and maps that supported the findings in McDowell's book, Uncharted Waters: The Explorations of Jose Narvaez (1768-1840), published in 2015 by Ronsdale Press, Vancouver, BC.

All items in this collection are photocopies. The dates of the originals fall between 1788 and 1830. When available, information about the locations of the originals is specified in the file-level description.

From McDowell: "One of the least appreciated, but potentially most important set of historical documents in [RBSC] are those related to the overlooked Spanish navigator Jose Maria Narvaez (1768-1840), the first European mariner to explore the central and northern parts of what we now call the Salish Sea in 1791 -- one year before the famous captains Dionisio Alcala-Galiano, Cayetano Valdes y Bazan, and George Vancouver investigated the same inland sea. Although Narvaez's remarkable achievements and contributions were largely ignored, overlooked, or minimized until 1998, a more accurate assessment is emerging, and it has been supported significantly by the documentary information in [RBSC]."