The fonds consists predominantly of correspondence between Henry Ralston and his future wife, Gertrude M. Walker during his military service in World War One. Some correspondence of Gertrude Walker herself is also included, as well other miscellaneous letters. In addition to correspondence, the fonds contains newspaper clippings and broadsheets, cards, and Military and Defence receipts.

The fonds contains records of the ACSOH, Habitat I and Vision Habitat, as well as Oberlander’s records related to Habitat II, World Urban Forums 2 and 3, and other UN Habitat associated activities and research. Contents mainly consist of correspondence, reports, publications, governance and planning documentation and research.

The collection consists of ninety-one albums of postcards and photographs pertaining to views and scenes mainly in British Columbia, but also including Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and the Yukon as well as Europe. The views of British Columbia include views of the Rocky Mountains, Vancouver, Victoria, Mayne Island, and Buttle Lake (pre-1911) as well as those of logging (Capilano Timber Co., 1917-1920), mining (Granby Consolidated Mining, Smelting and Power Co. and Consolidated Cariboo Hydraulic Mining Co.) railways (Canadian Pacific Railway, Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway, and Great Northern Railway) and shipping. In addition, there are postcards and photographs of the Hudson's Bay Company Kamchatka Venture, 1921, U.S. Civil War portraits and New Zealand shipping.

The fonds consists of correspondence and printed material related to socialism in B.C. (1949-81), correspondence concerning the IWA, letters written by MacLeod's acquaintances at the time of his death, a eulogy given by Mildred MacLeod and subject files created by H.E. Nelson, Chairman of the West Kootenay District CCF Council.

The fonds consists of records generated and assembled by David Watmough related to his life and career as a novelist, short story writer, playwright, monodramatist and performer, poet, critic, broadcaster, journalist, and teacher. The fonds includes series of records arranged in twenty divisions, with the greatest portion related to writing and literary production: novels, short stories, plays and dramas, monodramas, poetry and songs, nonfiction books, diaries and journals, essays, collections and anthologies, recordings, reading scripts and performance files, radio and television broadcast scripts and project files, film scripts, lectures, addresses, and orations, journal articles, interviews, and reviews of books, exhibitions and theatre performances, as well as correspondence, finance and business files, subject files including published material about Watmough and copies of published material by him, and ephemera and miscellanea. The arrangement of records in files by the creator has been respected where such order exists. The fonds contains textual records, both manuscript and typewritten as well as computer generated, some printed, published material, an occasional sketch or drawing, several sound recordings of Watmough performing, a small number of electronic records, and a number of photoprints and slides kept with the original files where possible. Some monodramas have been retained in the original bindings provided for performance by the creator.

The collection consists of approximately fifty small collections or fonds donated by individuals and organizations. It includes material (including photographs) from the following individuals or organizations: Yoshimitsu Akagawa, Rintaro Hayashi, Japanese Fishermen's Benevolent Association, Kishizo Kimura, Masajiro Miyazaki, Japanese Canadian Citizens' Association, Hideichi Nosaka, Yoshio Ono, Yukio Shimoda, Rinkichi Tagashira, Shingeichi Uchibori, Chiyo Umezuki, Tokikazu Tanaka, Yasutaro Yamaga, Tameo Kanabara, Richmond Berry Growers Association, Shogo Kobayashi, Skeena Fishermen's Association, Jisaburo Wakabayashi, J. Uno, Camp and Mill Workers Federal Labour Union, and Mitsuru Shimpo. The collection encompasses a wide range of topics including relocation to internment camps during World War II, farming, lumbering, religious activities, and personal reminiscences, as well as various organizational records. Individual collections have been arranged and described separately and filed in alphabetical order. Most of the manuscript material has been photocopied from original documents.

The fonds consists of personal materials including biographical information, correspondence (1905-1944), financial records (1892-1930), speeches, clippings and memorabilia relating to Canadiana and mining in British Columbia. Also included are collected historical items, most prominent amongst which are research materials relating to Alfred Waddington (1858-1872). The fonds also includes various collected historical items (1754-1889) and photographs of the E. Moss family, Esquimalt scenery and buildings, scenes of Nelson and Ymir mining, and Cape Breton scenery.

The fonds consists of Shadbolt's private journals, notebooks, lecture notes, sketch books from his work with the Art Students' League of New York, 1948-1949 as well as 6 sketchbooks from the 1960s, a collection of his loose drawings and studies, an extensive collection of photographs of Shadbolt's paintings, including colour transparencies, slides of a photographic work entitled "Year", family photographs, personal and professional incoming correspondence, his picture reference file of postcards and magazine clippings, exhibition catalogues and other printed material. Correspondents include John Macdonald, Wilfred Watson, Max Maynard, Jock Firestone, Molly Bobak, George Swinton, and Ron Thom.