The IABC fonds reflects the community collecting practices that the IABC undertook to preserve the history of Icelanders in British Columbia. Fonds is arranged in eight subfonds that reflect the various community organizations from which the archives originally collected.

Fonds documents the IABC’s commitment to preserving the lived experiences of its Icelandic community and is arranged into seven series that correspond to the IABC’s activities: administration and operation; providing educational programs and collecting biographies as well as written and oral histories; collecting Icelandic music; compiling a collection of Icelandic newspapers and publications; holding exhibits and events; acquiring photographic collections; and lastly acquiring collections of textual records, ephemera, and artifacts from its community.

Fonds also contains eight other subfonds of textual, photographic, audiovisual, and ephemeral material of Vancouver-based Icelandic Societies including the Sólskin Society, the Icelandic Canadian Club of British Columbia (ICC of BC), the Icelandic National League of North America (INL of NA), Icelandic Care Home Höfn Society, the Scandinavian Cultural Society (SCS), Ströndin Internet Radio, the Danish Archives, and the Icelandic Lutheran Church.

The Irene Howard fonds consists of general correspondence and materials related to Howard's personal interests and associations, and materials relating to her work as researcher, literary agent and writer. The fonds is divided into eight series: Association involvement and general interest; Interview recordings; Photographs and maps; "Monday Morning" magazine issues; Literary activities; NDP campaigns materials; Materials related to Ronald Liversedge; and Gold dust on his shirt publication records. The Gold dust series is further subdivided into Publication records and Research records.

The fonds includes research notes, notebooks, file cards, photocopied materials from various sources, correspondence (with publishers, research subjects, colleagues, librarians and archivists), drafts of Howard's books and essays, biographical materials, newsletters, magazines, newspaper clippings, articles, pamphlets, brochures, photographs and cassette tapes.

The fonds consists of drafts, research notes, galley proofs, and other materials related to Stephen's book "Winged Canoes at Nootka and Other Stories of the Evergreen Coast," as well as typed transcripts from her radio programs "Indian Trails," "Story Time," and other pieces of reporting. The fonds also includes creative writing drafts - short stories, radio dramas, and plays adapted for radio - and research related to an unpublished book about Alberta. Personal files include photographs, correspondence, and historical family records dating back to the 19th century. Materials related to Stephen's involvement with the Canadian Women's Press Club and the Vancouver branch of the Canadian Authors Association are also part of this fonds.

The fonds consists of handwritten notes, typescripts of poetry by Mackay, a notebook with clippings and correspondence.

Fonds consists of two scrapbooks created by a Vancouverite about American movie stars of the silent movie era and photographs of those stars including Ramon Novarro, Richard Dix, Lillian Gish, Gloria Swanson, and Isabell Starr.

The fonds consists of a typescript of Whittaker's reminiscences, "My Sixty (60) Years in the Forest Industry", a poem by Elsie May Whittaker, a typescript and photocopy of "J.W. Whittaker Remembers Friends at Youbou", and selected photocopies from albums created by Whittaker.

The fonds consists of records created and collected by Jackie Maniago which includes records associated with her involvement in various advocacy efforts in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Canada.

In particular, the fonds includes records related to the Community Living movement, deinstitutionalization in British Columbia, and advocating for the rights of persons who are intellectually disabled.

The fonds has been arranged into the following 10 series: Woodlands Parents' Group; Community Living Society; Community Brokerage Service Society; Family Link; British Columbia Association for Community Living; Canadian Association for Community Living; Community Living Coalition; Subject Files; Advocacy Initiatives; and The Roeher Institute. These series reflect Jackie Maniago's activities and participation in these organizations and her own interests.

The main types of records within the fonds include correspondence, meeting minutes, news articles, photographs, interviews, event programs, publications, newsletters, conference proceedings, and speeches.

Fonds consists mainly of correspondence of outgoing and incoming photocopied letters to Claire Culhane and Noam Chomsky, as well as copies of articles and speeches written by Claire Culhane.

The fonds consists of diaries, photographs, and correspondence of Janet Jenkins. The photographs parallel the diaries and correspondence in documenting her life. Also included is a postscript to the diaries written by her husband, Trevor Jenkins in 1991.

The fonds consists of an album entitled "Caravaning to the Land of the Golden Twilight, June 13 - July 1, 1930," assembled by Miss J.E. Denison. It includes a description of a motoring trip from Blaine, Washington to Hazelton, B.C., then to Vancouver, B.C. The caravan trip involved groups from the United States, Alaska and British Columbia. The B.C. party included Premier S.F. Tolmie, Minister of Mines W.A. Mackenzie and Lieutenant-Governor R.R. Bruce. The purpose of the caravan was to investigate the proposal for an Alaskan highway which would join up with the B.C. highway network.

The fonds consists of business correspondence (1927-1943), legal documents, a playbill and the script for "Left Turn", a handwritten article on Western Canadian Universities for the Canadian Forum (1930), and assorted clippings. It also includes five scrapbooks.

Fonds reflect Jean Rands’s interest and activism in feminist labour organizing in western Canada and her speaking and writing around these issues, and also contains records relating to her family and personal connections. The fonds primarily consists of labour union meeting agendas and minutes, union leaflets and flyers, newspaper clippings, legal documents, correspondence, and drafts of speeches and articles. Personal records include diaries, personal correspondence, and a few photographs.

The fonds consists records relating to Dr. Joan Ford’s medical career and personal life, with records including handwritten notes, letters and correspondence, newspapers, photographs, official degrees and awards, administrative reports, and a coin. Files often contain multiple record types within them. Dr. Ford dedicated her medical career to helping those in need, including traveling to Nepal, Dominica, and Bangladesh all while managing her own medical practice in Burnaby. She has served in various capacities on numerous boards and professional organizations including the Federation of Medical Women of Canada, Save the Children, the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation, and the Trans-Himalayan Aid Society. She has received numerous awards and recognitions in her lifetime, but for her dedication to the global health community, she was appointed as an officer in the Order of Canada. Her personal interests included her family, Canadian history, and nature.

The fonds consists of the incoming correspondence to Joan Gillis from a group of young Japanese Canadians she met while attending Queen Elizabeth Secondary School in Surrey. The fonds includes 149 letters and 10 small photographs, referred to colloquially as ‘snaps’ in the letters, sent from a total of 13 different correspondents. The majority of the correspondence took place during 1942 to 1946, with different friends writing from farms and work camps in Northern British Columbia, Manitoba, and Alberta. The letters provide insight into the Japanese Canadian internment, which occurred against the backdrop of a larger cultural context. Since the early 1900s Japanese immigrants and persons of Japanese descent living in Canada were subject to racially targeted legislation, including limits on immigration, limits on fishing licenses, and being denied the right to vote based on racial status.

In the spring of 1941 the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) fingerprinted and registered all Japanese Canadians over the age 16, who were required to carry identification cards until 1949. Following Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941, Canada declared war on Japan. The Royal Canadian Navy impounded the fishing boats of the Japanese Canadian fishing community, and within two months 1,200 Japanese Canadian owned boats were sold. On February 24th 1942 the federal government authorized the removal of all persons of Japanese origin, and gave the RCMP the power to search without warrant, to impose a dawn to dusk curfew, and to confiscate all cars, radios, firearms, and cameras. Mass forced dispersal and dispossession ensued, with all Japanese Canadians being sent to internment camps, to work on farms, and perform other forms of hard labor, living in very poor conditions through the much colder winters of Canada’s interior.
The letter-writers discuss their day-to-day life at the camps, living and working conditions, their new schools and teachers, and ask after Gillis’ life in Surrey and the on-goings at Queen Elizabeth (Q.E.) secondary school.
Gillis kept the correspondence bound in twine or ribbon, which is also included in the fonds. A government censor opened and read many, if not all of the letters, and many of the envelopes bear a sticker or stamp marking this. Many of the letters are hand-written, some are typed, and some are written on postcards. Listed at the file level is the full name of each correspondent and his or her specific geographical location.

The fonds consists of five volumes of newspaper clippings regarding art in Vancouver. It also includes some letters of Jack Shadbolt, 3 cassettes, and photographs concerning Canadian artists. Includes card index for clippings.

The fonds reflects Johanna den Hertog’s involvement in various women’s movement, labour movement, political and public service positions predominantly from the 1970s through the early 1990s. Records include materials related to den Hertog’s contributions to the establishment of Vancouver Rape Relief, an organization established to provide services to rape victims, as well as other activities related to advocacy for women’s rights, such as her participation in planning the Women Rally for Action in 1976. Records related to her participation in the New Democratic Party (NDP) at the provincial level include her role as Vice-President/Executive member of the Provincial NDP (1981-1987), Co-Chair of Mike Harcourt’s leadership campaign (1987), leadership roles in the planning of the party’s 1982 convention and the 1983 and 1986 elections. Records related to her service as President of the NDP include materials related to her role as spokesperson for the party, chair of numerous committees, liaison with the labour movement and the party’s representative in international forums. Also included are records of her public speeches throughout Canada. The fonds also includes records related to den Hertog’s 1984 and 1988 campaigns to win election as a Federal Member of Parliament in the riding of Vancouver-Centre and the 1989 Provincial by-election for Vancouver-Point Grey, where she put her name forward for the NDP party nomination. Although unsuccessful all three times, she lost the 1988 campaign by a narrow margin. Records relating to den Hertog’s volunteer and project work include her service as a board member of the Canadian Centre for Arms Control, her publication of a book chapter on the constitutional debate that took place in Canada in the late 80s and early 90s, her service on the Royal Commission for Electoral Reform and her service as a commissioner for the National Citizen’s Inquiry into Peace and Security.
The fonds is divided into five series: Women’s Activism, Provincial NDP, Federal NDP, Federal and Provincial Election Campaigns, and Volunteer and Project Work.
Records consist of newspaper clippings, brochures, agendas, minutes, notes, ephemera, diaries, calendars, reports, correspondence, photographs, press releases, pamphlets, drafts of speeches, campaign resources binders, policy briefings and the like.

The fonds consists of Winson's correspondence, a personal reminiscence of Winson by his wife (Ethel Leaf Winson), and another memoir entitled "From Small Beginnings," together with a historical account of Lady Tweedsmuir's visit to Abbotsford in 1939. In addition, there are other brief manuscript memoirs by Mrs. Winson, clippings of J.W. Winson's journalistic articles (some relating to A.W. Findlay), miscellaneous clippings, documents confirming Winson's various appointments and the copyright to Wildwood Trails.

Fonds consists of Emery's photographs, correspondence, newspaper clippings, identification cards and ephemera. The records document Emery's service as a nurse during World-War Two, as well as her experiences of World-War One, and her life and career as a nurse in Vancouver and New Brunswick.
The fonds is comprised of two series; Nursing Records and Personal Records.
The Nursing Records series includes a photograph album captioned in detail by Emery covering her year of service overseas from 1944 to 1945, as well as immigration documents, certificates, and correspondence related to her nursing career.
The Personal Records series is comprised of correspondence with friends and family, as well as photographs of Emery, her family, and acquaintances.

The fonds consists of records related to Kathryn Shoemaker's illustrative works, and includes final artwork and sketches, as well as draft texts, dummy copies, resource materials, published reviews and correspondence, including the author and publisher, relating to the production of the work.

Fonds reflects Minoru Kudo’s involvement within the Japanese Canadian community both before and after World War II as well as the Kudo family’s experience of forced removal and its impacts on their lives moving forward. If offers insight into the actions taken by the British Columbia Securities Commission during the process of the forced removal of Japanese Canadian families from B.C. and the advocacy work of Japanese Canadians, as individuals and through groups such as the National Association of Japanese Canadians, to receive redress following the end of the war, both through the The Royal Commission on Japanese Claims(the Bird Commission) and outside of it. In addition to these materials, the fonds also illustrates the work of younger generations of Japanese Canadians to uncover and reconnect with their history. The fonds contains research files from the Kudo family, who worked to document and bring together recollections of the Mission City Japanese community as it existed before the war and where families were for forcibly removed to during it, as well as the Kudo family’s history specifically. A significant portion of the fonds is the translation work done by Kathleen Merken on Minoru Kudo’s diaries.
The materials are arranged into three series, reflecting the different time periods and purposes in which the documents were created. The Minoru Kudo diaries and correspondence series contains the original diaries and correspondence of Minoru Kudo as well as photocopies that were made by Kathleen Kudo for reference and preservation purposes. The translations series contains records relating to the translation of the diaries by Kathleen Merken, research files were used to add context to the translations, and the translations themselves. The family records series contains genealogical research files, files documenting the deaths of various members of the Kudo family, and some personal records of Kathleen Merken that speak to her academic history and work.

The fonds consists of the business records created and/or collected by Lazara Press and its founder Penny Goldsmith, predominately from the early 1980s to the late 1990s. The records are loosely divided into two main categories: administrative and publication records. The administrative records contain material documenting the different functions of Lazara Press, including promotional/distribution information, financial records, memberships information, and correspondence Lazara Press had with other printing presses and booksellers in Canada and in Europe. Other administrative records include materials pertaining to projects Goldsmith was involved in, either as a representative of Lazara Press or of her own initiative.

The publication records contain material relating to the publication process of the various broadsheets, chapbooks, volumes of poetry, plays, short stories, and essays printed by Lazara Press. These records include drafts and manuscripts, layouts and prototypes, as well as the published editions of many of these works. Other records include correspondence between Lazara Press and various authors, contracts, promotional information, reviews, and distribution lists.

The fonds is divided into eleven series: Promotion and distribution; Lazara Press business records; Literary associations and publishing groups; Literary festivals and book fairs; Publishers; Editing + consulting; Penny Goldsmith articles; Other projects; Lazara published books; Broadsides and chapbooks; and Discussion series. The last three series are further divided into subseries, typically by author name but occasionally by the title of a publication.

The fonds reflects Leonard and Kitty Maracle's involvement in the British Columbia Association of Non-Status Indians (BCANSI), as well as various other Aboriginal organizations, committees, clubs, programs, projects and events. The fonds consists of correspondence, meeting minutes, proposals and reports, notes, publications, newspaper clippings, photographs and various ephemera relating to Aboriginal rights and political activity primarily in British Columbia but also throughout Canada. The fonds also contains some of Leonard and Kitty’s personal papers, including correspondence, family photographs, writings and notes.

The fonds is divided into seventeen series: British Columbia Association of Non-Status Indians (BCANSI); Other Indian and Metis Associations; Native Women's Organizations and Other Issues Related to the Status of Women; Native Housing; Native Arts and Crafts; Centers; Program and Projects; Indian Clubs; Committees and Councils; Events; Subject Case Files; Native People and the Criminal Justice System; Surveys and Cooperative; Other Organizations; Government; Workshops, Addresses, General Reports, Resumes and Lists of Organizations; and, Printed Material, Audiovisual Materials and Miscellaneous.

The contents of this collection pertain to the Santo Tomas Interment Camp in the Philippines during WWII. The camp was active from 1942 to 1945 and housed over 4,000 prisoners-of-war.

Records reflect the internal administrative structure and functioning of the camp, daily life of internees, the political activities surrounding the camp, and the personal experiences of Barbara and Leonard McCann.

The fonds consists of biographical material, correspondence (1928-1946), minutes, subject files, clippings and printed material pertaining to the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation in British Columbia. Amongst Shepherd's papers are those of his wife, Dorothy H. Shepherd, which relate to her work as an executive member of the South Westminster CCF Women's Club (1942-1959).

This collection consists of ephemera that celebrates gender performance and lesbian identities. Materials span a wide time period, capturing both early and late 20th century LGBT culture.

In particular, there is a significant part of the collection dedicated to ephemera and published materials that feature early 20th century gender impersonators. Developed out of the English music hall scene of the 19th century, male impersonators in the early 20th century were primarily vaudeville acts that toured the United States. Their audiences were predominantly male with a focus on comedic delivery, something that represented a shift in the male impersonator tradition from the earlier 19th century.
Well-known male impersonators include Vesta Tilley, who was an active performer from the 1870s until the 1920s, and Hetty King, who performed from the 1890s until her passing in the 1970s. Both are featured in a number of postcards that are part of the collection.

The collection also includes several early 20th century anti-suffrage postcards that depict women in relationships with each other (as opposed to men) and include phrases that suggest they have supplanted a man’s role. Other items include a souvenir photograph and accompanying paper frame from a 1930s entertainment venue, the Howdy Club, and 6 negatives of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt taken in 1939.

The collection also features materials from the 1980s and 1990s that belonged to Snider during that period. Highlights include several off-air recordings of episodes of the Vancouver Co-Op Radio show, ‘The Lesbian Show’ as well as t-shirts from the University of British Columbia and University of Victoria Womyn’s Centres.

The fonds consists of materials related to Mabel Taylor's nursing career and international travels. The materials document the professional life and world travel of an independent woman in the first half of the twentieth century. Record types include diplomas and certificates of nursing, travel documents including Taylor's passport and visas, correspondence related to job openings, as well as Taylor's written exam for obtaining a drivers' license in Durban, South Africa.

The Malcolm Lowry Manuscripts Collection includes textual records, photographs, and a variety of audio-visual materials organized into sous-fonds by creator. The Collection is predominantly textual records; the majority of materials are correspondence and manuscripts, many of which have been microfilmed.

The core of the Malcolm Lowry Manuscripts Collection is the Malcolm Lowry Papers, and the content of the Collection is consequently thematic. Materials pertaining to Malcolm Lowry’s life and works were collected by RBSC from a variety of sources, including Lowry’s friends and family.

As of the 2023 rearrangement of the Collection, the records are arranged in sous-fonds as follows:

SF01 Malcolm Lowry Papers
SF02 Margerie Lowry Papers
SF03 Earle Birney Papers
SF04 Harvey Burt Papers
SF05 Victor Doyen Papers
SF06 Anthony Kilgallin Papers
SF07 Carol Betty Atwater Papers
SF08 William McConnell Papers
SF09 David Markson Papers
SF10 Einar Neilson Papers
SF11 William Templeton Papers
SF12 Lowry Family Papers
SF13 Photographs
SF14 Microfilm
SF15 Douglas Day Papers
SF16 Rudy Wurlitzer Papers
SF17 Francillon and Nadeau Papers

The fonds consists of forty-one interviews with thirty eight colleagues, family, students and friends of Margaret Ormsby. In addition to the 50 cassette tapes there is also general information about the project as well as textual material for each interview consisting of a tape release form signed by the interviewee, a biographical information sheet and a detailed "timed tape guide".

The fonds consists of 141 letters written by 83 Canadian authors who received letters from the school requesting their books, a photograph, and a letter relating to their literary career. The photographs, with two exceptions, were not retained with letters and the books were placed in the school library; but the letters, many with their envelopes addressed to Miss Margaret Cowie, were passed by Margaret Cowie to a friend and eventually donated to the UBC Library. The correspondents include Marius Barbeau, Frank Burnett, Bliss Carman, Mazo de la Roche, Francis Dickie, Hubert Evans, Nellie McClung, L.M. Montgomery Macdonald, Isabel E. MacKay, Charles Mair, Emily Murphy, Charles G.D. Roberts, Constance Skinner, Robert Stead, and A.M. Stephen. Most of the letters were written between 1925 and 1928.

The fonds consists of records pertaining to Hardwick's teaching career. Included are documents, letters, entrance exams and photographs.