Fonds consists of materials pertaining to Ben Gadd's personal life and career as an environmental researcher, educator, interpretive guide, publisher, public speaker and author, ca.1956-2018. Fonds includes maps, research materials, publication notes/drafts, correspondence, contracts, photographs, …
ca. 7.9 metres of textual records -- ca. 274 maps -- 29 VHS tapes -- ca.15 discs with digital files -- 21 cassettes -- photographs -- oversized materials -- USB stick with 15 sldeshows
History / Biographical
Ben Gadd (1946-) is a retired naturalist, guide, geologist, instructor, freelance writer and award-winning author based in the Canadian Rockies.
Ben was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1946. He met his wife, Cia (Langdon) Gadd at Colorado College in 1965, and the couple married four weeks later. Ben and Cia had two sons, Will and Toby. Ben and his family relocated to Jasper in the late 1960s. Ben later attended the University of Lethbridge and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Earth Science in 1972.
Between 1976 and 1980, Ben taught classes at Mount Royal College and the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology; he later taught additional classes at Grant MacEwan College and Lakeland College. From 1981, Ben also worked as a seasonal naturalist/guide for Parks Canada. Ben left Parks Canada in 1985 to start an independent naturalist guiding business with Cia based in Jasper and other parts of the Canadian Rockies, which the couple continued to operate for over two decades.
Ben published his best-known work, "Handbook of the Canadian Rockies", through his publishing company Corax Press in 1986. The second edition of "Handbook of the Canadian Rockies" received multiple awards after its release in 1995. Ben's fiction book, "Raven's End" won the title of Best Canadian Rockies Book at the Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival in 2001 and became a Canadian bestseller. Overall, Ben has authored or co-authored 11 books and received nearly one dozen awards for his achievements as a writer, researcher and guide.
Ben continued to lead guided hikes and school programs until his retirement in 2016.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of materials pertaining to Ben Gadd's personal life and career as an environmental researcher, educator, interpretive guide, publisher, public speaker and author, ca.1956-2018. Fonds includes maps, research materials, publication notes/drafts, correspondence, contracts, photographs, video and sound recordings, and other related material. Materials donated in 2024 include one USB stick containing
Notes
Ben Gadd fonds arrangement:
Series I : Personal records
- Subseries A : Travel guides and maps
- Subseries B : Education and early writings
- Subseries C : Personal interest files
- Subseries D : Other personal and collected
Series II : Research and publication records
- Subseries A : Handbook of the Canadian Rockies
- Subseries B : Other publications
Series III : Professional records
- Subseries A : Parks Canada Records
- Subseries B : Interpretive guiding
- Subseries C : Teaching records
- Subseries D : Other contracts and projects
Series IV : Legal and financial records
- Subseries A : Legal records
- Subseries B : Financial records
File consists of 144 photographs : col. negatives ; 35 m
m; 12 prints : col. ; 42 x 35 cm or smaller ; 1 cm of visual material. File pertains to various projects Murray Hay was involved with related to Alaska, USA, particularly in the mid-1990s. File includes: aerial photographs of the landscape (A…
File consists of 144 photographs : col. negatives ; 35 m
m; 12 prints : col. ; 42 x 35 cm or smaller ; 1 cm of visual material. File pertains to various projects Murray Hay was involved with related to Alaska, USA, particularly in the mid-1990s. File includes: aerial photographs of the landscape (Anchorage area, Homer, Prince William Sound, Valdez); hand-drawn draft maps of the Prince William Sound region (created for a cruise line); a variety of printed maps with annotations demonstrating comments (including a fax with an attached map from Dana at Adventure Media International); and a variety of printed reproductions of draft maps (Alyeska Ski Resort, City of Anchorage for the 1992 Olympic Bid, and Glacier Bay and the Tongass National Forest).
Notes
Items not in oversize (negatives) stored in downstairs vault.
File consists of 1 map : col., annotations, 96.5 x 69 cm. File pertains to an original unfinished hand-drawn map of interior Arizona in red, blue, black, and purple ink. Includes geographic features and labeled cities (including Yuma, Nogales, Bisbee, and Flagstaff).
File consists of 1 map : col., annotations, 96.5 x 69 cm. File pertains to an original unfinished hand-drawn map of interior Arizona in red, blue, black, and purple ink. Includes geographic features and labeled cities (including Yuma, Nogales, Bisbee, and Flagstaff).
File consists of 11 maps : mss. and reproductions, some col., annotations ; 43 x 94 cm or smaller. File pertains to a project Murray Hay worked on for Glacier Bay Tours and Cruises (based out of Alaska). File includes 11 original hand-drawn and reproduced drafts, including annotations, of a map dep…
11 maps : mss. and reproductions, some col., annotations ; 43 x 94 cm or smaller
Scope & Content
File consists of 11 maps : mss. and reproductions, some col., annotations ; 43 x 94 cm or smaller. File pertains to a project Murray Hay worked on for Glacier Bay Tours and Cruises (based out of Alaska). File includes 11 original hand-drawn and reproduced drafts, including annotations, of a map depicting the Baja California Sur region and the cruise's route in this area.
Notes
Originally filed with correspondence related to this project [see related material]. "For Steve Cowart" is also written on at least one map (who Murray Hay is corresponding with in M570 / IV / A / 1).
Items not in oversize stored in downstairs vault.
File consists of textual records pertaining to trips led by the Trail Riders of the Canadian Rockies. Includes an annotated skit performed on a 1982 trail ride, drafts of possible content for newsletters, freelance writing samples, and accounts of specific trail rides. Most items list author(s) and…
File consists of textual records pertaining to trips led by the Trail Riders of the Canadian Rockies. Includes an annotated skit performed on a 1982 trail ride, drafts of possible content for newsletters, freelance writing samples, and accounts of specific trail rides. Most items list author(s) and date. File also includes several annotated sketches depicting trail riders.
Notes
File contains duplicates which have been attached to each other
File consists of 1 map : col., annotations, 59.9 x 41.3 cm. File pertains to an original hand-drawn map of central Montana, including annotations and a note directed to a Steve from Murray in the bottom left corner. Map details include the locations of various cities in Montana (including Butte, Bo…
File consists of 1 map : col., annotations, 59.9 x 41.3 cm. File pertains to an original hand-drawn map of central Montana, including annotations and a note directed to a Steve from Murray in the bottom left corner. Map details include the locations of various cities in Montana (including Butte, Bozeman, Billings, Great Falls, Helena, Missoula, and Kalispell), 19 different ski hills/resorts, and mountains.
Notes
The Steve the map is addressed to could be Steve Cowart, who Murray Hay corresponded with in regards to other American projects (see M570 / IV / A / 1).
File consists of 1 drawing : sketch, pen ; 101.5 x 60.1 cm on paper and 22 prints : col., annotations ; 44 x 40.5 cm or smaller. File pertains to an original sketch in blue ink of an unknown ski area and various prints (some annotated) of unknown ski areas and landscapes.
1 drawing : sketch, pen ; 101.5 x 60.1 cm on paper
22 prints : col., annotations ; 44 x 40.5 cm or smaller
Scope & Content
File consists of 1 drawing : sketch, pen ; 101.5 x 60.1 cm on paper and 22 prints : col., annotations ; 44 x 40.5 cm or smaller. File pertains to an original sketch in blue ink of an unknown ski area and various prints (some annotated) of unknown ski areas and landscapes.
Notes
V795 / II / E / 1-2 may be RED Mountain Resort, Rossland BC.