Fonds consists mainly of diary excerpts and transcripts, 1912-1913, 1921-1954; also includes a guest book, 1924-1956, posters, ca.1942, publications relating the story of Belmore Browne Peak, 1992-1993, and photographs, ca.1930, ca.1955, 1991-1992. Diaries are mainly trip diaries pertaining to summ…
24 cm of textual records. -- 108 photographs : prints, copy negatives, transparencies
History / Biographical
Belmore Browne, d.1954, was a well-known artist who lived and worked at Banff and Seebe, Alberta, Canada and in the United States. Browne and Agnes Evelyn Sibley, 1882-1976, were married in 1913. In 1921, they bought property in Banff for a summer home and with their children, George, 1918-1958, and Evelyn, 1915-1994, travelled extensively throughout the 1920s and 1930s in pursuit of subjects for Belmore Browne's paintings. In 1946, the Brownes built a home near Seebe. Agnes Browne was a diarist for the family and much of her extensive writing centres around the career of Belmore Browne. Her daughter Evelyn consolidated the diaries in the 1980s. George Browne was also an artist.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists mainly of diary excerpts and transcripts, 1912-1913, 1921-1954; also includes a guest book, 1924-1956, posters, ca.1942, publications relating the story of Belmore Browne Peak, 1992-1993, and photographs, ca.1930, ca.1955, 1991-1992.
Diaries are mainly trip diaries pertaining to summer travels and family life in the Canadian Rockies, 1921-1933. Included are trips to Red Earth Creek, Skoki, Mystic Lake, Sawback Lake, Red Deer Valley, Hector Lake, Bow Lake, Kananaskis Valley, Cascade and Panther rivers, Elbow Pass, and other locations. Other diaries cover the years 1943 to 1954, years partly spent at Seebe until Belmore Browne's death. Diary copies and typescripts have been annotated by Evelyn Browne.
Posters on alpine and wilderness survival, ca.1942, were done by Belmore Browne for the American military's Arctic Training Program.
Photographs are mainly photographic copies of paintings by Belmore and George Browne produced by Peter A. Juley & Son, Photographers of Fine Arts, New York, ca.1955, 79 items. Other photographs pertain to Belmore Browne and the Browne family, their Banff home and painting activities, ca.1930; the site of Belmore Browne plaque on Browne Peak, rediscovered and photographed by Tony and Gillean Daffern in September 1991, and dedication of the Belmore Browne plaque, 1992.
Official correspondence pertaining to the naming of Belmore Browne Peak, 1989-1993, is available in document file.
Fonds consists of papers, photographs and sound recordings of Peter and Catharine Whyte and the papers and photographs of their respective families. Consists of three sous-fonds: V683, S37 and M36. M36 and S37 consists of three series. Series I: Peter and Catharine Whyte, Series II: Robb and Morse …
25 m of textual records. -- ca.46,000 photographs : prints, albums, postcards, cased photographs, transparencies, negatives. -- 178 sound recordings : audio tape reels, audio tape cassettes. -- 6 motion pictures (and film strips)
History / Biographical
Peter and Catharine Whyte were artists, photographers, outdoor enthusiasts, travelers, philanthropists and cultural workers at Banff, Alberta, Canada. Peter Whyte, 1905-1966, was born at Banff in 1905 to pioneer merchant Dave White and Annie (Curren) White. He was an accomplished skier and ski jumper and one of the region's first native-born painters with an intimate knowledge of the mountains and was an active photographer from ca.1920 until the 1950s. Peter Whyte studied art at the Otis Art Institute, Los Angeles, 1923-1924, and at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Boston, 1925, where he met Catharine Robb. Catharine Robb Whyte, 1906-1979, was born in 1906 at Concord, Massachusetts and grew up amongst the wealth and creativity of the Robb and Morse families. She studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Boston, 1925-1929.
Following their marriage in 1930, the Whytes pursued a life of painting, photography, hiking, skiing and travelling. Their log home and studio in Banff became a focal point for their artist friends, Stoney Indians and local pioneers. Catharine shared Pete's involvement in skiing and hiking organizations and together they managed Skoki Lodge from 1932-1934. In following years, the Whytes travelled extensively. During the Second World War, Peter served in the reserve army, with the Royal Canadian Air Force as a photographer and, briefly, as an official war artist. Catharine continued to paint and maintain their home and, when possible, accompanied Pete to his military postings. In civilian life, Pete resumed his art career, explored new photographic techniques and sculpted.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, the Whytes formulated plans for a foundation to preserve the art and history of the Canadian Rockies. Plans for a building to house an archives, public library and gallery were in preparation when Pete died in 1966. The Peter Whyte Foundation was named in his honour. Catharine immersed herself in the development of what is now the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, in the cultural community, painting, outdoor activity, travel and work with the Stoney First Nations. She became a more active photographer, recording her travels and outdoor pursuits. She served in an official capacity with numerous cultural and charitable organizations, was a patron to individuals studying art and music, and supported numerous causes relating to the Stoney First Nations. Catharine also supported causes related to multiculturalism, regional culture and recreation, and cancer research. Despite her modesty and often anonymous patronage of causes, Catharine was recognized with numerous awards and honours, including the Order of Canada in 1978. She died in Banff in 1979.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of papers, photographs and sound recordings of Peter and Catharine Whyte and the papers and photographs of their respective families. Consists of three sous-fonds: V683, S37 and M36. M36 and S37 consists of three series. Series I: Peter and Catharine Whyte, Series II: Robb and Morse families, Series III: White and Curren families. Within Series I, there are four Sub-series: Series: A. Catharine Robb Whyte papers; B. Peter Whyte papers; C. Peter and Catharine Whyte papers accessioned after 2017; D. Peter and Catharine Whyte sound recordings.