Fonds constitutes the principal resource for the study of the history of Canadian mountaineering. It provides a wealth of information on individual alpinists, expeditions, mountains, national parks, conservation, climbing, alpine organizations, publications, guiding, scientific study and the Alpin…
ca.42 m of textual records. -- ca.12,500 photographs: prints, stereographic prints, transparencies, slides, negatives, postcards. -- 85 photograph albums. -- 8 motion pictures: films, video recordings. -- 3 sound recordings
History / Biographical
The Alpine Club of Canada, the national mountaineering club, was co-founded in 1906 by A. O. Wheeler and Elizabeth Parker, and other like-minded climbers. The club espoused scientific study and exploration, cultivation of art, public education, acquisition of climbing skills, and preservation of natural areas within the mountainous regions of Canada. Through a national executive, local sections and volunteer committees, the club provided climbing camps, clubhouse, huts, and publications, including the Canadian Alpine Journal. ACC expeditions and projects resulted in pioneer exploration, first ascents, and included mountain warfare training during the Second World War. In recent years, the club's membership has increased dramatically with the popularity of climbing and its programs have evolved to serve the needs of unguided climbers using sophisticated technical aids.
Scope & Content
Fonds constitutes the principal resource for the study of the history of Canadian mountaineering. It provides a wealth of information on individual alpinists, expeditions, mountains, national parks, conservation, climbing, alpine organizations, publications, guiding, scientific study and the Alpine Club itself.
The fonds consists of four Sous-fonds: I. Alpine Club of Canada records; II. Mount Everest Expedition (1982) records; III. Personal papers and photographs; IV. Other material. Club administration records (series I.A.) pertain to executive positions; head office; finance; camps, climbing and treks; expeditions; huts and properties; clubhouses; library; publications; photography; other committees; other activities; and other. Other club records include section records (series I.B.), hut registers and summit records (series I.C.).
Fonds consists of seven series: I. Personal and professional series, 1937-1993 (diaries, correspondence, filing systems and papers pertaining to awards, memberships, biography and other); II. Business series, 1948-1982 (pertaining to guiding, outfitting, trail riding, ranching, Andy Russell and S…
6 m of textual records and printed material. -- ca.6100 photographs : prints, negatives, transparencies. -- 1 photograph album (49 prints). -- 29 motion pictures. -- 5 sound recordings
History / Biographical
Andy Russell, 1915-2005, was a trapper, guide and outfitter, writer, photographer, cinematographer, lecturer and environmental advocate in the Pincher Creek, Alberta, Canada.
Russell was born in Lethbridge, Alberta and spent his childhood on a ranch in the foothills near Pincher Creek. He became a skilled horseman, hunter, fisherman and trapper, and, in 1936, was employed by Bert Riggall, a pioneer guide and outfitter of wilderness pack trips in the southern Rockies since 1907. He became Riggall's partner in 1939 and took over the business when Riggall retired in 1946. Andy Russell and Kathleen (Kay) Riggall married in 1938 and raised five children at their ranch bordering Waterton Lakes National Park, where family businesses included guiding, saddlehorses and ranching. Children are: Richard "Dick" H. (b.1938); Andrew Charles "Charlie" (b.1941); Harold John "John" (b.1944); Hugh Gordon Riggall "Gordon" (b.1947); Lorenda Anne "Anne" (b.1952).
Russell continued as a renowned guide and outfitter with a wealthy repeat clientele until he was forced out of guiding by 1960 with the advance of the oil industry concerns upon wilderness areas in southern Alberta and British Columbia. Russell began to write nature articles in 1945 and after 1960 concentrated upon writing, photography, film making, lecturing and ranching. He wrote for numerous magazines and newspapers, produced radio broadcasts, and, using colour motion picture photography, developed programs on wildlife and wilderness habitat research for live public performances. Russell's films launched his career as an author of popular wildlife and mountain culture books, which included Grizzly Country. In later years, he was an active writer, consultant and advocate of wilderness and environmental management and received numerous awards and honours, including Member of the Order of Canada.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of seven series: I. Personal and professional series, 1937-1993 (diaries, correspondence, filing systems and papers pertaining to awards, memberships, biography and other); II. Business series, 1948-1982 (pertaining to guiding, outfitting, trail riding, ranching, Andy Russell and Sons, royalties and lecturing); III. Writing, broadcasting and public appearances series, 1908-1990 (papers and photographs pertaining to writing, book projects, columns, broadcasts, reviews, advertising, promotion and other); IV. Photography and cinematography series, 1909-1990 (details below); V. Wildlife study and conservation activities series, 1945-[198-]; VI. Other activities series, 1931-[199-] (politics, interviews, information files); VII. Russell family series, [1867]-1983.
Photography and cinematography series consists of: Riggall/Russell guiding activity photographs, 1909-1962, ca.280 items; Andy Russell and Sons Production Ltd / Andy Russell professional photographs and films, ca.1940- ca.1990, ca.4200 photographs (mainly transparencies), 28 motion pictures, accompanied by some textual and printed items; personal and family photographs, 1916-1989, ca.1550 items; collected photographs, ca.1940-197-, ca.75 items. Professional photography and cinematography primarily arose from field work by Andy, Dick and Charlie Russell and pertains mainly to flora, fauna and landscape of the Canadian Rockies in continental divide region, British Columbia, Yukon and Alaska.
Motion pictures, ca.1950-1974, include original film "Grizzly Country" by Dick, Charlie and Andy Russell, produced by Evan J. Anton, ca.1969, copy print of same; also unedited wildlife and landscape footage of Waterton area, Yukon and British Columbia.
Sound recordings are interviews with Andy Russell, [ca.1970]-1988.
Fonds is primarily a broad-ranging commercial negative collection pertaining to Banff and area, including businesses, buildings, projects, events, people and scenic views; skiing, mountain travel and recreation; Sunshine Village Ski Area; warden activities in the mountain parks; national and provin…
ca.31,580 photographs: negatives, prints, and transparencies. -- 1 photograph album (ca.150 prints). -- 50 motion pictures: 1 original, 8 copies on 3 video cassettes, 41 film reels: 16mm, 35mm. -- 18 sound recordings: audio tape reels, audio tape cassettes. -- 5 electronic records: computer diskettes. -- 3 maps. -- 15 cm textual records.
History / Biographical
Bruno Engler, 1915-2001, was a mountain guide, ski instructor, photographer and film maker at Banff and Canmore, Alberta, Canada. Engler arrived from Switzerland in 1939 and initially worked as a mountain guide and ski instructor for the Canadian Pacific Railway, Sunshine ski area and for Deer Lodge at Lake Louise, Alberta. During the Second World War, he served as a mountain warfare instructor for the Canadian Army. Following the war, Engler worked as a free-lance photographer for the National Film Board and others; as coach of the University of Alberta Ski Team; and as a technical advisor, cameraman and actor for numerous movies made in the Banff area. Throughout his career, Engler worked as a still and motion picture photographer, both for the movie industry and for governments at all levels, as well as operating his own business, Alpine Films of Banff, Alberta.
Scope & Content
Fonds is primarily a broad-ranging commercial negative collection pertaining to Banff and area, including businesses, buildings, projects, events, people and scenic views; skiing, mountain travel and recreation; Sunshine Village Ski Area; warden activities in the mountain parks; national and provincial parks; scenic views of western Canada, particularly mountain landscapes; some portraits and candid shots of local and international personalities. Photographs pertaining to film making include helicopter rescue; highway construction; Norquay, Sunshine, and Lake Louise ski areas' histories; Banff events and buildings; Canmore events and buildings; professional and amateur ski races; scenic mountain and wildlife; mountaineering and highway accidents; mountain guiding trips including Pierre Trudeau, Roland Michener and Peter Lougheed. Fonds consists of four series: Photography, Motion Pictures, Sound Recordings, and Textual records. Photography series consists of four sub-series established by the photographer: I. Old file, 1949-1970; II. Main file, alphabetical A - Z, 1950-1976; III Sunshine file, [1939], 1950-1975; IV. Warden file, 1954-1976.
Motion pictures on video cassettes are footage of skiing at Sunshine, 1930s; Clifford White films, 1930s, from WMCR Archives collection (V682); "Snow Capers" by Thomas Mead, 1946, includes Engler; "Ski Pro's Holiday" by George Encil, 1950?; "Mount Bulyea" by George Encil, 1950?, includes Engler; "Diary of a Mountain Man," a CBC documentary feature on Bruno Engler broadcast on "20/20" in 1965 (ca.27 minutes); "Great Days in the Rockies" by National Film Board of Canada, 1983; "Mountain Man" by Banff Centre, 1985, re Engler. Original film is "Sunshine 1940" and includes Brewster Transport ski buses travelling from train station to Sunshine Lodge, skiers, guide, lessons, games, rope tow, ski action, slalom, Bruno Engler, other. 16mm and 35mm film reels, 1946-1964 are films produced by the National Film Board.
Sound recordings, electronic records and and related textual material pertain to interviews with Bruno Engler, 1987, done by Brian Patton and Jon Whyte for Bruno Engler autobiography project. Interviews covered Engler's life, but are not complete to 1987. Transcripts, prepared from recordings by Brenda Goeres, are not verbatim. Audio tape cassettes consist of portions of content of audio tape reels.
Textual records include corporate records, newspaper clippings and magazine articles pertaining to film making, cast and crew listings and schedules for various movies, ski racing, mountain guiding trips and ski race listings. Also included is documentation pertaining to film making with producer National Film Board including letters, film stock footage, press releases, and film summaries; maps indicate film location shots for Arctic Rampage.
Fonds consists of the photographic records and sample materials of Byron Harmon Photos, the photographic business of Byron Harmon and his successors; as well as the personal photographs of Byron Harmon. I. Scenic / commercial, 1907-1975, ca.7600 items. Primary component of series is film and glass…
Byron Hill Harmon, 1876-1942, was a professional photographer and businessman at Banff, Alberta, Canada. He was born near Tacoma, Washington, USA and operated a portrait studio there for a time. In 1903, while travelling around the United States and Canada as an itinerant photographer, he decided to settle in Banff and by 1907 had produced enough mountain views to begin selling a line of postcards. Between 1906 and 1913, Harmon was official photographer for the Alpine Club of Canada and made trips in numerous mountain areas, such as the Bugaboos (1910) and Mount Robson (1911, 1913). Harmon personally financed trips into other areas, such as Tonquin Valley (1918) and Lake of the Hanging Glaciers (1920, 1922), producing both still photographs and motion pictures for commercial sale. After his last major expedition in 1924 across Saskatchewan Glacier, through to Maligne Lake and back to Banff by packtrain, Harmon devoted most of his time to photographing scenes along the railway, skiing in the Assiniboine and Skoki regions, and the annual rides and hikes of the Trail Riders of the Canadian Rockies and the Sky Line Trail Hikers of the Canadian Rockies. At the same time he managed several businesses, including a drug store, fountain lunch, theatre and book store. In his later years, Harmon spent much time travelling and photographing in other parts of the world. The business, Byron Harmon Photos, was managed successively by his son, Don Harmon, then his grand-daughter, Carole Harmon.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of the photographic records and sample materials of Byron Harmon Photos, the photographic business of Byron Harmon and his successors; as well as the personal photographs of Byron Harmon.
I. Scenic / commercial, 1907-1975, ca.7600 items. Primary component of series is film and glass negatives, 1907-1942, ca.6500 items. Also includes: postcard negatives and positives and production negatives to ca.1955; original prints; a wide range of sample products, such as postcards, enlargements and framing prints, calendars and viewbooks, mainly by Harmon business, some by other photographers; and lantern slides, ca.1913-192-, pertaining to Columbia Icefield Expedition, mountaineering, mountain landscapes, Indians, wildlife, Canadian Pacific Railway and Asian travel. Scenic / commercial series pertains to annual camps and expeditions of the Alpine Club of Canada in the Canadian Rockies and Selkirks, 1907-1913; private movie-making expeditions in the Canadian Rockies and Selkirks; mountain scenic views, primarily for postcard purposes; Banff events and development; skiing; birds and animals. Includes some material by Don Harmon and Lloyd Harmon, sons of Byron Harmon.
II. Personal, 189- to 194-, ca.370 items. Includes: family photographs and views received from others; motion picture out-takes pertaining to world travels, 1930s; and 35 mm. transparencies, ca.1940, pertaining mainly to world travels, also mountain and prairie scenics.
Notes
For more information on the Byron Harmon photographs, see "Great Days in the Rockies: The Photographs of Byron Harmon, 1906-1934" (Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1978) or "Byron Harmon, Mountain Photographer" by Carole Harmon and Bart Robinson (Banff: Altitude Publishing, 1992)
Fonds consist mainly of photographs by Edward Cavell, 1973-1975. Consists of 6 x 6 cm. negatives with corresponding contact sheets and some identification lists for four projects: I. Copy and on-site shots for Banff Springs: The Story of a Hotel, 1973, ca.209 negatives plus contact sheets and enlar…
Edward Cavell, b.1947, writer, researcher, photographer and museum curator at Banff, Alberta, Canada, is currently a business owner at Banff and Calgary, Alberta.
Scope & Content
Fonds consist mainly of photographs by Edward Cavell, 1973-1975. Consists of 6 x 6 cm. negatives with corresponding contact sheets and some identification lists for four projects: I. Copy and on-site shots for Banff Springs: The Story of a Hotel, 1973, ca.209 negatives plus contact sheets and enlargements; II. Landscape photographs for Rocky Mountains highway guide book, Waterton to Jasper, with Jon Whyte (incomplete), 1974, ca.700 negatives with contact sheets and identifications; III. Stage shots of Phil Nimmons Quartet at the Banff Centre, 1974, 84 negatives and contact sheets; IV. Ground and aerial survey of Cascade Fire Road for Banff Warden Service, 1975, ca.257 negatives and contact sheet. ; Also includes photographs collected by Cavell for personal and research purposes, including Tepee at Bow Lake, hand-coloured print by Byron Harmon; "Dedicatory services at Mount Eisenhower 1958" by Bruno Engler, Alpine Films, Banff; Rocky Mountain scenic postcards by several publishers, including Byron Harmon and Bill Gibbons; slide copies of photographs by Charles Horetzky, Walter D. Wilcox, William Notman, Byron Harmon and [Ernest Brown].
Fonds pertains to Banff and Alberta people, places and events, including parades and Banff Indian Days; mountain regions of western Canada, including Jasper, Banff, Canmore and Sunshine in Alberta and Mount Robson, Golden and Mount Assiniboine in British Columbia; mountain scenes, wildflowers and a…
Ted Baker, 1917-1984, was an employee of the Voyageur Inn in Banff, Alberta, Canada for many years and a longstanding member of the Col. Moore Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion.
Scope & Content
Fonds pertains to Banff and Alberta people, places and events, including parades and Banff Indian Days; mountain regions of western Canada, including Jasper, Banff, Canmore and Sunshine in Alberta and Mount Robson, Golden and Mount Assiniboine in British Columbia; mountain scenes, wildflowers and animals; and travels to eastern Canada and England.
Fonds consists of writings, ca.1929-1958; holograph maps, n.d., 1934; Christmas cards, 1937-1970; articles 1928-1965; other papers, 1877-1971; and photographs, 1897-1939. Textual records mainly consist of Lamarque's manuscripts, including two large works: "Memoirs of Ernest C. Lamarque, 1958" and "…
ca.50 cm of textual records. -- 11 photograph albums (522 prints). -- 2 photographs : prints
History / Biographical
Ernest C. W. Lamarque, 1879-1970, was a surveyor, map maker, writer and artist at Vancouver and Oyama, British Columbia, Canada. Lamarque was born in Kent, England and emigrated to the United States in 1896, travelling to Winnipeg in 1897. He worked for the Hudson's Bay Company as a fur trader at Isle a la Crosse, Fort Simpson, Fort McKay and Fort Chipewyan before entering the surveying field in 1907. His survey work took him throughout British Columbia, Alberta and the Yukon. In 1933-1934, he was in charge of the advance party reconnaissance for the Bedaux Subarctic Expedition. He was also involved in Alaska Highway, Royal Canadian Air Force and Whitehorn Mountain ski lift surveys.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of writings, ca.1929-1958; holograph maps, n.d., 1934; Christmas cards, 1937-1970; articles 1928-1965; other papers, 1877-1971; and photographs, 1897-1939.
Textual records mainly consist of Lamarque's manuscripts, including two large works: "Memoirs of Ernest C. Lamarque, 1958" and "Travels and exploration in northern British Columbia, 1934," and short fiction and non-fiction works based upon his career in British Columbia and Alberta. Material pertains mainly to the Mackenzie, Peace, Liard, Finlay, and Athabasca River districts, the Bella Coola and Cariboo districts, Rocky and Selkirk Mountains, the Columbia River, and the Bedaux Expedition, with regards to surveying, exploration, prospecting, flora and fauna.
Textual records also include a diary and maps from the Bedaux Subarctic Expedition reconnaissance, 1934, and the British Columbia-Alaska highway reconnaissance, 1939.
Photographs pertain to the Bedaux expedition, Hudson's Bay Company work in northwestern Canada, and survey work in northern Alberta and British Columbia, 1897-1939. Albums are annotated and include maps and sketches.
Fonds documents the Girl Guides of Canada, Banff area activities and events, ca.1955-ca.1970. Records consist of photographs and a scrapbook pertaining to Banff packs; textual records consist of club and society records, published handbooks, pamphlets, serials, and booklets.
The Girl Guides began Canadian operations in 1910 in St. Catharines, Ontario following the movement's foundation in England by Lord Baden-Powell in 1909. In 1912 Canadian headquarters were established in Toronto and in 1917 a Canadian Council was incorporated. In 1961 the organization became known as Girl Guides of Canada with a goal to teach and train girls responsibility and community service. Girls enroll in various Brownie, Guide or Ranger Packs under the supervision of volunteer Pack leaders. The girls earn badges in a wide variety of activities. The Guide movement in Alberta began in 1912 with Companies forming first in Edmonton and then around the province. A Guide Group of 9-15 girls was established in Banff in the mid-1920s followed by the creation of a Brownie Pack in 1939. In 1961 the Banff Scout-Guide Hall opened in Banff.
Scope & Content
Fonds documents the Girl Guides of Canada, Banff area activities and events, ca.1955-ca.1970. Records consist of photographs and a scrapbook pertaining to Banff packs; textual records consist of club and society records, published handbooks, pamphlets, serials, and booklets.
Fonds consists primarily of John Murray's negatives of the Canadian Rockies, 1937-1938. Included are the areas of Banff, Lake Louise, Lake O'Hara, Yoho Valley, Mount Assiniboine, Mount Athabasca, Fraser Glacier, Outpost Peak, North and South Twin, Mount Andromeda and others. Negatives are accom…
ca.280 photographs : negatives. -- 3 textual records
History / Biographical
John W. Murray (b.ca.1910), of Blacksburg, Virginia, was a member of the Appalachian Mountain Club who climbed in the Canadian Rockies in 1937 and 1938. He attended Alpine Club of Canada camps in the Little Yoho Valley and at the Columbia Icefield
Scope & Content
Fonds consists primarily of John Murray's negatives of the Canadian Rockies, 1937-1938. Included are the areas of Banff, Lake Louise, Lake O'Hara, Yoho Valley, Mount Assiniboine, Mount Athabasca, Fraser Glacier, Outpost Peak, North and South Twin, Mount Andromeda and others. Negatives are accompanied by a descriptive list. Textual records also include copies of typed articles by John Murray: "Climbing in the Canadian Rockies 1937", 1993, 9 pages; and "Climbing in the Canadian Rockies 1938", 1998, 3 pages
Fonds consists of research interviews recorded by Manry for use in her book "Skoki: Beyond the Passes." 2 microcassette recordings with accompanying transcripts of interviews with Gordon patterson and Don Mickle (1997-1998) and 1 microcassette recording (copy) with accompanying transcript of interv…
3 textual records. -- 3 sound recordings: micro-audio cassettes
History / Biographical
Kathryn Manry, artist and writer was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in 1958 and grew up exploring the mountains with her family. Manry studied art at the University of Calgary and at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario and earned her B.A. from the University of Calgary in 1980. Manry attended the Banff School of Fine Art in 1984 and received her B.Ed from the University of Calgary in 1995. In 2001 Manry published her book Skoki: Beyond the Passes, which is an historical account of western Canada's first backcountry ski lodge.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of research interviews recorded by Manry for use in her book "Skoki: Beyond the Passes." 2 microcassette recordings with accompanying transcripts of interviews with Gordon patterson and Don Mickle (1997-1998) and 1 microcassette recording (copy) with accompanying transcript of interview with Jeannette (Farman) Manry, 1999. Interviews cover topics related to Skoki Lodge and area during the period 1948-1990s.