Fonds consists of Al Burgess dictation files for "Everest Canada: the ultimate challenge" (by Al Burgess and Jim Palmer, published 1983), and accompanying typewritten transcripts. Recordings have titles and correspond to the organization of the book. One recording is autobiographical.
17 sound recordings : audio tape cassettes. -- 3.5 cm of textual records
History / Biographical
Al Burgess, b.1948, is an international mountaineer, originally based at Calgary, Alberta, Canada and now living mainly in Nepal. Burgess began climbing in 1964 in the United Kingdom and the European Alps, often with his twin brother, Adrian. After coming to Canada in 1974, Burgess climbed extensively and took part in numerous expeditions in Canada, the European Alps, South America and the Himalayas. Burgess was a member of the 1982 Canadian Mount Everest Expedition.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of Al Burgess dictation files for "Everest Canada: the ultimate challenge" (by Al Burgess and Jim Palmer, published 1983), and accompanying typewritten transcripts. Recordings have titles and correspond to the organization of the book. One recording is autobiographical.
Fonds consists of mountain views featuring summits, mountains, climbers and events pertaining to the project. Photographs are by project photographer Craig Richards.
Alberta Rockies Mountaineering Society was established in 1980 to celebrate Alberta's 75th anniversary by coordinating climbs of seventy-five Alberta mountains.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of mountain views featuring summits, mountains, climbers and events pertaining to the project. Photographs are by project photographer Craig Richards.
Fonds consists of untitled manuscript by Alex McCoubrey includes excerpts and elaborations of his mountaineering diaries, 1927-1953. Pertains to early climbing experiences with his father, 1927; climbing trips with various companions, 1932-1938; descriptions of ski and ski mountaineering trips an…
Alex McCoubrey, b.ca.1916, of Winnipeg, Manitoba was introduced to mountaineering in the Canadian Rockies at the age of eleven by his father, A. A. McCoubrey. Alex McCoubrey was also involved in early ski mountaineering, making his first trip at the age of seventeen.
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of untitled manuscript by Alex McCoubrey includes excerpts and elaborations of his mountaineering diaries, 1927-1953. Pertains to early climbing experiences with his father, 1927; climbing trips with various companions, 1932-1938; descriptions of ski and ski mountaineering trips and first ascent of Mount Field, 1934-1938; 1942 season of climbing; ACC ski camps, 1943; ACC summer camps, 1952-1953; account of being lost near Mount Brown, 1953. Provides detailed accounts of travels, climbs, friends and acquaintances, particularly Grahame Cairns, Norman H. Brewster, Ken Jones; also Margaret Fleming, Bob Hind, Roger Neave and Rex Gibson. Geographic areas discussed include: Lake O'Hara, Lake Louise, Yoho, Glacier, Skoki, Jasper and Vancouver Island areas.
Alexander Lambie, 1870-1945, was a survey party member, cook and writer at Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Lambie came to Canada from Scotland in 1904. He was a member of the Alaska Boundary Survey team in 1905 and was cook for the first Alpine Club of Canada camp at Yoho, British Columbia in 1906. Later Lambie wrote and published children's stories, poems, novels and completed a manuscript on his early work with the survey.
Scope & Content
Fonds pertains mainly to the 1906 Yoho camp at Summit Lake, B.C. Also includes some views of Yoho area and Banff, Alberta area, ca.1906.
Photographs pertain to Glacier House hotel, staff, guests, activities; also Illecillewaet Glacier, Canadian Pacific Railway, Glacier area landscape and scenic views, including Nakimu Caves. Includes some views from across Canada. Other items are a poem titled "Lines written at Laggan" by G. E. Si…
2 photograph albums (ca.200 prints). -- 53 photographs : prints. -- 4 textual records
History / Biographical
Alice Harding, b.ca.1892, was a chambermaid at the Lake Louise Chalet in Alberta, Canada in 1913, and at Glacier House at Glacier, British Columbia from 1914 to ca.1917.
Scope & Content
Photographs pertain to Glacier House hotel, staff, guests, activities; also Illecillewaet Glacier, Canadian Pacific Railway, Glacier area landscape and scenic views, including Nakimu Caves. Includes some views from across Canada. Other items are a poem titled "Lines written at Laggan" by G. E. Sinclair, 1913; and menu and envelope from Glacier House, 1915 and n.d.
Fonds includes motion pictures by Alice Wright of horse trips and travels in the Canadian Rockies and miscellaneous papers and ephemera pertaining to Mount Robson Ranch, Berg Lake Chalet and Mount Robson region and history. Films pertain mainly to the Mount Robson and Jasper, Alberta areas; also B…
Alice Wright, d.ca.1982, was owner of the Mount Robson Ranch and operator of the Berg Lake Chalet in the Mount Robson area of British Columbia, Canada. She also lived at Red Pass and Sidney, B.C.
Scope & Content
Fonds includes motion pictures by Alice Wright of horse trips and travels in the Canadian Rockies and miscellaneous papers and ephemera pertaining to Mount Robson Ranch, Berg Lake Chalet and Mount Robson region and history. Films pertain mainly to the Mount Robson and Jasper, Alberta areas; also Banff and Lake Louise. Textual records include a transcript of a portion of a diary of George MacDougal, 1827, describing a trip through Yellowhead Pass, Tete Jaune Cache to Jasper House. Also includes a memorandum of the British Columbia Parks Branch, 1975, re the future of the Berg Lake Chalet; annotations by Alice Wright.
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.
The Archives General File is an artificial collection of accessions which do not constitute separate fonds or collections or cannot be placed within existing fonds or collections. Included in the collection are textual records of many types, such as manuscripts, reports, letters, diaries, speeches…
57 cm textual records. -- 50 cm of photographs : prints. -- 189 photographs (15 framed prints, 51 transparencies, 79 negatives; 44 copy negatives). -- 3 photograph albums (139 prints). -- 6 motion pictures. -- 9 sound recordings
Scope & Content
The Archives General File is an artificial collection of accessions which do not constitute separate fonds or collections or cannot be placed within existing fonds or collections. Included in the collection are textual records of many types, such as manuscripts, reports, letters, diaries, speeches, poetry, plans and others; photographs in the form of prints, negatives, transparencies, albums, postcards, etc.; sound recorded interviews and programmes; and motion pictures. Material pertains broadly to the Banff area and many other areas within the Archives collecting mandate.
Notable items include: Walter Wilcox letter; George Kinney report; interviews with Bill Round and Edward Feuz; original copy of Treaty Number Seven; Mary Schaffer material, including letters, notes, photograph and report; reports on the Nakimu Caves; film pertaining to Banff Winter Carnival; Georgia Engelhard letters and photos; plans for buildings and structures; George Noble photograph; W. S. Park photograph.
Fonds consists of two series: I. Expeditions and trips series, 1946-1974; II. General files series, 1913-1978. Expeditions and trips series pertains to mountaineering expeditions and trips of Arnold Wexler and companions to western and northern Canada and locations in the United States. Canadian…
Arnold Wexler was responsible for the creation of most material. Fonds also contains material created by A. C. Faberge, Alvin E. Peterson, Donald Hubbard, William L. Putnam, Samuel V. Moore, Mike Banks, and others
Date Range
1913-1978, predominant 1946-1974
Physical Description
ca.4100 photographs (ca.3000 transparencies, ca.700 negatives, ca.400 prints). -- 7 photograph albums (ca.190 prints). -- ca.40 cartographic records. -- 16 cm of textual records. -- 5 cm of print material. -- 5 graphic records
History / Biographical
Arnold Wexler, 1918-1997, was a research engineer and mountaineer in the Washington, DC area of the United States. He was a member of numerous scientific and mountaineering organizations and was actively involved in the testing of mountaineering equipment. Wexler climbed extensively in North America, Europe and South America, and also travelled throughout Asia. He is credited with over 100 ascents, almost half being first ascents.
Wexler was a key organizer and participant of expeditions to western and northern Canada beginning in 1946. Noteworthy ascents of that first expedition, to the northern Selkirks of British Columbia, were the second ascent of Mount Sir Sandford and first ascents of Sentinel Peak, Unicorn and East Blackfriar. Also, near the end of that trip, an accident claimed the life of an expedition member. Wexler and his associates made annual expeditions and trips to Canada from 1946 until 1955, and subsequently in the years 1961, 1962, 1963, and 1970 through 1974
Scope & Content
Fonds consists of two series: I. Expeditions and trips series, 1946-1974; II. General files series, 1913-1978.
Expeditions and trips series pertains to mountaineering expeditions and trips of Arnold Wexler and companions to western and northern Canada and locations in the United States. Canadian expedition destinations included the Selkirk Mountains, Cariboo Mountains, Rocky Mountains, Monashee Mountains, Coast Range, Bugaboo Mountains, Logan Mountains, Battle Range and Adamant Range. Mountaineers involved were Arnold Wexler, Sterling B. Hendricks, Donald Hubbard, Alvin (Pete) E. Peterson, Alex C. Faberge, Chris G. Scoredos, Charles C. Haworth Jr., Samuel V. Moore, Arthur Lembeck, Norman Goldstein, W. L. Putnam, A. J. Kauffman and others. Series includes extensive photographs, trip diaries and maps.
General files series consists of files pertaining to mountaineering, equipment, locations, climbing associates and expeditions. Includes correspondence, checklists, exhibition prints, climbing portraits, and research material in the form of topical files, maps and print material