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Canadian History

Colton Map of British North America or Canada
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
Source

Related Guides

This guide will help you find information and resources about Canadian history. Topics include the Great Depression, the Canadian Pacific Railroad, Louis Riel, and the Fur Trade.

Useful Websites

Guide to over 13,000 historic locations in Canada.

Provides access to original source documents and links to digital collections throughout Canada. They charge a fee for some documents.

Large collection of historical documents from many periods in Canadian history includes Alexander Begg's Red River journal and Telegrams of the North-West Campaign, 1885.

Includes Heritage Minute videos and oral histories in the Memory project.

Wide array of online information on Canadian history. Includes military records, genealogy, portraits and much more.

Short biographies, portraits and quick facts about the Prime Ministers.

This current and regularly updated index of the digitized collections in Canada provides links to over 1500 digital collections. Collections include newspapers, images, maps, government records and much more.

Digital Library Resources
Culture and History Subject Icon

Brief biographies of notable Canadians from the years 1000 to 1930.

Access:
Everywhere for everyone
Culture and History Subject Icon

NOTE: this online resource will be discontinued as of December 31, 2024. A print copy is available at the Central library.

Online version of the 1999 resource that describes the nation’s 119 different ethnic groups: their process of migration, arrival and settlement, community life, intergroup relations, language and culture.

Access:
Everywhere for VPL cardholders
Newspapers and Magazines Subject Icon

Access the full image of the Globe and Mail newspaper from 1844 to 2018.

Access:
Everywhere for Vancouver residents
Culture and History Subject Icon

Includes the complete text of the Canadian Encyclopedia in English and French, interactive resources and timelines of Canadian and world events.

Access:
Everywhere for everyone
General Reference Subject Icon

Provides access to 47 databases across all major areas of study through: journals, newspapers, market reports, news wires and case studies, many of which are full text.

Access:
Everywhere for Vancouver residents

Contact Us

Northwest History Index

This card index in Special Collection provides access to the Northwest History Collection, a heritage collection covering the early history and exploration of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest.

The collection includes:

  • magazine and newspaper articles
  • pamphlets
  • books
  • chapters in books
  • many other resources

As of August 1998, no new material has been added to the Northwest History Index. It is continued by the British Columbia Index.