News

March 2025 in the Archives

8 April 2025

Public open hours: The Archives were open for enquiries and on-site research appointments 17.5 hours/week.

Enquiries: 6, of which 2 in person. (People have started getting out in their gardens!)

Running total for 2025: 33

On-site volunteer hours logged: 44 (5 volunteers)

Volunteer projects:

  • municipal demolished-property files indexing
  • historic building permits indexing
  • file listing in a large collection of personal papers (45 boxes), preparatory to weeding and cataloguing – nearing the end!
  • transcribing oral history recordings, checking and correcting existing transcripts
  • additions to Oak Bay property reference files

Photo views on Flickr : about 24K, total 359, 477 on 31 March 2025 (since 3 Mar 2022).

Archivist's work:

  • Successfully completed AABC CPD module, "Managing Plans and Drawings"
  • internal and external enquiries research and responses, facilitating researcher visits, volunteer management
  • Leaflets outreach: maintaining archives leaflets in Oak Bay library foyer (15/-20/month), plus more at Oak Bay Rec this month (see below)
  • Patrick Arena plans: A full set of 6 copies of the 1911 blueprints was produced, mounted, and placed on the wall opposite the indoor sports field at the Bee St rec centre for the 1925 Stanley Cup Centenary Celebration.
    • QR code linking to a Connect article with a list of quick facts about the arena’s history and links to find out more
    • blueprint images added to the Archives Flickr account and linked from Twitter and Connect
    • many thanks to colleagues in several departments in helping to realize this request from the Mayor!
  • Schools History Box: added facsimiles of Hope Leeder’s wildflower sketchbook (1909-11) + list of related study/discussion questions
  • PR 110 (2010) Frank Burrell photo collection (325 photos) is in its own album on Flickr as well as in the general album of all the photos migrated from oakbay.ca. This is the first time they have been presented as a collection. Omissions, duplications, and filename errors have been corrected (or noted where there are actually duplicate prints) and some additions and corrections to descriptions made.
  • PR 114 (2013) Haynes family photos are also in their own album on Flickr, “ “ above. Of the 268 images previously scanned, only 64 (and not #1-64) had been selected for use in the Archives web collection on oakbay.ca. The collection comprises nearly 500 photos, so the other half is still to come.

Coming up in April:

  • planning for summer Night Markets on Oak Bay Avenue and public engagement at Oak Bay Library through the year
  • Dead links and missing information to fix on the Archives areas of both Connect and the new oakbay.ca
  • Display for Oak Bay Artists’ show @ Monterey Centre

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Questions? Information to share? Please get in touch!
Website: https://www.oakbay.ca/archives
Photo Search: https://www.flickr.com/photos/oakbayarchives
Blog posts: https://connect.oakbay.ca/archives
Email: archives@oakbay.ca
Phone: 250-598-3290

- Post by Anna Sander April 2025.