BC Historical Federation
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| BC Historical Federation | |
|---|---|
| Name | BC Historical Federation |
| Formation | 1922 |
| Type | Non-profit organization |
| Headquarters | Victoria, British Columbia |
| Region served | British Columbia, Canada |
| Language | English |
BC Historical Federation is a provincial umbrella organization promoting the study and preservation of British Columbia's past through societies, museums, archives, and publications. It connects local historical societies, academic historians, archivists, librarians, and heritage professionals across Vancouver Island, the Interior, the Lower Mainland, and the Northern and Coastal regions. The Federation sponsors research, supports heritage policy discussions, administers awards, and organizes conferences that bring together historians from institutions such as University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, Royal BC Museum, University of Victoria, and University of Northern British Columbia.
History
The Federation was founded in the early 20th century amid a wave of provincial institutional development influenced by organizations like the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada and national trends exemplified by the Canadian Historical Association. Early supporters included figures associated with British Columbia Legislative Assembly debates over heritage, staff from the Royal BC Museum, and members of local societies such as the Vancouver Historical Society and the Victoria Historical Society. Throughout the 20th century the Federation engaged with themes linked to the Klondike Gold Rush, Canadian Pacific Railway, Hudson's Bay Company, and settler–Indigenous relations involving nations like the Musqueam Indian Band, Tsleil-Waututh Nation, and Haida Nation. Postwar developments saw interaction with academic departments at UBC Department of History and UVic Department of History, and collaborations with archives including the City of Vancouver Archives and the BC Archives. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries the Federation responded to heritage debates connected to the Expo 86 legacy, Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games preparations, and provincial policies influenced by the Heritage Conservation Act.
Organization and Governance
The Federation has a board of directors drawn from member societies such as the Kelowna Museums Society, Prince George Historical Society, Comox Valley Historical Society, and Nanaimo & District Museum Society. Its governance model reflects practices seen in organizations like the Canadian Museums Association and the Archives Association of British Columbia. Executive officers, often affiliated with institutions including the Royal BC Museum, BC Museums Association, and university history departments, oversee committees for finance, awards, publications, and conferences. Membership categories include individual historians, institutional members from entities like the BC Archives, municipal heritage departments such as City of Victoria Heritage Department, and community groups including the Fraser Valley Heritage Railway Society. The Federation’s bylaws align with provincial nonprofit statutes and intersect with funding frameworks administered by bodies like Canada Council for the Arts and BC Arts Council.
Programs and Activities
Programming spans public lectures, archival workshops, heritage advocacy, and community history projects partnering with museums such as the Burnaby Village Museum, Barkerville Historic Town, and Quesnel Museum. Educational outreach has connected with school initiatives in districts related to the Ministry of Education (British Columbia), joint projects with postsecondary programs at SFU Continuing Studies and community archives like the Vancouver Maritime Museum collections. The Federation has run oral history training influenced by methodologies from the Library and Archives Canada and supported digitization projects similar to those led by the BC Electronic Library Network. Events have addressed topics from the Chinese Head Tax and the Komagata Maru incident to environmental histories tied to the Great Bear Rainforest and resource debates around the W̱SÁNEĆ peoples territories.
Publications
The Federation publishes a peer-reviewed journal and newsletters that have featured research on figures such as Emily Carr, Gavin Hume, James Douglas, and on places like Fort Langley, Fort St. John, Prince Rupert, and Nanaimo Coalfield. Publications often cite archival materials from the Hudson's Bay Company Archives, the BC Historical Newspapers repositories, and manuscript collections at university archives including UBC Special Collections and TRU Archives. The Federation’s output complements monographs and edited volumes distributed by presses like the UBC Press, McGill-Queen's University Press, and the UBC Museum of Anthropology catalogues. It also produces bibliographies and guides modeled on resources from the Canadian Centre for Architecture and the Canadian War Museum.
Conferences and Events
Annual conferences rotate among communities including Victoria, Vancouver, Kelowna, Prince George, Comox, and Quesnel, attracting speakers from institutions such as SFU, UVic, UBC, UNBC, and museums like the Royal BC Museum. Sessions have covered themes linking to events like Canada 150 discussions, urban histories of places like Gastown and New Westminster, and Indigenous–settler histories involving Coast Salish and Nuu-chah-nulth nations. The Federation’s meetings have hosted panels with representatives from the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, the Parks Canada Agency, municipal heritage planners from City of Vancouver and District of Saanich, and community historians from societies such as the Richmond Museum Society.
Awards and Grants
The Federation administers prizes and grant programs recognizing scholarship and public history work, analogous to awards from the Canadian Historical Association and fellowships affiliated with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Awards have honored research on subjects including the Canadian Pacific Railway, the Pearl Harbour connections to Pacific defence, provincial political figures like W.A.C. Bennett, and cultural figures such as E. Pauline Johnson. Grants support community archival projects, museum exhibitions, and digitization efforts similar to funding streams from the Heritage Canada Foundation and provincial heritage funds.
Partnerships and Affiliations
The Federation partners with provincial and national organizations including the Royal BC Museum, the BC Museums Association, the Archives Association of British Columbia, the Canadian Museums Association, and academic partners at University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, University of Victoria, and Thompson Rivers University. Collaborative projects have involved Indigenous governments like the Cowichan Tribes, cultural institutions such as the Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art, and municipal archives including the City of Vancouver Archives. International links have connected the Federation to networks exemplified by the International Council on Monuments and Sites and comparative projects referencing repositories like the British Library and the Library of Congress.