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by M. STEPHEN SALMON
IntroductionStudents of Canadian Great Lakes history are fortunate that there are a multitude of sources available for examination. Significant collections are held in several institutions in Canada.[1] However the single most important repository for the study of Great Lakes history in Canada remains the National Archives of Canada. What follows is an attempt to note some of the more important Great Lakes maritime collections at the National Archives. The strengths of the National Archives holdings are four fold. Firstly, the federal government, and its pre-Confederation and pre-conquest predecessors have had jurisdiction over maritime matters on the Great Lakes. In fulfilling their responsibilities these "Canadian" governments have generated many types of records, including such regulatory documents as ship registers and certificates of competency. Secondly, there are the many private collections held by the Archives. For example, the Merritt papers and the private collections of Canadian prime ministers relate wholly or in part to Canadian activities on the Great Lakes. Thirdly, there are the subject and policy files held in the various government record groups. The records of the Department of Railways and Canals, and the Department of Transport are indispensable for any study of Canadians on the Great Lakes. Fourthly, and not to be neglected, are the visual and cartographic records of the Great Lakes held by the National Archives. Taken together, these four types of archival records provide an overall view of Canadian enterprise on the Great Lakes. Of course the National Archives' collections are not equally strong in all directions (and the weaknesses will be pointed out below), but taken as a whole the Archives holdings do constitute the basis for a "political economy" of the Canadian Great Lakes. The National Archives of Canada came into being in 1872 as
part of the Department of Agriculture, and became a separate government
department as the Public Archives of Canada in 1912. The activities of the
National Archives of Canada (as it is now known) are governed by the
"National Archives of Canada Act" passed in 1987. In the Archives, the
Historical Resources Branch has custody of historical records. Within the
Branch, responsibility for the collections is divided by provenance and media.
The Government Archives Division (hereafter GAD) has custody of the paper and
machine readable records generated by Canadian government departments, agencies,
and federal crown corporations.[2] Private manuscripts (including machine
readable records), and the records of the pre-Confederation colonial
administrations, are the responsibility of the Manuscript Division (hereafter
MSS). Documentary Art and Photography Division (hereafter DAP) collects
photographic and documentary art from both the public and private sectors.
Cartographic and architectural records are in the custody of the Cartographic
and Architectural Archives Division (hereafter CAAD), while Moving Image and
Sound Archives Division (hereafter MISA) has charge of film, recorded sound, and
television archives. The acquisition activities of the National Archives are
succinctly summarized in the Act as follows: [The National Archives is] to conserve private and public records of national significance and facilitate access thereto, [and] to be the permanent repository of [the] records of [federal] government institutions...[3] The role of the National Archives of Canada is thus much more
than a public record office, and the NAC is pledged to maintain its role as the
collective memory of the nation. The French PeriodAs part of its mandate the Archives has from 1880s acquired copies of documents in France, Great Britain, and other parts of Western Europe related to the early history and government of what is now Canada. This policy is important for Great Lakes historians because it has made available on this side of the Atlantic documents that would otherwise be accessible only to a select few researchers. The most important French records are from the Archives nationales in Paris. The Archives des Colonies (Manuscript Group 1, hereafter MG 1), "Série B", Lettres enigees, includes orders from the King and his senior officials as well as reports written in response to these directives. Reports from the governors, indendants, and high ranking civil, military, and religious officials regarding all internal colonial matters can be found in MG 1, "Série C" A, Correspondance générale, Canada. Financial and administrative records for La Nouvelle France are in MG 1 "Série F1A", Fonds des Colonies. Correspondence concerning military operations is in MG 4, B1 Archives de la Guerre, Service historique de l'Armée, Archives historiques, Série A1. Material concerning French fortifications in the Great Lakes area can be found in MG 1, Dépôt des fortifications des Colonies, (this series does include copies of maps and architectural drawings). In terms of non-manuscript material, the Archives has been active in collecting the work of French cartographers, and much can be learned from these early attempts to chart the Great Lakes. [4] Diplomatic correspondence with Great Britain over the Great Lakes is located in MG 5, A1 Archives du Ministerè des Affairs Étrangére, Correspondance politique: Angleterre, volumes 426 to 442, and MG 5, B1 Archives du Ministerè des Affairs Étrangére Mémoirs et documents: Amerique. This last series is particularly important for the Great Lakes. Documents concerning French exploration and fur trading in the Great Lakes area is in MG 1, "Série C" E, Des limites et des postes, and MG 1 "Série F 3", Collection Moreau de Saint-Méry. The basic arrangement of French regime records is such that there is no one separate series of material concerning the Great Lakes and the researcher must be prepared to sort through large collections devoted to the entire geographic area of New France. [Go to Top] The British EraBritish activity in the Great Lakes begins with the Seven Years War. The Archives has acquired copies of both sets of the Amherst papers, MG 13 War Office (hereafter W.O.) 34, (British activities on the Great Lakes are found in volumes 64 and 65 which also contain material relating to Pontiac's Conspiracy), and MG 18 L4, Amherst, Sir Jeffery and Family.[5] Useful material can also be found in MG 11, Colonial Office (hereafter C.O.) 5, America and West Indies, Original Correspondence, Etc.. With the establishment by Great Britain of a civil government for the newly conquered territory in 1763, records of the British North American presence on the Great Lakes become more numerous. The principal series of British colonial records for the period, 1763 to 1867 are MG 11 C.O.42, Canada, Original Correspondence (hereafter C.O.42). This large collection, totalling more than 700 reels of microfilm and 40 metres of transcripts, is quite simply the correspondence of the British colonial administration with the colonial office in London. As such it contains a large amount of scattered information on all aspects of the Great Lakes. Entry into this series for specific documents can be difficult because its of the size and organization. The transcripts (known as the "Q" series), originally copied from the 1880s onward, have a detailed calendar. But the calendar is not completely compatible with the microfilmed copy, which can be accessed by a conversion table and a microfilm shelf list. A useful subsidiary Colonial Office series is MG 11 C.O. 43, Canada, Entry Books which contain copies of "out letters" from officials in London to the governor at Quebec and lieutenant governor at York (later Toronto). Directly related to C.O. 42 and C.O. 43 is RG 7, Governor General's Office. This large collection includes the records of the Governor General's Office from 1765 to the present day. It is obviously more important for earlier years when the Governor General (and in Upper Canada the Lieutenant Governor) was in direct contact with London. RG 7 is divided into 26 different series with custody shared between GAD and MSS divisions. The Manuscript Division is generally responsible for pre-1867 records, while the Government Archives Division looks after post-1867 records. Supplementing the official documentation for the Revolutionary
War period are copies of the papes of Sir Frederick Haldimand (Governor and
Commander-in-Chief at Quebec, 1778 to 1786), in MG 21 Add. MSS. 21661-21892.
This collection, which was copied from the British Library, is particularly
useful for Great Lakes historians. The most important are Add. MSS.: 21756 to
21765, 21780 to 21788, and 21801 to 21805 which include correspondence with
British posts around the Great Lakes and with officers of the Provincial Marine. LoyalistsThe return to peace in 1784 brought a flood of Loyalists to the safe northern shores of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence, Niagara, and Detroit Rivers. Demands by His Majesty's refugees led in 1791 to a change in the structure of government. Displeased with the distant administration in Quebec City and the imposition of French civil law in their new homeland, the Loyalists on the upper St. Lawrence and around the Lakes were given a new colony, Upper Canada, and the English form of civil law they had enjoyed in the old thirteen colonies. The old province of Quebec was shrunk to become Lower Canada and the natural "Empire of the St. Lawrence" was cut in two. While this created problems for both of the new colonial administrations, historians can be thankful for the extra paper created by two sets of government. The records of these two pre-Confederation bureaucracies are found in: RG 1 Executive Council, Quebec, Lower Canada, Upper Canada, Canada; RG 4 Civil and Provincial Secretaries Offices, Lower Canada and Canada East; RG 5 Civil and Provincial Secretaries Offices, Upper Canada and Canada West; and RG 14 A to C Records of Parliament. These record groups are large, and contain documentation on all manner of government business, including material relating to trade and commerce on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River, canals, harbour improvements, and aids to navigation. Unfortunately none of these pre-confederation RG's is easy to use. Their original order has been disturbed, or in some cases destroyed, and an attempt is currently underway to return the records to a semblance of their initial order. Locating information on specific subjects can be difficult but is generally worth the effort, for example, RG 4, B 13, Quebec and Lower Canada: Commissioners of Freight, (1780-1794) contains 5 volumes (15 cm.) of documentation about debts owed to the Crown for commercial transportation "over the interior Lakes" during the Revolutionary War. Records related to this commission are also found in PublicAccounts (RG 1, E 15A, vols. 29 and 45). Down to 1867 these records are worth any serious Great Lakes historian's attention. The increased settlement brought an increase in trade both for
the trade of the new population and for the traditional staple of the economy
the fur trade. Material relating to fur trade shipping can found in: MG 19 A 3,
the Askin Family papers; MG 19 A 30, the Angus Macintosh papers; MG B 2, the
American Fur Company collection; and MG 19 C 1, the Mason Collection. The basic
source for commercial shipping in this pre-War of 1812 period is RG 16,
Department of National Revenue. The Navy on the LakesThe British naval presence was undiminished during this period.[6] The records of the Provincial Marine are found in RG 8 1 "C Series" British Military and Naval Records, vols. 722A to 742. RG 8 is a large collection which consists of the records of the British Army that were left in Canada after the withdrawal of 1871 and are well worth a thorough examination by Great Lakes historians. Access to the collection is relatively straightforward, with a volume level inventory and a detailed, if idiosyncratic, subject and nominal card index.[7] The material available for the study of the War of 1812 at the Archives is voluminous. Next in importance after the "C Series" are the copies of Admiralty records in MG 12. The most important class of Admiralty records copied by the Archives are from Adm. 1, Admiralty and Secretariat: Papers (hereafter Adm. 1), which is the major series of in letters from commanding officers to the Admiralty in London. Portions relating to the War of 1812 are in "Admirals' Despatches", (Adm. 1 vols. 502 to 507), "Captains' Letters", (Adm.1 extracts from vols. 1435 to 2738 with an alpha-chronological index [including much of Commodore James Yeo's correspondence] ), "Secret Letters", (Adm 1. a transcript of extracts from vol. 4359), and "Reports of Courts Martial", (Adm. 1 vol. 5445 [Captain Robert Barclay]). MG 12 Adm. 106, Navy Board Records includes vols. 1997 and 3179 relating to shipbuilding at Kingston in 1814. The Archives has copied relatively few log books from this period; they are found in MG 12 Adm. 51, Captains' Logs; and MG 12 Adm. 52, Masters' Logs. Other official records of importance can be found in C.O. 42 mentioned earlier (Sir George Prevost was Governor General and Commander-in-Chief during the war.) Smaller collections of note include: Isaac Chauncey collection: MG 24 F 13 Peace in 1814 did not bring an end to the Royal Navy's commitments on the Great Lakes, and the "peacetime" functions of the senior service can be traced in a number of collections. Adm. 1 and the "C Series" contain useful information but the most important source from the end of the war until 1833 is RG 8 III A, Admiralty Lake Service Records. These 72 volumes contain the records of the Naval Commissioner (Commodore Robert Barrie for most of this term), and his official correspondence with the Admiralty, the Navy Board, and the Naval Storekeepers at various depots around the Great Lakes. Researchers should be warned that much of this collection is in very bad condition, with the accounts in particular being almost illegible. Other official records of interest in Adm. 106, vols. 1997 to 2002. Barrie's personal papers are in MG 24 F 66, and an important portion of his private correspondence can be found in the Neilson Collection, MG 24 B 1. The most positive contribution made by the Royal Navy in the
post-war era was the survey work carried out by Bayfield and his compatriots.
Official records of British survey activity are in Adm. 1 and, for the St.
Lawrence River, in MG 40 I 2, Hydrographic Department. Bayfield's correspondence
and journals are in MG 24 F 28. The Archives has also acquired copies of
Bayfield's original drawings and the published versions of these maps. Merchant ShippingThe development of trade and commerce on the Lakes after the War of 1812 can be traced in a number of collections, and it is here that the strengths and weaknesses of the Archives previous acquisition policies become apparent. The crucial interaction between business and government is the focus of most of the surviving paper. Broadly this includes everything from canals to mail contracts and harbour dues. Missing for the most part are business ledgers and account books. The dollars and cents of the freight or passenger business are found elsewhere, especially in the institutions cited in note.[1]. Similarly, at least until the 20th century, labour records are scarce. [Go to Top] RegistersFor the student of Canadian maritime affairs, the basic elements of his work are the records generated by the many government regulations that control the shipping industry. Foremost among these are the ship registers. There are four basic types of vessel registration documents held by the National Archives. The registers themselves were issued for each vessel by the shipping registrars at individual ports and a copy was kept by the registrar. This form lists the vessel's name, official number, port of registry, port number, where and when built, builder, physical characteristics, and ownership information (including mortgages, and sales of individual shares). The key for identifying specific vessels is the official number, which was supposed to remain the same if the vessel was sold, renamed, rebuilt or had its registry transferred to another port. These "port" registers were kept in large bound volumes at the port of issue until all the vessels in the register had finally been removed from that port's registry. This process can keep a register "open" and out of the Archives for decades after all but one or two vessels contained in the register have been disappeared. Thus the closing date on a register can be twenty or thirty years after the majority of the vessels in the registry ceased to exist. The second type of registration document is the "transaction" which lists the vessel's official number, name, date of registry, and the changes in ownership (including mortgages, and sales of individual shares). Transactions were kept by the shipping registrar in the same manner as the port registers and have also remained "open" on occasion for just one or two vessels. The third type of register was the "Registry of Certificates of Ownership, granted and of Bills of Sale, Mortgages and other Instruments concerning Vessels,...." Very few of these have survived to become part of the National Archives holdings, and those all appear to have been surviving registers from the mid-nineeenth century. These registers list: name of vessel, owner (or mortgagor), port of registry, builder, date of certificate, and physical characteristics. Incomplete runs of these three types of port registers are found in RG 12 Transport Canada (hereafter RG 12), RG 42 Marine Branch (hereafter RG 42) held by GAD, and MG 40 D 3 B.T., Board of Trade, held by MSS. Table One is a list of Great Lakes ports for which registers of the various types are held. TABLE ONEPORT, DATES Amherstburg, 1883 Bowmanville, 1888-1905 Brockville, 1874-1908 Chatham, 1847-1949 Cobourg, 1874-1916 Cornwall, 1874-1885 Collingwood, 1877-1889 Deseronto, 1866-1933 Dunnville, 1850-1874 Erieau, 1951-1957 Goderich, 1847-1889 Hamilton, 1846-1896 Kincardine, 1927-1935 Kingston, 1846-1908 Milford, 1846-1863 Montreal, 1832-1908 Napanee, 1846-1890 Oakville, 1850-1874 Ottawa, 1874-1886 Owen sound, 1875-1953 Picton, 1862-1882 Port Arthur, 1886-1913 Port Burwell, 1849-1907 Port Dover, 1846-1874 Port Hope, 1874-1889 Port Rowan, 1851-1899 Port Stanley, 1879-1888 Prescott, 1880-1889 St. Catharines, 1855-1889 Sarnia, 1874-1889 Saugeen, 1889 Sault Ste. Marie, 1875-1889 Southampton, 1888-1945 Toronto, 1874-1919 Whitby, 1859-1904 Windsor, 1853-1874 ShipbuildingAside from the official documentation the Archives holds few collections relating to 19th century Great Lakes shipbuilding. Most important for this early period are the papers of William Bell, MG 24 F 3. Also of note are the Ward Papers, MG 24 D 19, and the Hayes Family papers, MG 24 D 2. Records relating to shipbuilding begin to proliferate with the Canadian Government program of World War I. Details of these shipbuilding programs can be found in RG 42 (particularly for the Canadian Government Merchant Marine, hereafter CGMM), and in the records of the Royal Canadian Navy (Department of National Defence RG 24, hereafter RG 24). Documentation concerning the Imperial Munitions Board can be found in the William I. Gear papers (Manuscript Group, hereafter MG, 30 A 9) and the Joseph Flavelle papers (MG 30 A 16). These various government programs created considerable political controversy, which can be traced in the papers of Sir Wilfrid Laurier (MG 26 G); Sir Robert Borden (MG 26 H); Charles Colquhoun Ballantyne, Minister of Marine and Fisheries and Naval Service 1917-1921 (MG 27 II D 1); and Sir George Foster, Minister of Trade and Commerce 1911-1921 (MG 27 II D 7). The interwar demands of the Canadian shipbuilders can be found in the files of both RG 42 and RG 12, and in the papers of Prime Ministers William Lyon Mackenzie King (MG 26 J), and R.B. Bennett (MG 26 K). The official records of Canada's massive Second World War shipbuilding program are in RG 12 (Transport), RG 24 (National Defence), RG 28 (Department of Munitions and Supply), and RG46 (Canadian Maritime Commission). [9] The C.D. Howe papers (MG 27 III B 20) throw light on the politics of Canadian wartime shipbuilding.[10] The documentation of Canadian postwar shipbuilding policy is
found in a number of collections. Of foremost importance are the records of the
Office for the Administration of the Canadian Vessels Construction Act,
(1950-1973) in RG 46. Also useful are the papers of C.D. Howe, mentioned above,
and those of Lionel Chevrier (Minister of Transport 1945-1954 and Minister of
Justice 1963-1964), MG 32 B 16. The construction of the new postwar navy can be
followed in RG 24 and the records of the Department of Defence Production (RG
49). Pictures and PlansBoth the Cartographic and Architectural Archives Division and the Documentary Art and Photography Division hold important collections relating to ships and shipbuilding. DAP's photographic records include large collections of naval and Great Lakes photography, principally photographs from the Department of National Defence (for naval shipbuilding), and the Andrew Merrilees collection. CAAD holds three large collections of ship plans: the Historical Collections of Ships' Plans of the Department of National Defence (RG 24 M), plans filed with the Canadian Maritime Commission and, recently acquired from the Ships' Safety Branch of Transport Canada, 10,000 plans of post-1945 inspections of merchant vessels. [Go to Top] LabourThe National Archives has an abundant and varied collection of labour-related archives for the 20th century, while very little appears to have survived from earlier years. Crew agreements are found in both RG 12 and RG 42. The crew agreements held by the Archives are either agreements that were not forwarded to the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen in Britain or agreements that were maintained from 1937 as part of the Canadian "Central Registry of Seamen". Although the form of the agreements vary from time to time, these documents follow essentially the same model as the crew agreements held by the Maritime History Archive at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's. This contractual record (article of agreement) gives the name, official number, and port of registry of the ship and then details the nature and probable duration of each voyage (or for coastal agreements a specified number of months' service or season), the number of crew and the duties of each crew member, the precise starting time of the engagement, the amount of wages, the scale of provisions for each seamen, and any regulations affecting conduct and discipline during the voyage. The agreements also include the name of each crew member, his age, birthplace, and details of his discharge (or desertion as the case may be), and the name of each of the crew's previous ship (if any). RG 42 includes only a short run of crew agreements (1 metre, 1895-1938). More extensive holdings of agreements are located in RG 12. Volumes 3308 to 3593 (22 metres) consist of articles of agreement and accompanying ships' logs deposited with the Shipping Master at Montreal, 1900-1936. Before 1914 there are few agreements in this series and most of these are for delivery voyages of Saint Lawrence River canallers built in Great Britain. With the start of World War I the number of agreements increase, and for the period 1920-1936 there are large numbers of agreements for both canallers and CGMM vessels. Post-1936 agreements are found in RG 12 Acc. 1987-88/133 (1939-1947, 113 vols, 33.9 metres). For the period of the Second World War the Canadian Maitime Commission maintained an alphabetical list of merchant seamen (RG 46 vol. 1282). Now, as a matter of standard records management procedure, GAD does acquire crew agreements but as can noted from above there are significant gaps in the National Archives holdings. Over the past few years the Archives has acquired a long run of official ships' logs, 1937 to 1983. These records, which are valuable for discipline matters and as a supplement to the crew agreements, are in RG 12 Acc. 85-86/164. Acc. 85-86/175, and Acc. 85-86/579. They total almost 100 metres in extent. The Archives does have a large body of Registers of Certificates of Competency, but there are at the same time important gaps. These registers list the name, birthplace, the type of certificate held, where and when it the certificate was granted and the certificate number. The registers also include space for voyages made (although this is not always utilized). These registers are found in RG 12 and in Great Britain: Board of Trade (MG 40 D 3 B.T.). The most complete runs are for engineers (1887-1951), and masters and mates with "Inland and Coastal" certificates (1883-1923). If the crew agreements and certificates of competency provide the bones of seafaring labour history, the more controversial aspects of the subject are also well covered. But again there is little for the 19th century. For example, I have been unable to locate in the National Archives any reference to the "Chicago Seaman's Union" which was active on both sides of the Lakes in the 1880s and 1890s. Material concerning the Canadian Seamen's Union can be found in papers of the Canadian Seamen's Union History Project (MG 30 A 124) [11], and the Herbert Herridge papers (MG 32 C 13). The career of Hal Banks and the activities of the Seamen's
International Union can be traced in a number of important collections. Papers
of unions and union leaders which shed light on this period include: the
Canadian Labour Congress (MG 28 I 103); the Canadian Brotherhood of Railway,
Transport and General Workers (MG 28 I 215); the Donald Swait papers (MG 30 A
119); and the Joseph Mackenzie papers (MG 31 B 45). Political and official
documents are also well represented, some of the more important being: the
Industrial Inquiry Commission on Shipping on the Great Lakes and Saint Lawrence
River; the Norris Commission, (RG 36/29); the records of the Department of
Labour (RG 27); and the papers of Lionel Chevrier, mentioned above. [12] In
summary it can be said that the National Archives has been successful in
acquiring seafaring labour records, particularly for the post-1945 period. BusinessResearchers, if they are diligent, will find much that is useful in many different collections in the form of subject and policy files, but the available material lends itself more to an examination of the "political economy" of Canadian Great Lakes shipping that it does to orthodox business history. The National Archives has not been able to acquire the records
of any of Canada's major private shipping firms. Records of Canadian shipping
companies at the National Archives are limited to the following: the Donald
Bethune papers (MG 24 D 24); the Alexander Hamilton papers (MG 24 I 16); the
Charles Jones papers (MG 24 B7); the William Hamilton Merritt and family papers
(MG 24 E1); the minutebook of the Ottawa Transportation Company Limited,
1892-1914 (MG 28 III 16); material relating to the Ottawa River Navigation
Company in the Robert Ward Shephard and Family papers (MG 29 A 53); a small
collection of Deseronto Navigation Company records (MG 28 III 4); the minutebook
of the Lakes and St. Lawrence Navigation Company Limited (a subsidiary of the
Canada Starch Company), and various documents concerning vessels owned by the
Canada Starch Company (MG 28 III 94); and an account book and minutes of the
Western Transportation Company, 1915-1918, in the papers of George Percy Harris
(MG 30 A 116). The records of Canadian National Railways (RG 30) contain the
minutebooks of the Canada Atlantic Transit Company.[13] For the timber trade on
lake Ontario and navigation of the Trent Canal system researchers should note
the extensive collection of Boyd, Mossom and Co. records (MG 28 III 1). Except
for the Boyd and Bethune papers, these corporate records are disappointing both
in their size and content, providing little beyond profit and loss information
at best.[14] They do not compare with the nineteenth century corporate records
in the Canada Steamship Lines collection at the Queen's University Archives. The
creation and history of the CGMM can be followed in the papers of Sir Robert
Borden (MG 26 H), and in RGs 30 and 42. The National Archives also has the
business papers of one shipping agency, the Robert Reford Company (MG 28 III 59)
which consist of letterbooks, account books, etc. for this Montreal shipping
agency and its predecessor companies, but the strength of the Archives
collections lies elsewhere. Government RecordsThe Canadian shipping industry has long been vocal in lobbying government, and this fact is reflected in the files of politicians, royal commissions, and government departments and agencies. Until 1867 RG's 1, 4, and 5, noted earlier, are rich in documentation essential to the business historian. In the Post-Confederation period the records of two royal commissions, the Royal Commission on Transportation of Canadian Products through Canadian Ports, 1903-1905 (RG 33/3), and the Royal Commission on the Coasting Trade, 1955-1957 (RG 33/34), are perhaps the most easily accessible of these "political economy" files. The records of the earlier of the two commissions merely consist of transcripts of the oral presentations put before the commissioners but nonetheless they are instructive. The papers of the Royal Commission on the Coasting Trade are much more extensive. They present a complete snapshot of Canadian shipping at mid-century, with comprehensive briefs from shipowners, shippers, shipbuilders, and industry associations. Two collections of business association papers, the Montreal Board of Trade (MG 28 III 44) and the Great Lakes Waterway Development Association (MG 28 I 450), provide insights into the activities of institutionalized lobbying groups. The correspondence and subject files of all Post-Confederation Canadian Prime Ministers include a wide variety of documentation on Great Lakes matters. The levels of entry to these collections differ. The papers of Alexander Mackenzie (MG 26 B), and the papers of Sir Wilfrid Laurier (MG 26 G) have a primary correspondence index. The Louis St. Laurent papers (MG 26 L), and Lester Pearson papers (MG 26 N), are accessed by file title. And computerized subject and correspondence indexes are available for the Sir John A. Macdonald papers (MG 26 A), the Sir Robert Borden papers (MG 26 H), the Arthur Meighen papers (MG 26 I), and the Mackenzie King papers (MG 26 J). The finding aid for the R.B. Bennett papers (MG 26 K) is a computerised keyword sort. The majority of the John Diefenbaker papers (MG 26 M) are not yet open for research. Important Cabinet ministers' papers include: Sir George Foster, Minister of Trade and Commerce, 1911-1921 (MG 27 II D 7); George Graham, Minister of Railways and Canals, 1907-1911 and 1923-1926 (MG 27 II D 8); Robert Manion, Minister of Railways and Canals, 1930-1935 (MG 27 III B 7); H.H. Stevens, Minister of Trade and Commerce, 1930-1935 (MG 27 III B 9); C.D. Howe, (MG 27 III B 20) mentioned above; and Leon Balcer, Minister of Transport, 1960-1963.(MG 27 III B 18). The most important governmental department records are found
in RGs 12, 42, 43 (Department of Railways and Canals, hereafter RG 43), 46, and
records of the Department of Trade and Commerce (RG 20). These document lobbying
efforts by organizations such as the Dominion Marine Association, and individual
corporations. The unpublished sessional papers held as part of the records of
Parliament in RG 14 (1916-1983) contain a wide variety of information on
maritime business topics. Many of the government records described above are
organized in file blocks with the regular means of entry being through a file
list finding aid. In summary, the "business" records held by the
National Archives are not for the most part discrete collections but part and
parcel of larger sets of papers accumulated by a broad group of individual
politicians and government agencies. CanalsCertainly the most important aid to commerce and navigation carried out by 19th century British and Canadian governments was the construction and maintenance of the various canals. The first of these projects were the Rideau Canal and the canals on the Ottawa River, built expressly by the British Army to bypass the international stretch of the St. Lawrence River. Material relating to Colonel By's achievement can be found in a number of collections including: the "C series" (vols. 38 to 59); the Rideau Canal collection, (MG 24 E 2); the papers of John Burrows, (MG 24 H 12); and the Historical Society of Ottawa collection, (MG 9 D8-68). There are also some lock masters' records in the Andrew Merrilees collection, MG 31 A 10. Records relating to the building and operation of the Welland, St. Lawrence, and Canadian Sault Ste. Marie Canals (and Rideau Canal) can be found in Department of Public Works (RG 11) and RG's 12, 42, and 43.[15] [Go to Top] PortsCollections directly concerning such infrastructure as port development include RG 11; RG 12; RG 42 accession 84-85/195; RG 66 Ports Canada; and RG 33/54 The Royal Commission to Examine and Investigate the Transactions of the Toronto Harbour Commissioners, 1926-1927. The Prime Ministers' papers, noted above, are filled with countless documents regarding the building and maintaining of government navigational works, ranging from simple patronage to detailed economic analysis. Records and papers devoted to that most spectacular "aid to navigation", the St. Lawrence Seaway, are found in RG 12, RG 36/29 St. Lawrence River, Joint Board of Engineers; RG 52 the St. Lawrence Seaway Authority; and the Chevrier and Balcer papers (noted below). The photographic and cartographic documentation for government marine work is rich with photos and plans for all major developments. [Go to Top] Strengths and WeaknessesThe strengths and weaknesses of the Great Lakes collections held by the National Archives stem from both the mandated role of the institution and the nature of the Canadian maritime experience. As the official repository for federal government records, the Post-Confederation regulatory side of maritime affairs is well represented. So too are the lobbying efforts of interested private parties. The private papers of the "nationally significant" politicians held by the Archives are a further example of how the Archives' collecting policies promote (or impede) Canadian Great Lakes studies. Ministers of Transport are well represented but the late 19th century Ministers of Railways and Canals are not. However for the most part the role of the various Canadian governments in Great Lakes maritime development is well covered. The same can be said for post-1945 maritime labour records. And this area can be expected to become even richer in the future, although no one expects to discover a hidden cache of Hal Banks papers. Thus the strengths of the National Archives maritime collections fall into three categories: official government records, "political economy", and labour. The weaknesses of the National Archives' Great Lakes collections stem partly from the perception of the Great Lakes as simply a local region not worth the attention of a "national" institution, and partly because for the early years documentation is so scarce.While operating in a regional context, the nature of the business carried on by such firms as Canada Steamship Lines or Upper Lakes Shipping has in fact been of "national significance". Only a few archivists have yet realized this. For example, the long runs of shipbuilding records have been saved by the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes at Kingston. Much remains to be done. In conclusion, the National Archives' Great Lakes
holdings are voluminous if sometimes scattered and difficult to access. For
earlier naval records and for federal government records the National Archives
is unsurpassed. The maritime portions of the papers of federal politicians are
large, and also in certain areas of Great Lakes labour history documentation
available is extensive. The weaknesses in the National Archives' Great Lakes
collections are in private business records. However, taken as a whole the
National Archives of Canada is the single most important repository for the
study of Canadian Great Lakes maritime history. REFERENCESThe author would like to thank Michel Wycynski, Ed Dahl, Pat Kennedy, and Brian Hallett for their kind assistance. An earlier version of this paper was presented to the annual meeting of the Association for Great Lakes Maritime History at Toledo, Ohio, September 1989. 1. Important Canadian Great Lakes collections are held by the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes at Kingston and Queen's University Archives, both in Kingston, Ontario; the Toronto Harbour Commission's Archives and the Archives of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario; and the Port of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec. There are also important Canadian materials in the Institute for Great Lakes Research, Perrysburg, Ohio. For the purpose of this paper the Great Lakes will be defined as the five Great Lakes, their connecting waters, the St. Lawrence River from Kingston to Montreal, and its tributaries the Ottawa River and the Rideau Canal. 2. Researchers should note that federal government records are governed by the provisions of the Access to Information and Privacy Acts and the regulations made pursuant to legislation. Those files which have not been previously opened must first be reviewed in accordance with the legislation before they can be made available for research. For this reason researchers from outside of Ottawa are advised to contact the Archives in advance of their visit. 3. The National Archives of Canada Act, 35-36 Eliz. II, c.1 (4), 1986-1987. 4. For French cartographers and the Great Lakes see Conrad E. Heidenreich, "Mapping the Great Lakes: The Period of Exploration, 1603-1700," Cartographica, XVII, No. 3, (Autumn 1980), pp. 32-64; and by the same author "Mapping the Great Lakes: The period of Imperial Rivalries, 1700-1760," Cartographica, XVIII, No. 3, (Autumn 1981), pp. 74-109. [back] 6. It is important to remember that the Provincial Marine was not part of the Royal Marines but rather a section of the Quartermaster's Department of the Army. See W. A. B. Douglas, "The Anatomy of Naval Incompetence: the Provincial Marine in Defence of Upper Canada before 1813," Ontario History, LXXI, No. 1 (March 1979), pp. 3-26. 7. The inventory has been published as: [E. A.] Cruikshank, Inventory of the Military Documents in the Canadian Archives, (Ottawa, 1910). The entire "C Series along with its inventory, card index and microfilm conversion list is available through interlibrary loan on microfilm. 8. For a complete description of the various casualty documents see Richard Brown and Glenn T. Wright, "In Search of Shipwrecks: Government Archives Sources Relating to Marine Casualties in Canada," FreshWater v. 4 (1989), pp. 14-20. [back] 10. C.D. Howe (1886-1960) was successively Minister of Marine (1935-1936), Minister of Railways and Canals (1935-1936), Minister of Transport (1936-1940), Minister of Munitions and Supply (1940-1945), Acting Minister of Transport (May-October 1942), Minister of Reconstruction (1944-1945) Minister of Reconstruction and Supply (1946-1948), Minister of Trade and Commerce (1948-1957), and Minister of Defence Production (1951-1957). For the influence of political decisions on wartime shipbuilding programs see Ernest Forbes, "Consolidating Disparity: The Maritimes and the Industrialization of Canada during the Second World War," Acadiensis XV, No. 2 (Spring 1986), 4-27. 11. This collection formed the basis for Jim
Green, Against the
Tide: A History of the Canadian Seamen's Union, (Toronto, 1986). 12. For Department of Labour records see John Smart, Records of the Department of Labour, RG 27, (Ottawa, 1988). 13. The Canada Atlantic Transit Company and its American counterpart, the Canada Atlantic Transit Company of the United States, were Great Lakes shipping lines founded in 1898 by J.R. Booth as subsidiaries of his Canada Atlantic Railway. The railway and shipping lines were sold to the Grand Trunk in 1904 and subsequently became part of the Canadian National Railway system. 14. The Bethune papers (MG 24 D 24) are an exception to this rule see; Peter Baskerville, "Donald Bethune's Steamboat Business: A Study of Upper Canadian Commercial and Financial Practice," Ontario History, (September 1975), pp.135-149. 15. For the Department of Public Works, see Brian
Hallett, comp., Records
of the Department of Public Works (RG 11), (Ottawa, 1977), and for the
Department of Railways and Canals, see Glenn T. Wright, Records of the Department of Railways and
Canals (RG 43), (Ottawa, 1986).
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Last updated May 04,2004