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History of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism in Northern BC

This guide highlights archival resources related to the history of outdoor recreation and tourism across Northern and Central BC.

Archival Material

Accommodation is a key component of tourism, historically and today. Archival records created by the accommodation sector as well as its customers include:

  • Hotel business records
  • Advertising and promotional material (including films)
  • Postcards
  • Amenities (letterhead, guidebooks, local maps, etc.)
  • Travelogues and travel diaries
  • Photographs
  • Receipts and other ephemera

Northern BC Archives holds many records relating to hotels, motels, and other forms of lodging, especially photographs. Check out all Northern BC Archives database results relating to lodging.

Kent Sedgwick Fonds

2012.13 - Kent Sedgwick fonds

J. Kent Sedgwick was a historical geographer active in promoting Prince George history. He first came to Prince George in August 1970 to accept the position of geography professor at the College of New Caledonia. He spent a great deal of time conducting research on the history of Prince George and the Central Interior, and was a founding member of the Local History Society. Sedgwick worked on heritage issues as a planner for the City of Prince George. He was awarded the Jeanne Clarke Memorial Local History Award 17 February 1991.

Only the photographs from this fonds have been processed and made available. The extensive textual research material in the fonds is unprocessed but still accessible to researchers. Contact an archivist at archives@unbc.ca to learn more.
Content: The Kent Sedgwick fonds consists of 5.8 linear meters of textual records relating to his research interests of the history of the Central Interior of British Columbia. The subject files contain original research notes, research notes from interviews, news clippings, research copies of photos/maps – primarily related to the history and historical geography of the Central Interior of BC, especially Prince George, Giscome and East Line communities covering the period c.1900-c.2010. Research also includes extensive notes on geographic features, landscapes, interpretative trails, architectural history, industrial history and First Nations history of region.

Topics related to Tourism & Outdoor Recreation:

  • Motels & lodging, particularly in Prince George
  • Signage in Prince George and the Central Interior
  • Attractions and monuments, including Mr. PG
  • Public events, particularly in Prince George
  • Sports and sporting events in the Prince George area
  • Park development in the Prince George area
  • Trail development and interpretive signage
  • Development of Huble Homestead Historic Site