Blog & News

The British Columbia Historical Federation has awarded the Revelstoke Museum and Archives with its Storytelling Award for their Brown Bag History bi-weekly lecture series.

The Storytelling Award recognizes excellence in storytelling in non-print formats, including in-person presentation, audio, visual and digital mediums.

A long-standing program which has been running since 2003, the Brown Bag History program covers a wide variety of subjects related to the history of Revelstoke and the surrounding the area.

The program is praised for its depth of research and its focus on telling inclusive histories which highlight the diversity of the Revelstoke region.

Hosted by curator Cathy English, with occasional guest
speakers, Brown Bag History has spanned more than 400 talks to date. Since 2020, the talks have been added to the Revelstoke Museum and Archives’ YouTube Channel. (You can watch a recent installment above.)

The award was presented at the federation’s annual conference awards gala in Williams Lake on Saturday and comes with a $500 prize and a certificate.

Ruth Moffat at work on the digitization project at the Agassiz-Harrison Museum.

The Agassiz-Harrison Museum and the Revelstoke Museum and Archives will share the BCHF Cultural Resource Accessibility Award.

The Agassiz-Harrison Museum is being recognized for its recent digitization project, which has resulted in improved online access to the organization’s archival and newspaper holdings, including the Agassiz Record, Agassiz Observer and Agassiz Advance between 1923 and 1958. The project furthers the reach of researchers and students learning about the region’s past.

The Revelstoke Museum and Archives is being acknowledged for its accessibility project. Led by Rachael Lewis, the project which developed a range of tools, including sensory kits and audio tours, for visitors with diverse abilities. The project helps Revelstoke’s history and collections become more accessible to all visitors.

The Cultural Resource Accessibility Award honours excellence in cultural resource management which connects British Columbians with their history and
highlights steps being undertaken by communities to improve visibility and access to British Columbia’s cultural resources.

The award was presented at the Federation’s annual conference awards gala in Williams Lake on Saturday. The organizations split the $500 award prize and
received certificates.

Brittany Newman of the Golden Museum and Archives

The British Columbia Historical Federation is pleased to announce that the Golden Museum and Archives has been awarded the BCHF Advocacy Award for the museum’s solar panel project.

The Advocacy Award recognizes initiatives and projects undertaken within the museum and heritage sector which aim to create positive change within the world.

The Golden Museum and Archives recently undertook building upgrades with the goal of bringing the organization’s power usage to net zero. The project,
which will be accompanied by a display informing visitors both about the solar panel system and current energy production levels, is being recognized for its active, forward-thinking approach to climate change and demonstrates environmental sustainability within the heritage sector in British Columbia.

The award was presented at the federation’s annual conference awards gala in Williams Lake on Saturday and comes with $250 and a certificate.

Honourable mentions were awarded to Madison Bridal and Jazmin Hundal of the British Columbia Museum Association for their work developing the IBPOC Cultural Professionals Network.

Cathy English

Cathy English is the recipient of a BCHF Award of Recognition.

Awards of recognition are given by the BCHF to individuals who have given exceptional service for a specific project in the preservation of British Columbia’s history.

English is being recognized for her long, exemplary service at the Revelstoke Museum and Archives. Curator at the Museum for more than 40 years, Cathy has become synonymous with history and heritage in the city.

Her approach, which focuses on bringing Revelstoke to the forefront in a way that is robust and inclusive of all, has allowed for the uncovering of stories from underrepresented communities in Revelstoke.

English is also being recognized for her dedication to teaching and guiding young professionals and youth, having actively mentored hundreds of students, interns and emerging professionals new to the heritage sector.

The award was presented at the federation’s annual conference awards gala in Williams Lake on Saturday.

Deborah Chapman giving a cemetery tour.

Deborah Chapman is the recipient of a BCHF Award of Recognition.

Awards of recognition are given by the BCHF to individuals who have given exceptional service for a specific project in the preservation of British Columbia’s history.

Longtime curator and archivist of R.J. Haney House in Salmon Arm, Chapman has been the backbone of the historic site for 35 years.

Throughout this time, she has undertaken countless projects to operate and improve the historic site,
which is a cornerstone of the region.

The award was presented at the Federation’s annual conference awards gala in Williams Lake on Saturday.

Dr. Stephen Davies

Dr. Stephen Davies of Vancouver Island University is the
recipient of a BCHF Award of Recognition.

Awards of recognition are given by the BCHF to individuals who have given exceptional service for a specific project in the preservation of British Columbia’s history.

Dr. Davies is being recognized for the creation of “The Canadian Letters & Images Project,” which has scanned and made more than 40,000 war letters sent by Canadian soldiers from the warfront back to Canada available to the
public. His work on the project, which has spanned more than 25 years, has given voice to thousands of Canadian War Veterans. The project is available online through https://www.canadianletters.ca.

he award was presented at the federation’s annual conference awards gala in Williams Lake on Saturday.

Jonathan Kalmakoff

A story examining the short life of a Boundary industry has won the BC Historical Federation’s Anne and Philip Yandle Best Article Award.

“The Doukhobor Jam Factory at Grand Forks,” by Jonathan J. Kalmakoff, appeared in the Spring 2024 issue of British Columbia History magazine. It was chosen by a panel of judges from among 20 eligible articles published in the magazine last year.

The story examined the events that led to the construction of the factory in 1935 and its demise after just 10 days of production. One judge called it “deeply researched” and said it is “more than the history of a jam factory. It answers questions about a major factor in the complex fiscal collapse of the Doukhobor colonies and the eventual sale of communal lands.” Another called it “a fascinating look at a lesser-known bit of history.”

“It was such a privilege to submit this article to BC History and to serve as guest editor of the issue in which it appeared,” Kalmakoff said.

“In writing it, my hope was to reorient the historical narrative about Doukhobors, in a small but meaningful way, from being a ‘problematic’ people, unable to escape the debate associated with their suitability as Canadians, to being ‘province-builders’ who made a significant collective contribution to the growth and development of British Columbia.”

Kalmakoff is a Regina lawyer, researcher, and writer. He is the creator of the Doukhbor Heritage website at doukhobor.org and a leading authority on Doukhobor heritage in Canada. He is a past recipient of a BCHF Centennial Legacy Grant to support his research into land titles and Doukhobor-owned property.

The award was announced Saturday during the BCHF’s awards gala in Williams Lake and comes with $250 and a certificate. Honorable mentions were also presented to Catherine Clement for “A Match Not Made in Heaven,” and Wayne Norton for “A Question of Perspective: James Harold Trigg’s First World War Internment Photographs.”

Philip Yandle was the founder, editor, publisher, printer, binder, and distributor of the BC Historical News (now BC History) from 1968 to 1977. His wife Anne Yandle was also very active in BC Historical News for almost 40 years and served as its book reviews editor. In 2007, the BCHF renamed its Best Article Award Award in honor of the Yandles.

On June 24, 2025 to celebrate the launch of community historian, curator, and author Catherine Clement’s new book, "The Paper Trail to the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act".

Building on the stories in the award-winning exhibition of the same name and exploring the lives of dozens more who lived through the Exclusion Act, this book presents an unflinching look at a monumental and shameful chapter in Canada’s origin story.

"The Paper Trail to the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act" is now available for pre-order through the Chinese Canadian Museum's website for in-person pick-up on or after the book’s release on June 24. Pre-order now to reserve your copy in time for this launch event and get it specially signed by author Catherine Clement.

Shipping options are available through external retailers.

RSVP for the book launch here.

When: May 29th, 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm

Where: Virtual/Online

Cost: Free

Are you interested in learning about Chinese Canadian genealogy and family history resources?

Join us for a workshop online or in-person on resources for Chinese Canadian genealogy. In this special joint presentation, we will hear from the experts at both Library and Archives Canada (LAC) and Vancouver Public Library. You will learn how to access and search digitized resources on the LAC website, including census, immigration and other records, and discover genealogy resources available at Vancouver Public Library. By the end of this presentation, you will have the tools needed to begin researching your own family history.

Register here.

From the BC Labour Heritage Centre:

"The new collection of virtually unknown archival films, including many featuring work and workers, is being saved on the website "The Moving Past". The films are from as early as 1917 when such productions were silent, but background music has been added to the restored versions.

The value of these films lies in critical viewing. Industry is shown through the "lens of the state". Workers are blamed for unsafe practices. Images of masculinity, femininity, white settler culture, morality and well-heeled tourism steer audiences away from thoughts of radicalism and social critique.

David Sobel is the force behind The Moving Past, which aims to save the films from deterioration by digitizing and sharing as many as possible."

In the collection is "Fresh From The Deep" (1922), a 4 minute silent film that follows halibut fishers on the North Coast of B.C. to the canneries of Prince Rupert Harbour. You can watch "Fresh From The Deep" here.