Andrew Taylor fonds
Andrew Taylor (1907-1993) was one of Canada's foremost polar explorers. Taylor, a Scottish immigrant, earned his engineering degree from the University of Manitoba in 1931. Upon graduation, he landed a job as a Provincial Surveyor and in that capacity, he observed much of rural Manitoba prior to its transformation brought about by hydro-electric, agricultural, mineral, timber and urban development. He was stationed in Churchill, Manitoba in 1931 and 1932. Taylor moved to Flin Flon, Manitoba in 1933 and eventually became Town Engineer. In this capacity, many of the town's roadways, drains, sewers and water supply lines are left as part of his legacy. The digitized photographs from the Andrew Taylor fonds document Taylor's time in northern Manitoba as a surveyor and engineer.
John Leslie Charles fonds
Major John Leslie Charles was a Chief Engineer for Candian National Railway's (CN) Western Region and consulting engineer for CN. He later became responsible for much of the engineering and construction in western Canada, northern Manitoba, and the Northwest Territories. In 1926, he was appointed as a transit man for a survey crew and surveyed the second section of the Hudson Bay Railway (Limestone- Fort Churchill). He also published studies of the Great Slave Lake Railway, the first railway to enter the Northwest Territories and the most northerly railway connected to the continental system. The collection includes articles, reports and maps created by Charles regarding Northern Canadian railway routes.
Melita and David A. Ennis fonds
The Melita and David A. Ennis fonds consists of 2 scrapbooks featuring photographs depicting life in Churchill, Manitoba between 1929 and 1932. The photographs depict construction projects, settlement communities, rail roads, indigenous peoples, Charles and Anne Lindbergh, and images of northern landscapes. They document the process of mechanization and frontier expansion.
Nan Shipley fonds
Nan Shipley published fourteen books and numerous short stories and articles. Her first book, Anna and the Indians (1955), has been reprinted many times. Among her better known publications are Frances and the Crees (1957), The Railway Builders (1965), The James Evan Story (1966), and Churchill: Canada’s Northern Gateway (1974). As a big supporter of Aboriginal and Metis culture, she organized Manitoba’s first Indian handicrafts sales centre (1959) and focused her writing on Indian and Metis women. Her photograph collection depicts hydro and railroad developments in northern Manitoba and of the growth and demise of northern towns and settlements. Among the portraits are native peoples and early missionaries and settlers.