Digitized historical resources in British Columbia

The Vancouver Public Library website incorporates a collection of digitized British Columbia city directories dating from 1860 up to and including 1901. The site acknowledges the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre's BC History Digitization Program for funding the project.

In operation since September 2006 the BC Historical Digitization Program promotes increased access to British Columbia's historical resources, including providing matching funds to undertake digitization projects that will result in free online access to unique provincial historical material. For the 2007 and 2008 fiscal years the Program provided approximately $200,000 in amounts up to $15,000. Applicant's contributions to the project equal at least 50% of the total project costs. Newspaper digitization is prominent.

One of the 2007 projects, continued in 2008, was digitization of Prince George newspapers in a project led by the Prince George Public Library.

The White Rock Museum and Archives placed scanned images of Semiahmoo Sun and White Rock Sun newspapers on Flickr where at least they are available if not digitally searchable.

For 2008 I was interested to see a projects: Digitization of the Cariboo Observer Newspaper (1908-1967) by the Quesnel and District Museum and Archives; Bill Silver Newspaper Collection, a digitization initiative of the Vanderhoof Public Library; and a joint project from the Okanagan Region to digitize The Vernon News (1891 to 1996.)