Digital collections
The following is a list of digital collections created in part by Special Collections and/or using Special Collections books and archival materials.
For a complete list of the libraries' digitization projects, please visit UVic Libraries Digital Collections.
The Abbey Theatre Tray Cloth
Printed on linen, the cloth shows the 1913 cast of The Shewing Up of Blanco Posnet, by George Bernard Shaw. It was sold for $1.00 in April 1913 with proceeds going toward the establishment of a permanent gallery for modern art collected by Sir Hugh Lane, Lady Gregory's nephew.
Anarchist Archive
The Anarchist Archive is devoted to the study of anarchism, with a special focus on the history of the movement in Canada. Holdings include the papers of British anarchist and art critic Herbert Read; activist and prison abolitionist Jim Campbell; Keith McHenry, founder of the international activist organization Food Not Bombs; and Ann Hansen, author of Direct Action: Memoirs of an Urban Guerrilla.
Audrey Alexandra Brown Collection
According to a family friend, Audrey Alexandra Brown "showed early signs of some kind of ability" from a very young age. She was born in Nanaimo, B.C. in 1904, never went to high school, but wrote her first poem when she was six years old. Her work was brought to the attention of prestigious literary critic Pelham Edgar in 1921 and she proceeded to publish five volumes of verse, a prose diary, and several newspaper stories, essays and poems throughout her life. She won the Lorne Pierce medal in 1944 and the Order of Canada in 1967, but her work has been largely overlooked in both popular and academic contexts.
The British Colonist, 1858-1910
The British Colonist digitization project is a gift from the Times-Colonist newspaper, the University of Victoria Libraries, and a consortium of British Columbia libraries to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the British Colonist newspaper.
Every page of every issue, from the first one on December 11, 1858 until the end of June, 1910, a total of 100,554 pages, have been scanned and made searchable.
Cavenagh Letterbooks, 1859-1868
Transcribed copies of Sir Orfeur Cavenagh's private letterbooks from his time as Governor of the Straits Settlements (Singapore, Malaya and Penang). Major General Sir Orfeur Cavenagh KCSI (1820–1891) was the last India-appointed Governor of the Straits Settlements. He governed there from 1859 to 1867.
Transcription made available through the cooperation of the family and the Bodleian Library of Commonwealth & African Studies at Rhodes House, Oxford.
Colonial Despatches
The colonial despatches were the original correspondence between the British Colonial Office and the colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia. This project aims to digitize and publish online a complete archive of the correspondence covering the period from 1846 up to the incorporation of B.C. into the Canadian Federation in 1871.
De Proprietatibus Rerum, Barthomoleus Anglicus
De Proprietatibus Rerum (On the Order of Things) is an encyclopaedia dating from the 13th century. Although it is often described as a bestiary, its focus encompasses theology and astrology as well as the natural sciences (as understood in 1240). The manuscript is structured on astrological principles and is divided into 19 books, which according to M. C. Seymour, is a number arising from "the sum of the twelve signs of the zodiac and the seven planets, signifying universality."
Early Maps of Victoria and British Columbia
These maps primarily span the dates 1846-1876 and show the development of the territory from the two founding colonies until after the province joined confederation. A few earlier maps were collected by the Colonial Office in response to the San Juan dispute and these are also included.
Gisèle Freund Photographs of James Joyce in Paris
This exhibit features a series of photographs taken of James Joyce during his last years in Paris. The photographs were taken by Gisèle Freund and feature Joyce, his friends, family, and contemporaries including W. H. Auden, T. S. Eliot, Henry Miller and Virginia Woolf. More than half of the 161 photographs in the exhibit have never before been published and are presented by the University of Victoria Special Collections under an agreement with the Estate of Gisèle Freund/IMEC Images.
J. M.'s World War One Sketchbook, 1917-1918
The images presented on this website are from a set of two World War One sketchbooks archived in Special Collections. They contain approximately 130 watercolour and pen and ink images which were produced by a British soldier based in France and Belgium between 1917 and 1918. Among the collection's most interesting images are several caricatures that poke fun at both Britain's elite and its class structure. In addition, there are a variety of sombre images suggesting the horror and carnage experienced by those at the front.
John Betjeman Concordance
The John Betjaman Concordance is an alphebetical list of the principal words used in Betjman's poetry and prose, with their context.
Sir John Betjeman, CBE (28 August 1906 – 19 May 1984) was an English poet, writer and broadcaster. His manuscripts and correspondence are held in the UVic Libraries Special Collections.
More information
Laszlo Hudec Collection
In Shanghai, Hugyecz started to use the name L. E. Hudec in official writings. In the space of seven years, Hudec had several major projects under his belt, and by 1925 he had established his own office and a place as one of the leading architects in the city. Many of his buildings (Park Hotel, Moore Memorial Church, Grand Theatre, The Mansion, Union Brewery, Wu’s House, Estrella Apartments, etc.) are well preserved and visible today.
Life In Japan, ca. 1910 by Herbert Geddes
Herbert Geddes was a manager for G. R. Gregg and Company, importers and exporters; he was sent to Japan and was based in Yokohama between 1908 and 1918. The collection consists of photographic glass-plate transparencies depicting life in Japan, including scenery, street scenes, workers, farming, fishing, silk production, stone carvers, wood carvers, metal workers, potters, and artists.
Lydgate Manuscript, Fall of Princes, ca. 1480
Special Collections has a fifteenth-century manuscript of John Lydgate's Fall of Princes, written on paper and parchment in Middle English. This text describes how a variety of "princes" fell from power due to misfortune or their own wrong doing. Available here is a facsimile of the entire manuscript, with commentary, plus a pilot project to transcribe part of the text.
Maclure Architectural Drawings
Architectural plans by Samuel Maclure (1860-1929) for homes in Victoria and other B.C. locations. Maclure received commissions from many prominent Victoria and B.C. businessmen and politicians.
Military Oral Histories
Digital audio files and some transcripts of hundreds of interviews of veterans of WWI, WWII, the Korean War and the War in Afghanistan. Recordings made by Dr. Reginald H. Roy and his students are the largest holding in this category. Historian Hal Lawrence also donated recordings that he made of Canadian Naval personnel.
Opinions of... Negro Servitude, in the Province of Nova-Scotia
Published in 1802, Opinions of Several Gentlemen of the Law, on the Subject of Negro Servitude, in the Province of Nova Scotia, is a small surviving piece of the history of slavery in Canada. Dispensing with a discourse on the morality of slavery, this document merely attempts to answer questions regarding the legality of "Trover" (a legal term inherently defining a slave as property) in one single case in Annapolis, Nova Scotia.
Pearkes Collection, 1888-1984
The life of The Right Honourable George R. Pearkes V.C. (1888-1984) is illustrated from the Pearkes Collection of photographs, interviews, maps, and war diaries. Pearkes was an acclaimed military leader in both world wars who later went on to become Minister of Defence in Diefenbaker's cabinet, and Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia.
Completed as part of the Schoolnet Digital Collections program.
Pickwick Papers, 1836
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, better known as The Pickwick Papers, is the first novel by Charles Dickens, published in 1836 as a serial in 20 parts with illustrations. The original serial edition is presented in full.
Picture of Dorian Gray, 1890
Searchable image over text (PDF) of Oscar Wilde's first version of The Picture of Dorian Gray as published in Lippincott's Magazine, prior to Wilde's alterations after the public outcry.
Robert Graves Diary, 1935-1939
Robert Graves (1895-1985) is a major twentieth-century English poet, novelist and essayist. After founding the Seizin Press he moved to Deyá, Majorca. The novels that made Graves famous--Goodbye to All That; I, Claudius and Claudius the God--were written in this period, as were many poems, essays and prose pieces.
Sancti Epiphanii ad Physiologum, 1588
The Sancti Epiphanii ad Physiologum is a sixteenth-century edition of the Greek Physiologus, a collection of moralized beast tales written by an unknown Christian author, probably in third century Alexandria. The text, in Greek and Latin, is accompanied by 26 copperplate engravings by Pieter van der Borcht.
A full facsimile of the book, plus commentary on the text and images, is available.
Siberian Expedition Virtual Exhibition and Digital Archive
This interactive website created by historian Benjamin Isitt and UVic's Humanities Computing & Media Centre highlights the forgotten journey of 4,200 Canadian soldiers from Victoria to Vladivostok, Russia in the wake of the Bolshevik Revolution. The exhibition is fully trilingual (English, French and Russian), inviting visitors to explore the story, learning resources, and 2,200 photographs. Interviews from the Military Oral History collection and photographs from the Eric Elkington collection are also featured.
Sir William Orpen's Illustrated Letters, 1910-1920
William Orpen was a renowned portrait painter and First World War artist. He was prolific, leaving a legacy of portraiture and painting that includes politicians Winston Churchill and Woodrow Wilson, fellow artists such as Augustus John, and historical events such as the Versailles Peace Treaty.
This page reproduces his charming and whimsical letters to life-long friend, Beatrice Glenlavy.
Smyth's Account of the End of World War One and the Armistice
Transcript of Major Charles McDowall Smyth's account of the end of the First World War, including his triumphant entry into Mons [Belgium] on November 11, 1918--le jour de l'Armistice.
Also includes a description of Major Smyth's honours and medals.
Victoria's Early History Collection
A selection of early Victoria and Vancouver Island maps, books, pamphlets and ephemera, together with archival material drawn from the Sylvester fonds held in the University Archives.
Frank Sylvester was an early Jewish settler to Victoria, involved in the Fire Department and the negotiation of Labour Contracts.
Victorian Serial Novels
Throughout the Victorian period, novels in serial parts were published in abundance in newspapers and magazines, by far the most popular form, or in discreet parts issued in installments, usually twenty monthly issues.
Many 19th century authors established themselves by first publishing original fiction in serial format. Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy, Robert Louis Stevenson and more, all published serial novels, either in monthly magazines or as discreet serial parts.
W. O. H. Dodds World War One Scrapbook
Brigadier General W. O. H. Dodds, C.M.G., D.S.O. was born on 3 July 1867 in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, and died in Montreal on 25 August 1934, at 67 years of age. This scrapbook relates to his life and service in the Canadian military.
This project uses SCRAPS, a program which allows for in depth annotations of images.
World of Mary's Wedding: Reminiscences of World War One
An inspired collaboration between Pacific Opera Victoria and the University of Victoria Libraries has resulted in the creation of this website to draw us into The World of Mary’s Wedding. This collection is in three parts: Private Remembering (letters, diaries, personal photographs, scrapbooks), Collective Remembering (the military artifacts of war), and the Art of Remembering (war art, drama, poetry and music).
World War One Photographs and Journals, Archie Wills Fonds
Photographs and journals selected primarily from the Archie Wills fonds held in the University Archives.
Wills (1892-1988) was born in Victoria B.C., served with the Canadian Forces Artillery in France during the First World War, and worked as a journalist for the Victoria Times and Daily Colonist newspapers both before and after his service.
World War One Photographs by A. J. Millar, 1914-1918
This album of photographs, taken by J. A. Millar, contains scenes of the Canadian Expeditionary Force at Valcartier Camp, at Quebec, and at Gaspe Harbour immediately prior to sailing to Britain in 1914. There are also a few loose photos by unknown photographers.
Millar was a staff photographer of the Montreal Daily Star and produced the album in 1915.