The item is a video copy of a documentary about forest fire fighting.

The item is a reel of documentary film showing forest fires and fire fighting crews.

The item is a video copy of CTV news footage. Shows stock footage of forest fires and forest fire fighting on Vancouver Island. Includes footage of: airtankers dropping fire retardent; burned-over areas; small towns at risk; testing of fire equipment; number of fires burning in the province; impact of lightning strikes; financial impact of forest fires in the province; rapattack crews in action; etc.

The item is a reel of reversal film which depicts the Kimberley Volunteer Fire Fighters Competition. It is a historical record of community events, and shows the work of the Office of the Fire Marshal in liaising with and supporting volunteer fire fighting units.

Item consists of a training video that illustrates the rappelling techniques used by the Ministry of Forests firefighting crews.

Television stock shots

Footage. Good general and close views of the spectacular fire which destroyed the CPR's Pier D in Vancouver.

Footage. Detailed depiction of the fire that engulfed the Canadian Pacific Railway's Pier D on Vancouver Harbour on 27 July 1938. Includes shots of fire-fighting, crowds of onlookers, and adjacent buildings.

Television stock shots

Public affairs. On his popular weekday morning talk show, Jack Webster introduces segments about the Nancy Varhaug traffic death case and about moonlighting firemen (with Teamsters representative Doug McLeod); and interviews Dr. Guy Richmond, author of "Shadows of a Violent Mind".

CALL NUMBER: T2743:0001 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Strathcona neighbourhood : recollections of a local firefighter PERIOD COVERED: 1910-1930 RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1977-09-02 & 13 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Tom Wylie discusses: father's background; early jobs; living in the 500 block of East Georgia; McLean Park; Vancouver City Fireman, 1927-30; CN Pier fire. TRACK 2: Wylie discusses: other fires; smoke protection; living conditions on Georgia; Jewish families; blacks in area; restaurants and pool halls in Chinatown; Pantages Theatre. CALL NUMBER: T2743:0002 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Strathcona neighbourhood : Vancouver waterfront and survival in the 1930s PERIOD COVERED: 1920-1940 RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1977-09-13 & 14 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Tom Wylie discusses: prostitution in Chinatown; waterfront conditions in the 1920s; grain-lining; loading sulphur; unloading bricks; unions; story of salvaging wood (for houseboat) and stealing coal (for sale) on False Creek in 1930s. TRACK 2: More on stealing coal. Discussion of: building houseboat; stealing rowboat from Lost Lagoon; characters on houseboats; petty criminals and their methods of holdup, shoplifting, etc. CALL NUMBER: T2743:0003 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Strathcona neighbourhood : bootlegging, crime and survival in the 1930s PERIOD COVERED: 1920-1940 RECORDED: Vancouver (B.C.), 1977-09-14 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Discusses: department store robbery; friends robbing beer parlours; McLean Park. Discussion of bootlegging: local seller and moonshine maker in Mission district; sampling moonshine; delivery system; rum-running car, wrecked as "a favour". Describes: Union Street; Jaikie joints and Sterno drinkers along False Creek; Hastings Mill shantytown; Andy Roddan's Lumps (Depression breadline); Andrew Roddan. TRACK 2: More about breadlines, and Andrew Roddan. (End of interview)

CALL NUMBER: T2798:0001 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Boyhood of a young trapper ; trapping around Hobson Lake and Horsefly, B.C. RECORDED: [location unknown], 1977-08-22 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Arrival of the DeWees family on foot from Washington when Dick was 10; the family camped for a while, then settled in an old cabin at Antoine Lake, northwest of Horsefly, where they lived for two years in the 1920s; life when Dick was a young boy; story of fishing on Horsefly Lake; trapping at Antoine Lake; schooling at Horsefly at the first and second schools there; how he earned $60.00 a month as a janitor while going to school; school at Black Creek. TRACK 2: Trapping as a young boy at Hobson Lake; his family winters on Quesnel Lake at Killdog Creek; story of trapper Bill Miner and trapping with Lloyd Walters. CALL NUMBER: T2798:0002 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Stories of old-timers and of the local dances, Horsefly, B.C. RECORDED: [location unknown], 1977 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Dick DeWees talks about the old Miocene Mine in 1918; mining at Jawbone Pool; mining near Joe Williams' house, east of the river, in 1923. Dick tells the story of cooking for a suppression crew when he was 13; trapping with Fred and B. Hooker and Lloyd Walters; stories about Tom Hooker and the Hooker family; blacksmith; sawmill; hunting lodge. TRACK 2: Stories of old timers in Horsefly; Spencer Hope Patenaude and the telegraph office; John Wawn, a central figure in the community; Justice of the Peace; school trustee; his shoe repair shop; Alec and Matilda Meiss of the Meiss Hotel; the Bull Moose Club as bachelor's headquarters; dances at the community hall. CALL NUMBER: T2798:0003 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Transportation and hunting in the Cariboo RECORDED: [location unknown], 1978 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: The trip from the United States to Horsefly in 1918; early roads; Horsefly in 1918. TRACK 2: Trapping around Horsefly Lake and Quesnel Lake. CALL NUMBER: T2798:0004 SUPPLIED TITLE OF TAPE(S): Big game hunting in the Cariboo RECORDED: [location unknown], 1978 SUMMARY: Big game hunting around Horsefly, B.C. CALL NUMBER: T2798:0005 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1978 SUMMARY: [No content summary available for this tape.] CALL NUMBER: T2798:0006 RECORDED: [location unknown], 1978 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: Prospecting and mining in the Horsefly area; both placer and hard-rock. TRACK 2: Mining around Horsefly; dances in the community hall.

The series consists of records dating from 1937 to 2000, relating to the approval of building plans, as required by the Fire Services Act and pursuant regulations.

The records document the functions and activities of the Fire Commissioner’s office, including fire prevention measures and practices of the time. The plans and related correspondence also document the history of buildings which have played a significant role in the life of communities throughout the province.

Prior to 16 October 1992 plans were required for a wide array of building types. After that date, submission of plans to the Fire Commissioner was only required for licensed beverage establishments and bulk plants. Plans include those for proposed all-new construction and for proposed alterations and additions to structures.

Records include various types of architectural and technical drawings, including blueprints, and the correspondence and other textual records related to the building in question (a “case file).” The drawings include site plans, floor plans, and technical drawings such as those of alarm systems and emergency lighting. Typically, the files contain the plan(s), correspondence from the architect that has submitted plans, and a copy of outgoing correspondence, typically a letter granting approval.

Most of the records were ordered according to a classification system which included a number and a letter, with the letter signifying a type of structure, as follows:

A = Public halls
B = Recreational buildings
C = Schools and colleges
D = Bulk fuel plants
E = Theatres
F = Hospitals and seniors care facilities
G = Buildings (various types, including apartment buildings)
H = Miscellaneous
I = Indian schools
J = Alarm and emergency systems

The majority of the records date from prior to the name change in 1979 from Fire Marshall to Fire Commissioner. Creator offices of the records include five different regional offices: Vancouver Island, Vancouver/Fraser, Northern, Interior, and Kootenay.