In 1987, Max Patzelt donated his photograph and negative collection - over 10,000 images - to the Museum. This talented and prolific photographer and businessman operated Kitimat Photo Supply and Max's Photo Studio for over 25 years.
Max took portraits of Kitimat citizens - babies, wedding parties, school classes, sports teams, local government - and recorded events for the Northern Sentinel and Alcan's ingot. School District No. 80 published many of Max's photos in promotional materials to attract teachers to Kitimat. Max photographed for Alcan and processed prints for the ingot.
Max became a resident of Kitimat in 1956 when he hired on at Alcan as a stud puller. He arrived in Kitimat with a camera around his neck. After a year in the lines, he had had enough. He resigned from Alcan, packed his bags and headed for the CN station to head to Vancouver.
Fred Ryan had recently established his photo studio, Kitimat Photo, retail photo processing and the town's only industrial photographers located in the Smeltersite recreation hall. Fred had heard of Max's photographic knowledge and rushed to the train station to offer Max a job running the new processing machine.
Max joined Kitimat Photo and was quickly "up to his ears in negatives" (ingot, May 22, 1987). They couldn't keep photographic equipment in stock - everyone who came for work in Kitimat purchased a camera. Max recalled that during the July 1 parade in 1957, he processed approximately 3,000 rolls of black and white film. It took days to process them all. With a new town and smelter, and surrounded by innovation, photography was just booming in Kitimat. Alcan wanted to document its construction events for both town and smelter, and workers wanted to document their time here.
Max and partner, Hazel Hatton, opened Kitimat Photo Supply Ltd. in City Centre in 1960. Max and Hazel operated the business until 1967 when Max moved the portrait studio, Max's Photo Studio Ltd., to Service Centre, and operated until 1987. Hazel kept the retail business Kitimat Photo in City Centre and operated until 1985.
Scope and Content
Three green binders containing the Max Patzelt Photo Collection Directory.
Collection of folders and other materials relating to early Kitimat.
Misc items
985.65.1 - 1 menu - Kitimat Constructors Dec 25th, 1951
985.65.2 - official opening of the 1st Kitimat School, Sept 26, 1952
985.65.2 - 1st airmail despatch from Kitimat (Queen Charlotte Airlines Ltd)
985.65.3a - to Mrs. Whiting - 1st airmail left Kitimat - Sept 20, 1952
985.65.3b - Envelope signed by Postmaster
985.65.4 - Clipping - Postmark 'Kitimat'
Clippings
985.65.5 - Yacht Becomes 'Work' Vessel (Nechako)
985.65.6 - Alcan Asks Gov't Okay Kitimat to be Planned Town
985.65.7 - Terrace-Kitimat Rail Line Approved
985.65.8 - Striking Kitimat Men Here
985.65.9 - Beauty, Thrills in Aluminum City
985.65.10 - City Hacked Out of Wilderness
985.65.11 - 7-year Canasa, US Aluminum Pact Set - Kitimat Major Supplier
985.65.12 - Kitimat Power Repairs Rushed
985.65.13 - Conciliation Board Called for Kitimat
985.65.14 - Biggest Industrial Project is Speeded (Alum Co. Ltd, will be world's largest alum maker)
985.65.15 - B.C.'s Huge Aluminum Project
985.65.16 - Cdn Affairs: B.C. A Land of Infinite Borders
985.65.17 - Underground Powerhouse was carved from bedrock a quarter-mile inside DuBose Mtn
985.65.18 - Extract from "The Seattle Times" April 14, 1952 "Cheap Canada Aluminum Poses Problem"
985.65.34 - Kitimat Constructors Instructions to Employees, 1952
985.65.35 - The School 'The Apha' 1953 - Kitimat Smelter Site School
985.65.36 - Detailed Map BC Coast page one & two
985.65.39 - Book - The Alcan Story - presented by Dietrich-Collins Equipment Ltd
Delta King clippings
985.65.44 - Kitimat Gets Floating Hotel May 13, 1952
985.65.45 - Delta King Sails Back to Bright Lights April 29, 1959
985.65.46 - Gould's Latest Dream - The Delta King (Don't Count Barney Out)
985.65.47 - Delta King Returning
985.65.48 - Delta King May Find a Home - San Francisco Chronicle, June 13, 1964
985.65.53 - Water Sweeps into Reservoir as Alcan Pushes Huge Project - Oct, 1952
985.65.54 - Cdn West Coast, Carl Agar, a disciple of Igor Sikorsky, making aviation history
985.65.55 - Magazine Article: At Kitimat, Men Juggle Geography (fortune mag. 1952)
985.65.57-68 - coloured photos 1952 - sandhill
985.65-70 - clipping - construction world mag "Several Alcan Project Features Greatest in the World
Al Beaton's Books 'Casey Sez'
985.65.19-33
986.5.1 - Booklet - Electrical Eng. & Operating Aspects of Alcan's BC Project
986.5.5 - Kitimat Constructors Organizational Chart
986.5.3 - Resident Angler's License #21913K H.M. Whiting - 1953
986.5.4 - Kitimat Rod and Gun Association Life Membership - H. Whiting
Collection of photos and printed matter relative to early Kitimat (1950's). This collection was owned by Mr. H. M. (Hal) Whiting project manager for Kitimat Constructors builders of Kitimat.
Scope and Content
Collection of folders and other materials relating to early Kitimat.
Misc items
985.65.1 - 1 menu - Kitimat Constructors Dec 25th, 1951
985.65.2 - official opening of the 1st Kitimat School, Sept 26, 1952
985.65.2 - 1st airmail despatch from Kitimat (Queen Charlotte Airlines Ltd)
985.65.3a - to Mrs. Whiting - 1st airmail left Kitimat - Sept 20, 1952
985.65.3b - Envelope signed by Postmaster
985.65.4 - Clipping - Postmark 'Kitimat'
Clippings
985.65.5 - Yacht Becomes 'Work' Vessel (Nechako)
985.65.6 - Alcan Asks Gov't Okay Kitimat to be Planned Town
985.65.7 - Terrace-Kitimat Rail Line Approved
985.65.8 - Striking Kitimat Men Here
985.65.9 - Beauty, Thrills in Aluminum City
985.65.10 - City Hacked Out of Wilderness
985.65.11 - 7-year Canasa, US Aluminum Pact Set - Kitimat Major Supplier
985.65.12 - Kitimat Power Repairs Rushed
985.65.13 - Conciliation Board Called for Kitimat
985.65.14 - Biggest Industrial Project is Speeded (Alum Co. Ltd, will be world's largest alum maker)
985.65.15 - B.C.'s Huge Aluminum Project
985.65.16 - Cdn Affairs: B.C. A Land of Infinite Borders
985.65.17 - Underground Powerhouse was carved from bedrock a quarter-mile inside DuBose Mtn
985.65.18 - Extract from "The Seattle Times" April 14, 1952 "Cheap Canada Aluminum Poses Problem"
985.65.34 - Kitimat Constructors Instructions to Employees, 1952
985.65.35 - The School 'The Apha' 1953 - Kitimat Smelter Site School
985.65.36 - Detailed Map BC Coast page one & two
985.65.39 - Book - The Alcan Story - presented by Dietrich-Collins Equipment Ltd
Delta King clippings
985.65.44 - Kitimat Gets Floating Hotel May 13, 1952
985.65.45 - Delta King Sails Back to Bright Lights April 29, 1959
985.65.46 - Gould's Latest Dream - The Delta King (Don't Count Barney Out)
985.65.47 - Delta King Returning
985.65.48 - Delta King May Find a Home - San Francisco Chronicle, June 13, 1964
985.65.53 - Water Sweeps into Reservoir as Alcan Pushes Huge Project - Oct, 1952
985.65.54 - Cdn West Coast, Carl Agar, a disciple of Igor Sikorsky, making aviation history
985.65.55 - Magazine Article: At Kitimat, Men Juggle Geography (fortune mag. 1952)
985.65.57-68 - coloured photos 1952 - sandhill
985.65-70 - clipping - construction world mag "Several Alcan Project Features Greatest in the World
Al Beaton's Books 'Casey Sez'
985.65.19-33
986.5.1 - Booklet - Electrical Eng. & Operating Aspects of Alcan's BC Project
986.5.5 - Kitimat Constructors Organizational Chart
986.5.3 - Resident Angler's License #21913K H.M. Whiting - 1953
986.5.4 - Kitimat Rod and Gun Association Life Membership - H. Whiting
Gabriel (Gabor) Nyeste was one of the leaders of the Scouts of the First Kitimat Troop (Boy Scouts). He moved to Kitimat to work on the Alcan project and left in the early 60s. He passed away in Kamloops in July 2020.
Custodial History
Donated by Gabriel Nyeste, Aug 6 1983.
Scope and Content
Pictures, clippings, letters of early Girl Guide and Boy Scout Movement in Kitimat, B.C. 1955-1961.
Fonds contains 18 black-and-white photographs taken by Jozef Dziuba in the early 1950s. Subjects include views of the channel and the Alcan project, planes and helicopters landing, ships and boats including the Delta King, sports & games (races, high jump, baseball), industrial tanks, the Hudson's Bay Company building steps, and an overhead view of the community including employee housing.
Jozef Dziuba came to Kitimat in the early 1950s to work as a construction worker, and remained here to work at the smelter and raise a family.
Custodial History
Donated to the Kitimat Museum & Archives on March 13th 2023.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains 18 black-and-white photographs taken by Jozef Dziuba in the early 1950s. Subjects include views of the channel and the Alcan project, planes and helicopters landing, ships and boats including the Delta King, sports & games (races, high jump, baseball), industrial tanks, the Hudson's Bay Company building steps, and an overhead view of the community including employee housing.
Conservation
Photos removed from black backing on June 12th/13th 2023. Pages have been scanned to remove original order and are stored under Y:\Holly Peterson.
Fonds consists of two files of materials collected and produced by the Kitimat Valley Naturalists:
F1) Contents of the secretary-treasurer's duotang, 1996-1998. Includes meeting minutes, correspondence, receipts, financial documents, mailing lists, 1997 annual report, photocopied map, events schedule, Federation of BC Naturalists membership info, sign-up sheet for Douglas Channel boat trip, correspondence from Creston Valley Wildlife Area, materials re: Gisela Mendel Native Plant Garden, draft write-up for Iron Oxbow Wildlife Viewing Area along the Kitimat River, and ephemera from the inside front cover of the duotang (receipt from Fed. of BC Naturalists, business cards for Aurora Charters and Reid Crowther Consulting Engineers).
F2) Materials related to Pine Creek Protective Covenant, 2003-2014. This covenant was established by Rio Tinto Alcan, the Haisla Nation, and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, to protect the Pine Creek hiking trail and its watercourse near Minette Bay. Folder includes correspondence, signage text, Land Title Act forms, maps, and a Master Watercourse Crossing List from Coastal GasLink.
The Kitimat Valley Naturalists are a non-profit organization with the goal of learning about and enjoying the natural history of the Kitimat Valley. They were founded in 1996 and are still active as of 2023. Their projects include an annual Christmas bird count, construction of bat condos, monitoring amphibian numbers, and mapping eelgrass beds in the Douglas Channel.
Custodial History
Items were donated by Susan and Walter Thorne, longtime members of the Kitimat Valley Naturalists, on February 16th 2023. The fonds was arranged and described by Museum staff in April 2023.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of two files of materials collected and produced by the Kitimat Valley Naturalists:
F1) Contents of the secretary-treasurer's duotang, 1996-1998. Includes meeting minutes, correspondence, receipts, financial documents, mailing lists, 1997 annual report, photocopied map, events schedule, Federation of BC Naturalists membership info, sign-up sheet for Douglas Channel boat trip, correspondence from Creston Valley Wildlife Area, materials re: Gisela Mendel Native Plant Garden, draft write-up for Iron Oxbow Wildlife Viewing Area along the Kitimat River, and ephemera from the inside front cover of the duotang (receipt from Fed. of BC Naturalists, business cards for Aurora Charters and Reid Crowther Consulting Engineers).
F2) Materials related to Pine Creek Protective Covenant, 2003-2014. This covenant was established by Rio Tinto Alcan, the Haisla Nation, and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, to protect the Pine Creek hiking trail and its watercourse near Minette Bay. Folder includes correspondence, signage text, Land Title Act forms, maps, and a Master Watercourse Crossing List from Coastal GasLink.
Notes
Three reports collected by the KVN - "An Assessment of the Kitimat Iron Oxbow Proposed Wildlife Viewing Area," "Blue Carbon - The Case for the Conservation and Enhancement of Estuarine Processes and Sediments in BC," and "Coastal Wetlands Habitat Assessment and Classification for Northwestern British Columbia" - have been added to the Museum's Reference Library.
Conservation
Removed from original duotang/folders. Staples removed.
Storage Location
Box 29
Arrangement
F1) has been left in original order, apart from ephemera which was removed from the inside cover of the duotang.
F2) has been arranged in roughly chronological order.
