Black book containing "History of our Cabin up Clague Mt.," photocopies of the cabin's logbook from September 1960 to January 1969, several photocopied pictures from 1970, a typewritten logbook of local and regional excursions taken by the Mendel family from 1963 to 1968, and several newspaper articles.
This material relates to a cabin on Clague Mountain, originally begun by Robert 'Bob' Hesse in the late 1950s and completed by Gisela's husband Hans in 1960. It remained in the Mendel family for 15 years before being demolished in 1975.
Custodial History
Donated to the Museum by Mendel's daughter, Fredrika Lyne, on November 14th 2023.
Scope and Content
Black book containing "History of our Cabin up Clague Mt.," photocopies of the cabin's logbook from September 1960 to January 1969, several photocopied pictures from 1970, a typewritten logbook of local and regional excursions taken by the Mendel family from 1963 to 1968, and several newspaper articles.
Photo album/scrapbook detailing Gisela Mendel's road trip along Highway 16 and 37, from Smithers to Telegraph Creek, in summer 1999. Contains written material, photographs, maps, pressed flowers, pamphlets, magazine and newspaper articles. Loose material, including newspaper/magazine articles, photographs, maps, and negatives of photos from the album, has been stored in two separate envelopes.
1 photo album: 3 cm of textual and graphic material, plus loose material
Custodial History
Donated by Gisela Mendel's daughter, Fredrika Lyne, on November 14th 2023.
Scope and Content
Photo album/scrapbook detailing Gisela Mendel's road trip along Highway 16 and 37, from Smithers to Telegraph Creek, in summer 1999. Contains written material, photographs, maps, pressed flowers, pamphlets, magazine and newspaper articles. Loose material, including newspaper/magazine articles, photographs, maps, and negatives of photos from the album, has been stored in two separate envelopes.
Hiking-related materials assembled by Gisela Mendel in a scrapbook/photo album format. Includes "Tales of Adventure - Tales of Stupidity" (advice for hikers), photographs, typed descriptions of local and regional hikes, and "The Tseax Lava Beds" booklet produced by the Kitimat Centennial Museum.
Assembled by Gisela Mendel around the 1970s or 1980s. Never formally accessioned; added to the Gisela Mendel Collection in November 2023. Has been given the accession number 2023.39 although it was not part of that donation.
Scope and Content
Hiking-related materials assembled by Gisela Mendel in a scrapbook/photo album format. Includes "Tales of Adventure - Tales of Stupidity" (advice for hikers), photographs, typed descriptions of local and regional hikes, and "The Tseax Lava Beds" booklet produced by the Kitimat Centennial Museum.
Notes
Divided into three folders:
1) Tales of Adventure/Stupidity, Squirrel Mountain, Mount Elizabeth, Eagle Bay, Jesse Falls, Clague Mountain, Frog Falls, Hudson's Bay Mountain, Crater Lake, Bornite Mountain, Lava Lake, Tseax Lava Beds.
2) Kalum Lake, Seven Sisters Mountains, Oliver Trail, Mount Quinlan, Coyote Creek Trail, Telkwa Pass, Insect Lookout, Rocher de Boule, Western Uranium Mines, Red Rose Mines / Pass, Tiltusha Mountain / Mines, Duthie Mines, Mount Cronin, Silverking Basin, Thornhill Mountain, Lakelse Lake, Mount Charlie, Big Onion Mountain, Babine Lake, Old Fort Mountain Lookout.
3) Sleeping Beauty Mountain, Stewart, Mount Dilsworth, Three Lakes family hike, Watson Lakes, Deception Lake, Hirsch Creek Falls / Park, Trapline Mountain, Easy Mountain, Kalum Valley, Bornite Mountain, Kitselas Canyon, Old Kitselas, Andimaul Lookout, Boulder Creek Trail, Glacier Peak, Seven Sisters, Mudflat Creek, Mount Johnstone, Robinson Lake.
This fonds consists of materials created or collected by Gisela Mendel throughout her time in British Columbia, particularly during her tenure as the Museum's first curator (1969-1981). It is divided into three series:
Series 1: Photographs - approx. 330 photographs, negatives, and slides taken by Gisela Mendel, showing the local area, flora and fauna, Museum displays, Kitamaat Village and its residents, traditional Haisla cultural activities, etc.
Series 2: Kitimat Flora Collection - 12 boxes of pressed and dried flora from the local area, with associated information.
Series 3: Logbooks and scrapbooks - logbooks from Clague and Squirrel Mountains (1957-1969), accounts of Mendel family outings (1963-1968), scrapbook/photo album from Stikine road trip (1999), textual material and photos on regional hiking rails from binder on assembled by Gisela.
Series 4: Maps - 23 regional maps collected and annotated by Gisela.
ca. 10.5 cm textual material (logbooks, scrapbooks)
23 maps
History / Biographical
Gisela Heimbach Mendel was the first curator of the Kitimat Museum and Archives (then known as the Kitimat Centennial Museum). She was born in Germany in 1922 and worked as a pharmacist in East Prussia when the Russians invaded. She fled the Russians and immigrated to Canada in 1952 with her husband, Hans, and their children. Unhappy with the geography of Southern Ontario - in her words, she was a "mountain woman" - she chose Kitimat as her home.
In her earliest years in Kitimat (beginning 1956), Gisela collected botanical specimens for the Royal BC Museum in Victoria. She served as the first curator of the Kitimat Centennial Museum from the building's opening in 1969 until her retirement in 1981, when she and Hans moved to Smithers. Gisela was responsible for not only showcasing local art and history, but building a strong and varied permanent collection of artifacts and archival items upon which future curators could build.
As she was working in a relatively young community, town history was not considered a priority so much as regional history, natural history and Haisla First Nations cultural traditions, which Gisela documented with great intensity. One of her projects was creating an ethno-botanical dictionary with the help of Haisla elders, identifying the Haisla names and traditional uses for various plants. In 1972, the Northern Sentinel reported that each weekend Gisela made the rounds of her secret botanical hunting grounds to replace the display of floral specimens in her exhibits. She was a tremendous record-keeper and journalist, had a great life of the outdoors, and developed many close friendships in Kitimat and Kitamaat Village. Her thirst for information was incredible, and the Museum and the community benefitted immensely from her passion for gathering and recording knowledge. In the 1990s she received the Award of Merit from the BC Museums Association in recognition of her work. She passed away in 2008.
Custodial History
Materials in this fonds were created by Gisela Mendel during her time as Museum Curator, or donated by her, her family members, or other community members following her retirement.
Scope and Content
This fonds consists of materials created or collected by Gisela Mendel throughout her time in British Columbia, particularly during her tenure as the Museum's first curator (1969-1981). It is divided into three series:
Series 1: Photographs - approx. 330 photographs, negatives, and slides taken by Gisela Mendel, showing the local area, flora and fauna, Museum displays, Kitamaat Village and its residents, traditional Haisla cultural activities, etc.
Series 2: Kitimat Flora Collection - 12 boxes of pressed and dried flora from the local area, with associated information.
Series 3: Logbooks and scrapbooks - logbooks from Clague and Squirrel Mountains (1957-1969), accounts of Mendel family outings (1963-1968), scrapbook/photo album from Stikine road trip (1999), textual material and photos on regional hiking rails from binder on assembled by Gisela.
Series 4: Maps - 23 regional maps collected and annotated by Gisela.
This English-Haisla dictionary was assembled throughout the 1970s and early 1980s by Kitimat Centennial Museum Curator Gisela Mendel and linguist Hein 'Henry' Vink from the University of Leiden in the Netherlands, with the help of numerous Haisla speakers, including Jeffrey Legaik, Amelia Grant, Kay Grant, Louise Barbetti, Melissa Woods, Irene Starr, and others.
Custodial History
Retained by the Kitimat Museum & Archives; formally accessioned in February 2024.
Scope and Content
Flash cards containing Haisla and English vocabulary.
Notes
Words in green were gathered by Hein Vink and words in black were gathered by Gisela Mendel.
Photocopied documents relating to John McLachlan's employment with Alcan.
1) Letter of employment, G. W. Whitehead (Alcan) to John McLachlan, offering position as Draughtsman in Kitimat. April 10th 1953
2) Letter of acceptance, John McLachlan to G.W. Whitehead. April 11th 1953
3) Alcan Personnel Department introduction form, to Mr. G. T. Malby, Resident Engineer, May 13th 1953
4) Invitation to join Retirement Income and Life Insurance Plan, Ian Maclean to John McLachlan, June 23rd 1954.
5) Account of duties as Senior Draughtsman, John McLachlan to W. H. Sparks, September 11th 1956.
John McLachlan arrived in Kitimat in 1953 as a 23-year-old immigrant and went on to work at Alcan's Property Engineering Department for almost 40 years. He started out as a land surveyor and cartographer in the town's early years and ended his career as a Senior Legal Draftsmen.
Custodial History
Donated by Jean Lunny, January 12th 2018
Scope and Content
Photocopied documents relating to John McLachlan's employment with Alcan.
1) Letter of employment, G. W. Whitehead (Alcan) to John McLachlan, offering position as Draughtsman in Kitimat. April 10th 1953
2) Letter of acceptance, John McLachlan to G.W. Whitehead. April 11th 1953
3) Alcan Personnel Department introduction form, to Mr. G. T. Malby, Resident Engineer, May 13th 1953
4) Invitation to join Retirement Income and Life Insurance Plan, Ian Maclean to John McLachlan, June 23rd 1954.
5) Account of duties as Senior Draughtsman, John McLachlan to W. H. Sparks, September 11th 1956.
Photo depicts the men in charge of operations. From left is Vice President A.W. Whitaker Jr. seen sitting in a helicopter; Project Manager Percy E. Radley; Chief Resident Engineer John Kendrick. The three men are all taking a look at what could be a map.
Photo depicts the men in charge of operations. From left is Vice President A.W. Whitaker Jr. seen sitting in a helicopter; Project Manager Percy E. Radley; Chief Resident Engineer John Kendrick. The three men are all taking a look at what could be a map.
Photo depicts a slash burning on the transmission line right-of-way behind Kitamaat Village.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. Fred DeLory, Alcan's Resident Engineer at smeltersite, was one of two who signed the incorporation papers for the town of Kitimat. Fred DeLory Collection 2002.15
Photo depicts the welcome sign for Kitimat on the wharf that greeted all workers to the Kitimat Project upon their arrival by boat.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. -- Hal Whiting was Project Manager, Kitimat Constructors, for smelter and town construction. Hal Whiting Collection 985.65.113
Photo depicts Kitimat Constructors Project Manager Hal Whiting on right, standing beside a unidentified man. Both watch the construction activity occurring down on the tidal flats in front of them, site for the smelter.
Photo depicts Kitimat Constructors Project Manager Hal Whiting on right, standing beside a unidentified man. Both watch the construction activity occurring down on the tidal flats in front of them, site for the smelter.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. -- Photographed by the International Harvester Company, manufacturers of construction equipment purchased for the Project. Hal Whiting Collection 985.65.99
Photo depicts workers excavating for the construction of the alumina storage building.
Notes
Title based on content of photograph. -- Alcan ID No. BC-2-451. -- Sloping sides avoided cave-ins. -- Hal Whiting was Project Manager, Kitimat Constructors, for smelter and town construction. Hal Whiting Collection 985.65.267
