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.
23 maps of northwestern British Columbia, from the Seven Sisters westward to Port Essington.
2018.9.1a-b – Seven Sisters / Dorreen
2018.9.2a-c – Usk / Chist Creek
2018.9.3a-c – Lakelse / Terrace
2018.9.4a-b – Alastair Lake
2018.9.5a-b – Salvus, Coast District Range 5
2018.9.6a-d – Ecstall River / Port Essington
2018.9.7a-g – Kitimat Arm, Kildala River, Mt. Aetna, Mount Elizabeth, Mount Davies, private logging roads
Maps were collected and annotated by Gisela Mendel throughout her time in northwest BC and donated to the Museum in 2018.
Scope and Content
23 maps of northwestern British Columbia, from the Seven Sisters westward to Port Essington.
2018.9.1a-b – Seven Sisters / Dorreen
2018.9.2a-c – Usk / Chist Creek
2018.9.3a-c – Lakelse / Terrace
2018.9.4a-b – Alastair Lake
2018.9.5a-b – Salvus, Coast District Range 5
2018.9.6a-d – Ecstall River / Port Essington
2018.9.7a-g – Kitimat Arm, Kildala River, Mt. Aetna, Mount Elizabeth, Mount Davies, private logging roads
Green brochure titled "Aluminum Company of Canada, Limited" "1956 Plan of Assisted House Purchase" "How Company Employees Can Acquire Homes in Kitimat During 1956"
Green brochure titled "Aluminum Company of Canada, Limited" "1956 Plan of Assisted House Purchase" "How Company Employees Can Acquire Homes in Kitimat During 1956"
Brochure containing tourist information, maps of Kitimat and area (including Kitamaat Village and Cable Car / Cablecar Subdivision), and advertisements for local businesses, circa 1990s-early 2000s. Front has a photo of Centennial Park and totem pole.
Brochure containing tourist information, maps of Kitimat and area (including Kitamaat Village and Cable Car / Cablecar Subdivision), and advertisements for local businesses, circa 1990s-early 2000s. Front has a photo of Centennial Park and totem pole.
Dark blue baseball cap with bold yellow letters reading '256 ROAD RUNNERS.' Inside of crown is made of yellow foam.
Physical Condition
Good
Material
cotton
polyester
Condition Remarks
Crown of hat is slightly warped out of shape. Small brownish stain near one of the seams on the crown - about 5 cm to the upper left of the word 'ROAD.' Similarly coloured stain on underside of brim.
Green baseball cap with white letters reading "RAINBOW TAXI KITIMAT, B.C." The brim and the front part of the crown are opaque; the sides and back of the crown are made of see-through mesh.
Green baseball cap with white letters reading "RAINBOW TAXI KITIMAT, B.C." The brim and the front part of the crown are opaque; the sides and back of the crown are made of see-through mesh.
Blue and white baseball cap with circular Kiwanis International logo on the front. The brim of the cap and a button on the top are blue, while the crown of the hat is white. There is a yellow cord-like trim along the front rim of the crown. There is a metal clasp on the back of the crown.
Blue and white baseball cap with circular Kiwanis International logo on the front. The brim of the cap and a button on the top are blue, while the crown of the hat is white. There is a yellow cord-like trim along the front rim of the crown. There is a metal clasp on the back of the crown.
Blue baseball cap with rectangular Alcan logo on front. The brim of the cap is opaque and has a greenish-blue underside. The crown of the cap is made of flimsy, translucent mesh and does not stand up on its own. Much of the inner trimming is white. Black plastic band at the back.
Blue baseball cap with rectangular Alcan logo on front. The brim of the cap is opaque and has a greenish-blue underside. The crown of the cap is made of flimsy, translucent mesh and does not stand up on its own. Much of the inner trimming is white. Black plastic band at the back.
Physical Condition
Fair
Condition Remarks
Crumbly black foam underneath the inner white lining along the rim of the hat is constantly falling out and covering any surface the hat is placed on.
Photocopies of a triangulation survey from 1925 showing the Kitimat Arm, Skeena River and upper Kitimat River area. R.G.5.. Coast District B.C. Photocopy has 3 parts.
Donated by Margaret Vanderberg from the Ministry of Transportation + Highways on February 11, 2000.
Scope and Content
Photocopies of a triangulation survey from 1925 showing the Kitimat Arm, Skeena River and upper Kitimat River area. R.G.5.. Coast District B.C. Photocopy has 3 parts.
Fonds contains documents, photographs, photocopies, and maps collected by Arvid Hardin throughout his ten years in Kitimat. Areas of focus include high school life, the Kitimat Army Cadets, and the creation of Hirsch Creek Park, the Kitimat Community Centre, and the Kitimat trail system.
Arvid Hardin (born c. 1941) lived in Kitimat from 1953 to 1963. He graduated from Mount Elizabeth Secondary School in 1959, served as an active member of the Kitimat Army Cadet Corps, and was involved with the creation of Hirsch Creek Provincial Park. Around 2008, he collaborated with E.E. 'Bill' Duyvewaardt and other former Kitimat Cadets to write a 'historical profile' of the Cadets and their activities.
Custodial History
Materials from accession 2009.15 were donated by Arvid Hardin to the Museum on June 10th, 2009.
Materials from accession 2022.18 were donated by Arvid Hardin on May 10th, 2022.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains documents, photographs, photocopies, and maps collected by Arvid Hardin throughout his ten years in Kitimat. Areas of focus include high school life, the Kitimat Army Cadets, and the creation of Hirsch Creek Park, the Kitimat Community Centre, and the Kitimat trail system.
Conservation
Many pages old and yellowing. Staples, paper clips, and other metal fasteners removed from all papers in March & May 2022.
Storage Location
Box 39
Photo storage
Related Material
Artifacts donated by Arvid Hardin include a proclamation (2009.15.6), gazette (2009.15.7), and high school certificate (2009.15.11).
