About the Collections
The Gulf of Georgia Cannery Society cares for over 7,500 artifacts in two collections: one belonging to Parks Canada, and the other to the Society. In addition to these objects, there is a library and an archive of historic documents, images, sound recordings, and reference books. Collectively these items tell the story of the West Coast fishing industry, and reflect the people, places, and events that were integral to this history.
For more information about ordering and using images, research requests, or donating items to the collection, please contact Collections Manager Heidi Rampfl at heidi.rampfl@gogcannery.org or 604-664-9007. Please note that requests and donations offers need time for processing; walk-ins cannot be accommodated.
Oral Histories
Learn about West Coast fishing history from the people who have experienced it firsthand. The Society collects and preserves these stories by conducting interviews with members of the fishing and canning community as part of our Oral History Program.
If you have a story relating to the West Coast fishing industry that you would like to share, please contact the Collections Manager at heidi.rampfl@gogocannery.org or 604-664-9007
Since 2017 the Society has been working to make these stories accessible to the public through our online database.
Label Collection
A behind the scenes look at the William Branter Collection (G2015.009) of salmon can labels in the Gulf of Georgia Cannery Society Archives collection. This video was featured in the 13th Doors Open Richmond in 2020.
Fish Tales
The Society is proud to partner with The Initiative for Student Teaching and Research in Chinese Canadian Studies (INSTRCC) at UBC. In 2021, a team of students from the UBC Asian Canadian Asian Migration 390A course (Moira Henry, An Xu, Victoria So and Josh Jamora) brainstormed a project to help our society connect with a broader audience who may not typically associate with the stories offered at our historic sites.
The resulting project is called Fish Tales, in the form of community-based storytelling, to document and share personal stories in an effort to create community ties and a sense of belonging, through the topic of “seafood”! Stories were initially collected from the students’ friends and families, and will be broadened to include society members, partners, and visitors to future Cannery events and exhibits. Watch the intro video below for a sneak peek and visit our Instagram posts to discover more Fish Tales (look for the “Fish Tales” Instagram highlight or search #whatsyourfishtale).
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