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The Ontario government's planning process for forestry and land management through the late 1990s and early 2000s, represented in the records of the Boreal West Round Table, Lands for Life planning process, and Living Legacy Trust.

Lands for Life was a comprehensive land-use planning process that also considered environmental protection in Ontario. It was announced in February, 1997 by the Minister of Natural Resources. The goal was to address the increasing demands for access to the province's natural resources. It was designed for all areas of the Precambrian shield south of 51 degrees latitude.

The project created three "Round Tables" made up of citizens with knowledge of the land, or who were involved with resource based businesses. The Round Tables were: Boreal West (Northwestern Ontario), Boreal East (Eastern Ontario), and Great Lakes - St. Lawrence (Southern Ontario).

As the Lands for Life project concluded, the Province designated the Living Legacy Trust fund to support land use planning and natural resources and environmental management. This fund ran from 1999 to 2004.

A set of articles and published works by economist Harry G. Johnson.

Marshall Blanchard Dean was an early physician in Fort William; his son Marshall Macdougall Dean had a career with the Canadian Coast Guard and a lifelong interest in history and genealogy. Collection includes correspondence, photographs, and research materials.

The Finnish Building Company was formed in 1909 and raised funds for the construction of the Finnish Labour Temple (Big Finn Hall) at 314 Bay Street.

Pamphlets, photographs, newspapers, magazines, account books, ledgers, membership books, and manuscripts for the Scandinavian Workers Club of Port Arthur.

Records were created, held, or gathered by Cairine Budner over the course of her association with the Thunder Bay Finnish Canadian Historical Society, and other local heritage organizations and sports organizations.

The fonds includes

• Records of the operations of the Thunder Bay Finnish Canadian Historical Society
• Records of the operations of the Thunder Bay Historical Society, Thunder Bay Art Gallery (National Exhibition Centre), Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame
• Oral history interviews created with the TBFCHS and Multicultural History Society of Ontario
• Historical photographs and documents gathered from the community, including sports photographs, records of the Finnish Building Company, and minutes of the Nahjus Athletic Club

Correspondence, diaries, and reports related to the philosophical and social theories of Dr. Douglas J. Thom, professor emeritus of education at Lakehead University.

Card catalogue from the Suomi Koti library.

Suomi Koti of Thunder Bay is a seniors' residence in Thunder Bay. The organization was founded in 1984; the building, consisting of 60 apartment units, was opened in 1988. Suomi Koti was developed to meet the needs of Finnish-Canadian seniors

The library was built from donations and purchases by residents over the years. It held titles in Finnish and in English; the Finnish-language materials were often published in and brought from Finland and were difficult to access through Canadian libraries or booksellers. This library reflected a body of reading material of Finnish-speaking people in Thunder Bay in the later part of the twentieth century.

In 2025, the library collections were weeded significantly to make room for new furniture and better meet the needs of current residents. Some titles were donated to Lakehead University Library at this time. The Finnish-language card catalogue has been acquired by the Archives to preserve a record of the library's former collections and how it reflected the culture of its users.

Records include reports and administrative materials; program handbooks; and materials reflecting life and culture at the Faculty of Education. The latter include yearbooks, photographs, and ephemera. Both student and faculty/staff experiences are reflected.

Material collected related to the creation and publication of the book "Sweating with Finns: Sauna Stories from North America," edited by Kaarina Kailo, Raija Warkentin, and Jorma Halonen, and published 2005 by the Centre for Northern Studies, Lakehead University.

These records relate to the activities of the Suomalainen Puistoyhdistys [Finnish Garden Committee] of Thunder Bay, in developing the Finland Monument at the International Friendship Gardens in Thunder Bay.

The International Friendship Garden was developed as a Centennial Project in 1967 by the Soroptimist Club of Fort William and Port Arthur. At the intersection of Victoria Ave and Waterloo St, it includes monuments representing 18 different ethnic groups. The International Friendship Garden project provided designated spaces; each garden was planned, designed and funded by different cultural organizations to represent their country.

The Finnish Garden is one of these eighteen dedicated garden spaces, and was created in two stages. Suomalainen Puistoyhdistys, the Finnish Garden Committee, was founded in November 1971, sponsored by the Central Organization of Finnish Societies. Work began in 1972. A sculpture of two large bronze swans in flight was created in Finland, by Professor Armas Hutri, with the base built locally with granite from Dryden, Ontario. The Whooper Swan is the national bird of Finland. The Immigrants Statue celebrating the Centennial of Finnish settlement in 1876 was unveiled on Juhannus, in June 1976. The Finnish Garden was dedicated on June 24 1979.

These records reflect the development of the garden/monument, and also include photographs, books, and news clippings from the period after the Gardens were established. They appear to have been collected and maintained by Pentti Junni, Chairman of the Finnish Garden Committee.

Photographs, news clippings, and other materials relating to Lakehead Athletics in the late 1960s.

Kathy Kangas was hired as Assistant Director of Athletics at Lakehead University in 1968. During her time at Lakehead she also taught gymnastics, dance, volleyball, archery, and other sports.

A vast and varied collection of records documenting the experiences of Finnish immigrants to Northwestern Ontario. Includes correspondence, manuscripts, photographs, interviews, published material, and ephemera. The photograph collection is extensive and covers a wide range of subjects.

The records are arranged into the following series:
A - Bay Street Project
B - Finnpraxis Project
C - Collections
D - Photographs
E - Miscellaneous
F - Finnish Experience

Records relate to the creation and development of the Orillia Campus.

Fonds consists of the records of the Age Friendly Giants project, initially conducted in 2017 through Age Friendly Thunder Bay and StoryCentre Canada. This project provided a digital storytelling workshop to 10 older adults, with a focus on neighbourhoods, communities, and aging at home. Results of the projects included 10 videos produced by the participants, posters and tip sheets, and several public events.

Phase II of Age Friendly Giants took place in 2019. Phase II included the development of an education kit to accompany the Phase I videos, Tea Talks held throughout the summer to develop community, the concluding Giants Castle event in October to share information about aging at home, and various media including cable television programs.

Phase I records include videos and handouts, as well as project documentation. Phase II records include project documentation, videos, and material produced for participants.

Consists of reports, letters, and minutes of the Lakehead Region Conservation Authority.

Sites crawled include those of local Finnish heritage and Finnish-Canadian groups and organizations.

The Northwestern Ontario Regional Day Care Committee / Child Care Committee operated from the 1970s to the 1990s. The Committee was a grassroots organization made up of child care workers, administrators, parents, and others concerned with the provision of child care in the region. The Committee was engaged in advocacy work, as well as supporting the work of child care centres and professionals.

Records of the Committee include minutes, membership lists, newsletters, correspondence, and other records associated with the advocacy activities of the organisation. Includes correspondence with governments and partner organizations.

The fonds consists primarily of images created, collected, and used by the North of Superior Tourism Association in promoting tourism and supporting local businesses from approximately the 1970s to late 1990s.

The records also include Executive, Board, and AGM minutes, agendas, and notices, and two 16mm promotional films.

Records relate to the establishment and operation of the Lakehead Unitarian Fellowship in Thunder Bay, Ontario. They reflect matters concerning Port Arthur, Fort William, and Thunder Bay; and the development of Unitarianism and its institutions in North America more broadly.

The LUF is a non-profit organization that was incorporated into the Canadian Unitarian Council in 1984; after incorporation, the materials become more formal and there is more paperwork pertaining to the fellowships organization and governance.

The material includes reports, correspondence, newspaper clippings, photo negatives, floor plans for building, pamphlets and brochures, and several CDs, which included photographs and videos from special events. Majority of the materials are LUF specific, while there is also material pertaining to neighboring Unitarian organizations in Canada and America, and to the broader Unitarian Universalist Association\ Canadian Unitarian Council. Some records are specific to individuals while others relate to the entire fellowship.

Records relate to research carried out by Viitala and colleagues at Lakehead University as part of the Acidic Precipitation In Ontario Study. Field research was done at Hawkeye Lake northwest of Thunder Bay, and at Pukaskwa National Park. The records include data, photographs, reports and research papers. Some records also relate specifically to the International Symposium on Acidic Precipitation held at Muskoka on September 15-20, 1985.

Records date primarily 1980-1988, with some additional documents from 2018 and 2022.

Margaret (Peggy) Tripp was a professor of Biology and of Women's Studies at Lakehead University. She was involved in the creation of the Women's Studies program, and taught until shortly before her death in 2008.

This small collection includes six photographs of Tripp with colleagues and students, two diplomas from the University of Colorado, and a Lakehead University presentation folder.

Raili Margaret (Virta) Charnesky (1936-2022) was born and raised in Port Arthur to parents Kalle and Impi Virta, both immigrants from Finland. Raili worked in the Mining Recorders Office, Ontario Department of Mines, in Thunder Bay, and became the Mining Recorder for the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines in Sudbury and Toronto. She retired in 1993 after 40 years of public service.

These records primarily reflect family relationships, particularly the early death of her brother Olaf in 1951, and the deaths of her parents Kalle (1961) and Impi (1983). Records include family & genealogical information, photographs, memorial books and sympathy cards.

The fonds consists of materials transferred from the Faculty of Natural Resources Management at Lakehead University to the Archives. Currently, this is primarily a set of forest management maps covering Northwestern Ontario.

Records relate to the planning of the Mid-Canada Development Corridor Conference taking place at Lakehead University in August 1969.

This conference brought together 150 invited delegates to examine questions of industrial and economic development through the mid-North of Canada.

“Purposes of the Mid-Canada Development Corridor Conference: To examine into the practicability of a continuing long range economic development and land use plan for the urbanization, industrialization, populating and general development of Mid-Canada; and to this end to use the concept of a Mid-Canada Development Corridor as a focal point.
And if such a long-range economic development and land use plan is found to be both feasible and practicable, then to formulate recommendations and suggested courses of action to be delivered to the Federal and Provincial Governments, to financial, commercial and industrial sectors of the National Community and to Canadian Universities.”

The Mid-Canada Development Corridor concept was first brought forward by Richard Rohmer, and research was carried out by ACRES Research and Planning Ltd. This work highlighted the potential for industrial and economic development in the "mid-North" of Canada, the swath north of the most highly populated areas, where resource extraction and settlement were happening on an ad hoc basis. The argument was made that it would be beneficial to Canada to plan transportation corridors, city-building, communications, and more so that settlement and industrial development would happen in a more rational manner. Despite the high level of interest at the time of the Conference and multiple tours and visits held afterwards, the concept was not embraced by government, and was not much discussed after the early 1970s.

These records include correspondence and meeting notes related to the planning of the Conference.