September / October 2001 Vol. 33, no. 5

Good News about Old News!

Sandra Burrows

Research and Information Services

Sandra Burrows, Newspaper Specialist.

Extra! Extra! Read All about It: Highlights from the National Library of Canada's Newspaper Collection opened June 6, 2001. The exhibit contained memorabilia, posters and newspapers arranged according to themes and included

• labour and alternative press titles;
• a cross-section of special numbers issued to commemorate the centenary of Confederation on July 1, 1967;
• a facsimile of Canada’s oldest newspaper, the Halifax Gazette 1752, and of the unique Freeman’s Advocate, published in Lockport, N.Y., and edited by James Mackenzie, the son of William Lyon Mackenzie;
• Aboriginal newspapers, including an 1885 issue of Le Métis;
• community newspapers vying for the prize of most unusual title, including the Moose Paper and the Low Down to Hull and Back News;
• ethnic newspapers covering a small representation of the over 3000 titles produced by 60 cultural groups across Canada;
• student newspapers whose contributors included names such as Frank Shuster, Johnny Wayne, Dave Thomas, Eugene Levy and Roch Carrier;
• "spoof" issues such as the Glib and Male and the London Freak Press; and
• foreign newspapers, ranging from Voix des alliés, which was produced during the Second World War, to a pristine 1963 issue of Times of Viet Nam.

The National Library of Canada has Canada’s largest and most comprehensive collection of Canadian newspapers in a variety of formats and from all regions of the country. From Confederation-era papers to currently published student and ethnic newspapers, the range and depth of the collection are a testament to the Library’s commitment to preserving our printed past for the use and enjoyment of current and future generations. Newspapers are, indisputably, one of the most important sources of information about the daily lives of all Canadians, famous or not. They are unique in their ability to capture and reflect the large and the local concerns of their times.

According to Roch Carrier, National Librarian, "We are enormously proud of this collection and what it tells us about ourselves. But we are also concerned that we are increasingly unable to safeguard it properly in the unstable environments in which we are forced to keep it. We need a good building to keep these fragile treasures safe and sound."

The exhibition, curated by the Library’s newspaper specialist, Sandra Burrows, was on display for the months of June, July and August 2001. A small newsprint brochure on the history of the collection is available free of charge.

To receive a copy, contact

Communications
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