Library and Archives Canada

POWs and “the good ol’ hockey game”

On first glance, it may seem a simple photo of a hockey game and soldiers looking on. But on a closer look, something stands out – the soldiers are not Canadian. They are German. This picture, which I was very pleased to add to my collection, is a relatively rare photo of German POWs atContinue reading “POWs and “the good ol’ hockey game””

Requesting Canadian WWII Service Records

One of the more popular emails I receive is from individuals wanting to know more about their relative’s service in the Second World War so I thought I’d write a short post explaining how to do so. Although my requests are usually for men who served in the Veterans’ Guard of Canada, this request willContinue reading “Requesting Canadian WWII Service Records”

Searching for an Artist – PoW Richard Schlicker

Richard Schlicker was among the thousands of German soldiers captured in North Africa and subsequently shipped to Canada in 1942. First arriving at Camp 133 at Ozada, Alberta, Schlicker was later transferred to Camp 133 at Lethbridge, Alberta. With the exception of working on some Albertan farms in 1945, he spent the remainder of theContinue reading “Searching for an Artist – PoW Richard Schlicker”

Ottawa – Summer Research Part II

As I mentioned in my earlier post, the next phase of my research took me to Ottawa. Fortunately, I was able to spend two weeks going through the holdings of Library and Archives Canada (LAC), the Directorate of History and Heritage (DHH), and the Canadian War Museum (CWM). Here’s a quick summary of my timeContinue reading “Ottawa – Summer Research Part II”

Digitized Colour Photos of the Canadian Army

I apologize if this is old news, but I was just made aware that Library and Archives Canada finished digitized their “ZK” prefixed photos. Taken between WWII and the mid-1960s, the collection includes over 3,600 colour images of the Canadian Army. More information on the collection is available here and a finding aid is alsoContinue reading “Digitized Colour Photos of the Canadian Army”