Colonial Government

Among the earliest records at the BC Archives are the records of the Colonial Government.  The Colony of Vancouver Island was established in 1849 and the mainland Colony of British Columbia was established in 1858.  The two colonies joined together in 1866 to form the united colony of British Columbia.  In 1871 the colony joined Confederation and became a province of Canada.

Some colonial record accessions can be searched in the Textual Records index.  More comprehensive descriptions, however, of the records of the Colonial Governments, including the correspondence files and letter books of the Legislative Council, the Governors and the Colonial Secretary’s office are to be found in the Fonds Descriptions.  In addition, the individual accessions that make up the Colonial fonds are described in the "old" government records and manuscripts catalogue in the BC Archives Reference Room.