Library and Archives

The BC Farm Museum is home to The Blythe Eagles Library & Archives, founded in 1966, and named after Dr. Blythe Eagles, Dean Emeritus of the Faculty of Agriculture at UBC. Our library is home to approximately 11,000 items.

Recognition and thanks is given to Bob Puls for the huge amount of work he did in first cataloguing the collection.  He gathered much material for the library that would otherwise have been lost forever.

Our library includes a wide array of agricultural books, machinery and parts manuals, pamphlets, newspapers, periodicals, catalogues and some fonds. Highlights in our collection:

• a nearly complete collection of Country Life in B.C. newspapers, dating back to 1923

• an excellent collection of farm machinery and tractor manuals, manufacturers’ and store catalogues;

• early BC Department of Agriculture reports

• a robust collection of Family Herald and Weekly Star from the mid 1930s up to 1968 (when it ceased publication).

We have supplied archived material for research to several other museums and many individuals from around the Province. Our holdings are currently being reorganized by our volunteer librarian and we plan to have our catalogue online soon, so it will be easier for the public to search our basic collection.

We receive numerous queries from our own members and members of the public – especially about farm equipment, pioneer items, and even marine engines. If you would like to search our collections, we would love to hear from you and arrange a visit. The library is open year-round by appointment and we welcome all inquiries.

Contact: Hilary Ruffini, 604-888-2273 or info@bcfma.com.