The UTSC Archives Legacy Collection had been stored in the basement of the Science Wing for nearly a decade before it was dusted off and moved to the UTSC Library in 2011. Many months of archival processing have revealed a collection that dates from the origins of the campus in the 1960s up to the mid-1990s, depicting and describing the evolution of the campus through extensive textual and visual records. The collection, which was compiled as a college archiving project by UTSC librarians throughout the thirty-year collection period, complements the archival holdings at the university's official repository, the University of Toronto Archives and Records Management Services (UTARMS), and is particularly rich in student ephemera such as playbills, posters, and early and unofficial publications.
The collection comprises over 16 meters of textual records, 1700 photographic items and dozens of maps, architectural plans and other artifacts. The archives are held in the UTSC Library and are made available upon request as a resource for researchers interested in student life, the history of the campus and the campus's unique and award-winning architecture, among other things.
Digitization on this collection is well under way, and materials are regularly uploaded to Heritage UofT, a tri-campus collection of archival records, photographs, books, maps, drawings and audio-visual files that document the history of the university. The Heritage project is maintained by the University of Toronto Libraries' Information Technology Services, and current partners include UTARMS, the Fisher Rare Book Library and the UTM Library, as well as the UTSC Library.
The UTSC Archives Legacy Collection has also been used as a teaching tool in HISD44, Nearby History: The Method and Practice of Local History, taught by Professor Christine Berkowitz. The course, which is structured around service learning, requires students to complete projects with community partners. Students who complete their service learning in the UTSC Library have traditionally worked with the UTSC Archives Legacy Collection, assisting with digitization and physical processing, while also conducting primary source research on topics as varied as noise pollution, student politics and campus architecture.
The collection comprises over 16 meters of textual records, 1700 photographic items and dozens of maps, architectural plans and other artifacts. The archives are held in the UTSC Library and are made available upon request as a resource for researchers interested in student life, the history of the campus and the campus's unique and award-winning architecture, among other things.
Digitization on this collection is well under way, and materials are regularly uploaded to Heritage UofT, a tri-campus collection of archival records, photographs, books, maps, drawings and audio-visual files that document the history of the university. The Heritage project is maintained by the University of Toronto Libraries' Information Technology Services, and current partners include UTARMS, the Fisher Rare Book Library and the UTM Library, as well as the UTSC Library.
The UTSC Archives Legacy Collection has also been used as a teaching tool in HISD44, Nearby History: The Method and Practice of Local History, taught by Professor Christine Berkowitz. The course, which is structured around service learning, requires students to complete projects with community partners. Students who complete their service learning in the UTSC Library have traditionally worked with the UTSC Archives Legacy Collection, assisting with digitization and physical processing, while also conducting primary source research on topics as varied as noise pollution, student politics and campus architecture.
Finding Aid: The finding aid for the UTSC Archives Legacy Collection is available here.For more information or to schedule a research appointment, please contact us.
Citation of the material should include the following elements:
University of Toronto Scarborough Library, Archives & Special Collections, Fonds/Collection title, Series Name - Box # File # - Item # (if applicable).
