Series 6 - Tourist Committee Minutes

Title and statement of responsibility area

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Tourist Committee Minutes

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  • Textual record

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  • Attributions and conjectures: Previously known as the Fort William Tourist Executive. Previously known as the Fort William Tourist and Convention Bureau.

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Reference code

CA ON00372 6

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Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

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  • 1926-1950 (Creation)

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Physical description

8 cm Textual Records (5 v.)

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On March 5, 1926, the Industrial Committee, being a sub-committee of Council, established a Tourist Executive in order to manage a program for the tourist business. The Tourist Executive drew representation from the Board of Trade, Retail Merchants, the Parks Board, Trades and Labour Council, Motor Club, and the Fish and Game Club in addition to the members from the existing Industrial Committee. Alderman Schoales acted as the first Chair of the Tourist executive which in turn recruited additional members from the community at large for the following sub-committees; Printing and Publicity, Canvassing, Tourist Information, Roads, Hotels and Transportation, and Camp Grounds. Renamed the Fort William Tourist and Convention Bureau when it was formalized under By-law 2664 in December of 1926, its’ purpose was to: “foster and promote the tourist trade… to establish Fort William [as a] centre for the holding of conventions…to undertake publicity…arrange for the accommodation of tourists and their cars, [and to] arrange for road marking and sign boards and such other measures as may be deemed advisable”. (FW By-law 2664)

By 1938, representation on the Tourist Bureau had expanded to include representation from the Parks Board, the Chamber of Commerce and the Hotelkeepers Association. The Committee oversaw a local tourist information bureau, sent representatives to various North American Outdoor shows and maintained an affiliation with the Duluth Arrowhead Association in order to distribute promotional material to potential American tourists. In general, efforts to improve highway and road markings, entertain tourists, promote and distribute material to entice visitors and encourage conventions are noted throughout the minutes. In addition, minutes of the Joint Tourist Committee Minutes of Port Arthur and Fort William are included after 1944. Among the issues addressed by the Joint Committee were the use of shared promotional material, the development of Kakabeka Falls and Sibley as Tourist destinations, and the completion of the Trans-Canada Highway along the north Shore of Lake Superior.

In 1938 Council passed By-law 3555 in order to generate funds through taxation for the purpose of giving grants to bands. A Band Committee appears to have been established as a committee of council to oversee matters relating to the Fort William Pipe Band and the Fort William City Band. Minutes of this Committee are included for the period April to December
1940 and relate mostly to the payment of accounts for Band expenditures. The Band Minutes themselves refer to the Committee as a committee of council, but the relationship between the Band and the Tourist and Convention Bureau Committee is unknown.

A handful of annual reports (Series 16) remain for the Civic Tourist Bureau which supplement the minutes by providing information on Tourist issues as well as statistical information on tourist attractions attendance and the number of tourists crossing through the Pigeon River Border.

According to Council Minutes, Council representatives were appointed to the Fort William Tourist Committee until 1969. It is unknown what happened to minutes after 1950.

This Series consists of meeting minutes relating to the management of the Fort William Tourist and Convention Bureau. Five bound volumes exist, for which there are no indices. Reports and Joint Tourist Committee Minutes of Port Arthur and Fort William are interspersed after 1944.

Notes area

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Language of material

  • English

Script of material

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    Handwritten, typescript.

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    No restrictions on access.

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    Finding aids

    The file list summarizes bound volumes by dates.

    A series description is available.

    No indices are available.

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