Research guides: WRI370 Writing about Place: Special Collections

List of Special Collections

Canadian Government Information
A collection of Canadian federal, Ontario provincial and Toronto municipal government websites.
U of T Archives and Record Management Services
The University of Toronto Archives was established in 1965 as a unit within the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections.
UTARMS Oral History Collection on Student Activism
The Oral History Collection on Student Activism is a set of seventeen oral history interviews focused on illuminating the impact of student action and initiatives across UofT’s three campuses.
Heritage U of T project
We welcome you to explore these views into the ongoing history of the university, as captured by our communities through photographs, maps and plans, artwork, physical artifacts, books, video and audio. Contributors to this site include the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto Archives and Record Management Services, University of Toronto Mississauga Library and the University of Toronto Scarborough Library.
Erindalian Newspaper Collection
The Erindalian was established in 1968 for the purpose of presenting news and opinions relevant to the Erindale College community; celebrating the achievements of community members; and fostering communication between all levels of the College. The newspapers provide coverage of student politics, activities, and campus events, and feature original poetry and cartoons.
Queer Peel Oral History Project
The Queer Peel Oral History Project was a student-driven initiative that emerged from a third-year history course taught by Prof. Elspeth Brown at the University of Toronto Mississauga in early 2020.

Accessing government documents

Paper distribution of the Government of Canada publications ceased in April 2014. Canadian federal government Information is now available in electronic format only. Many Canadian provincial and municipal government information is also available on the internet. Search the government sites listed on this research guide for current Canadian government information.

The University of Toronto Libraries has a large paper collection for Canada and Ontario, and a smaller, selective paper collection for the other provinces. We also provide limited access to current electronic government publications via our library catalogue.

Search the library catalogue for government information by title or government body
Visit our main print collection in Robarts Library
- Non-circulating materials are available digitally through the Internet Archive and available in print by request from UTL Downsview
- Circulating materials are in Robarts stacks
- Some materials are in our storage area, request access by emailing: gov.info@utoronto.ca
Access collections of archived government websites
- Library and Archives Canada (2005 - 2007, 2013+)
  - The site has been down since April 2020
- University of Toronto (Government of Canada, 2007 - 2013)
  - News (Government of Canada)
    - May 22, 2013 - Oct. 25, 2017
    - Feb. 15, 2017 - present
  - Ontario (2013 - present)
  - Toronto (2014 - present)
- Canadian Government Information Digital Preservation Network (CGI DPN)
  - British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, Yukon
For early years, the Library holds the majority of government publication titles in large Sessional paper sets, and these also are essential sources for that time period. Those not found here are available digitally through the Internet Archive and available in print by request at UTL Downsview.
- 1867-1900
- 1901-1925
Check other digitized collections to see what you can access online.
- Canadian Government Publications Portal
- Registry of Canadian Government Publications Digitization Projects
- Democracy's Library
- Google Books advanced search: select "Full view only", e.g. search "exact phrase" by department name
Download the OA copy of the award-winning book: Government Information in Canada: Access and Stewardship to learn about the state of Canadian government information publishing.
Attend the annual Government Information Day to explore solutions and themes related to accessing and preserving government information:
- Recent and upcoming events
- 2013 - 2018
Browse our research guides for information by government body.