Welcome to the Transcribimus Homepage. Transcribimus is a network of volunteer transcribers who take hand written documents of our early Vancouver history and transcribe them into a searchable state available for free to the general public and researchers.

This entire initiative would not be possible without our volunteer transcribers and our sponsors who are also critical to the success of the project. We thank them!

What’s New?

Transcribimus has transcribed 5,654 pages of Vancouver’s handwritten history: 788 sets of Vancouver City Council minutes plus by-laws, committee reports and private correspondence.

July 2023

Gerald Soon	Increased Vessel Traffic in Port of Vancouver Creates Dangers – September 19, 1898
Darlene Ochotta	400 Cans of Salmon and Condensed Milk Seized as “Unfit for Human Food” – March 27, 1899
Marie-Claude Tremblay	Vancouver to Have A Wiring Inspector – April 4, 1899
Barbara Kearney-Copan	Council Split over $2,000 Settlement – July 17, 1899

June 2023

Gerald Soon	Vancouver Sends Sincere Sympathy to New Westminster Following Fire – September 13, 1898
Lynn Shane	City Hospital Not to House “The Old” – May 23, 1898
Marie-Claude Tremblay	Street Railway Supplies to be Bought in Vancouver – Dec 27, 1898
Carole Wilson	City Solicitor to Have Foreshore Inspected – May 8, 1899
Barbara Kearney-Copan	Slaughterhouses to Stay on the Shores of False Creek – May 29, 1899
Carole Wilson	Vancouver to Acquire False Creek, Coal Harbour Waterfronts – Mar 27, 1899

May 2023

Joanne McCormick	Vancouver “Has No Authority” to Pay for Officer’s Wounds received On Duty – October 17 1898
Joanne McCormick	Colonel Domville Entitled to Refund for Steamer Access to Bridge – October 14, 1898
Joanne McCormick	Vancouver Wants Foreshore Rights Adjacent to BC Sugar – October 31, 1898

April 2023

new transcriber Sheila Kirkby	Meeting Adjourned to the Next Day – September 12, 1898
Lynn Shane	Stempel Fire Extinguishers offered to Council for sale – October 3, 1898
Krystyna Richards	Curfew Bell Contemplated for Vancouver – November 14, 1898
Darlene Ochotta	Polling By-Law & Water Works Loan By-Laws Complete – January 3, 1899
Barbara Kearney-Copan	Lease of Deadman’s Island Debated – April 25, 1899

March 2023

Margaret Sutherland	Council Considers the Estimates – March 29, 1898
Margaret Sutherland	Council Reviews Conditions for Smelter, Police Magistrate – April 26, 1898
Darlene Ochotta	Hospital Nurses “Shall Obey” Miss Pirk – July 18, 1898
Carole Wilson	Vancouver Has “No Power” to Authorize Bicycle Parking – July 25, 1898
Gerald Soon	Council Seeks Power to Remove Buildings from Stanley Park – August 1, 1898
Gerald Soon	Council Meeting Adjourned to Next Day – August 8, 1898
Marie-Claude Tremblay	Vancouver to Raise $93,300 for Street Paving, Grading – August 22, 1898
Carole Wilson	A Few Policemen to Be Available for Night Call – August 29, 1898
Darlene Ochotta	Council Plans More Recreation Grounds, Direct Steamship Service to San Francisco – September 6, 1898
New transcriber Barbara Kearney-Copan	Council Marks the Death of C. L. Brown – September 20, 1898
Lynn Shane	Council Debates the Utility of Dolphins – September 26, 1898
Lynn Shane	Street Railway Co. May Build Double Tramway on Davie Street – December 6, 1898
Lynn Shane	Vancouver Library Premises Found “Unsafe” – December 12, 1898
Carole Wilson	Officer McKeown’s Name Cleared – December 19, 1898
Marie-Claude Tremblay	February 27, 1898 – Firefighting Equipment Finalized, Three Policemen Hired
Gerald Soon | Carole Wilson	More Street Numbering to Come in Vancouver – March 13, 1899
Gerald Soon	Animal Cruelty Fines to be Paid to the S.P.C.A. – March 20, 1899

February 2023

Transcribimus volunteers share some of their favourite historical links and resources on our Facebook Page

From Marie-Claude: BC Was Awesome – Camels in the Cariboo

Leah Minuk	February 28, 1898 – Gold Rush Traffic Jeopardizes Coal Harbour Safety
Hal Bell-Irving	July 5, 1898 – Brick Kitchen Approved for Wing Sang & Co.
Joanne McCormick	November 21, 1898 – City Supports Plan for Steamers North and South from Vancouver
Joanne McCormick	November 22, 1898 – Council Mulls Over Changes to City Charter
Carole Wilson	November 28, 1898 – St. Paul’s Church On The Move
Lynn Shane	December 5, 1898 – YMCA Building “In Unsafe Condition”
Carole Wilson	December 13, 1898 – CPR Exemptions and Heatley Wharf Finalized
Carole Wilson	December 20, 1898 – New Hospital Rules Sent to Medical Staff
Joanne McCormick	January 7, 1899 – Hospital Rules Amended
Joanne McCormick	January 9, 1899 – Water Works Contract Approved
Joanne McCormick	January 16, 1899 – Final Meeting for Council for 1889

January 2023

January 18, 2023 – Transcribimus volunteers have just finished transcribing all the City Council minutes from 1897! City Council minutes continued to be hand written until the middle of 1911, so we still have plenty more discoveries to come.

Joanne McCormick	January 28, 1897 – Drill Shed Needed for Vancouver’s Artillery Companies
Gerald Soon	June 28, 1897 – New Medical Health Officer Halts Dumping On To Tidal Flats
Krystyna Richards	August 30, 1897 – Vancouver’s First Water Conservation Rules
Joanne McCormick	March 7, 1898 – Col. Warren Asks for Repairs
Joanne McCormick	March 14, 1898 – Vancouver Supports Letter Carriers’ Wage Demand of $2 per Day
Gerald Soon	April 18 1898 – Home Phone Approved for Chief of Police
Zak Bennett	May 30, 1898 – Consuls Want Improvements to Dunsmuir & Howe
Darlene Ochotta	April 1, 1898 – Vancouver’s Estimates (Budget) for 1898 is $404,344.95
Marie-Claude Tremblay	June 7, 1898 – Steamer “James Domville” Opens Granville Street Bridge Span
Carole Wilson	June 20, 1898 – Brick Barn Allowed on Hastings Street
Lynn Shane	June 27, 1898 – John Pace Appointed Cemetery Caretaker

Transcribimus was so pleased to be featured in the Vancouver Sun & Vancouver Provice in John Mackie’s recent article “Handwritten History Online

Volunteer Transcribers

Perhaps you might consider becoming a volunteer yourself. Together our remarkable volunteers have contributed 742 transcriptions of early Vancouver City Council minutes and other documents, as follows:

Master Scribes (more than 50 sets of minutes):

Global Civic Policy Society	231
Gerald Soon	120
Darrin Pezer/Proactive Building Maintenance	87
Joanne McCormick	74

Journeyman Scribes (25-50 sets of minutes):

Chris Stephenson	45
Krystyna Richards	27

Working Scribes (5-24 sets of minutes):

Donna Kynaston	24
Lynn Shane	17
Carole Wilson	13
Martha Hazevoet	12
Darlene Ochotta	10
L. Ellema	9
Bronwyn Cripps	7
Christine Cathcart	7
Rachel Amanda Hennessy	7
Hal Bell-Irving	7
Marie-Claude Tremblay	6
Cathy Harmer	6
Chris Mizzoni – Nitzy’s Hockey Den	6
Susan M. Willows	6
YVR Mike	6
David Laing	5
Mary Ann Capistrano	5
	6

Apprentice Scribes (1-4 sets of minutes):

Barbara Kearney – Copan	3
Brenda Chapman	3
Sandra Robinson	3
Gent Ng	2
Leesa Poffenroth	2
Lesley H.	2
Sharon Mowat	2
Sue Bryant	2
Zak Bennett	2
Anita Dos Santos	1
Cinda Jong	1
Devon Harlos	1
Jane Edmonds	1
Janny P.	1
Jenn Ashton	1
Jordan Cripps	1
John Belshaw – Vancouver Historical Society	1
Judy Lam Maxwell – Historical Chinatown Tours	1
Lynne Jambor	1
Maria Klukova	1
Mary Norris	1
Michelle C.	1
Sara Keay	1
Siobhan Devlin	1
Tegbir Kaur	1
Ovi	1