The fonds consists of economic papers and reports collected and written by Clarence Barber, Professor of Economics at the University of Manitoba. Included are memoranda drafts of the final version of the Royal Commission on the Economic Union and Development Prospects of Canada (1984-85), several economics reports authored by others, and six of Barber's economic reports. The fonds also consists of correspondence, which includes the letters of prominent economists such as D.H. Robertson and John Kenneth Galbraith, as well as eight books.
The fonds consists of material pertaining to Bell's activities in the Wolseley Expedition. It documents the Expedition's journey to the Red River Settlement, its return to Thunder Bay, and its work in exploring and laying telegraph lines in the west from 1875 to 1876. In addition to the 1.49 m of textual records the fonds includes 27 photographs, 37 lantern slides and 3 maps (including one plan). The articles and lantern slides relate to a presentation Bell gave in later years on the history of these events.
The collection contains the files, reports, correspondence, printed maps and pamphlets gathered or created by Donald Birse during his career spanning the years 1928 to 1969. Of special interest are his diaries and work journals, mineral claims, company reports and approximately 150 photographs of various geological expeditions in northern Manitoba from 1924 to 1937.
The fonds consists of printed materials related to the Communist Party of Canada and the Labour Progressive Party. These include reports, pamphlets, briefs to royal commissions, convention materials, newspapers, election handouts, constitutions, and writings by such notables as William Kashtan and Leslie Morrison.
The fonds is divided into thirteen series as noted below. The textual records include correspondence, budgets, minutes, annual reports, research proposals and results, course syllabi, papers, exams, and publicity and press releases for the School of Agriculture, the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, and the Faculty's component department. The files of the Canadian International Development Association's work in Kenya and Zambia are also included. The photograph collection consists of over 2000 photographs, over 400 slides, and 16 packets of negatives that illustrate a number of activities involving the Manitoba Agricultural College and its predecessor, the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences. The tape collection consists of four audio reels that detail the following topics: Manitoba Agricultural College History – Extension; the birth of 4H in Canada; the first Home Economics Programs; the organization of Women's Institutes in Manitoba; Dr. L.H. Shebeski; "The Challenge of Agriculture"; Dr. Baldur Stefanson on "The Rapeseed Story"; an example of an Agricultural Diploma oral examination; and Glen Dyck Morden on the "Farm Business Planning Project."
