Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
General material designation
- Graphic material
- Textual record
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
- Parallel titles and other title information: Parallel title from label on front cover of scrapbook
Level of description
Repository
Reference code
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
-
1891-1894 (Creation)
- Creator
- Pocock, Roger
Physical description area
Physical description
1 scrapbook ; ~56 leaves ; 37.6 x 27.3 cm
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Henry Roger Ashewell Pocock was born November 9, 1865 at Cookham, Berkshire, England. He came to Canada with his father in 1882, and settled in Brockville, Ontario. In 1882 and 1883, he attended the Guelph Agricultural College, and subsequently took a job as a surveyor for the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Pocock enlisted with the North-West Mounted Police at Fort Osborne in 1884. When the North-West Resistance broke out, Pocock marched with Colonel Irvine's relief force from Regina to Prince Albert in the winter weather, freezing his feet during the trek. As a result of the advanced frostbite to his feet, Pocock had to have several toes amputated, rendering him an invalid constable. He kept a diary/scrapbook for each year he was with the N.W.M.P., and later used the collections to write and publish a series of fictional books based on his experiences, the first successful of which was a biographical work titled "Following the Frontier" (N.Y., 1903) also published as "A Frontiersman" (London, 1903). According to Watters (A Check List of Canadian Literature, 1628-1950), Pocock published at least 15 titles between 1888 and 1931. In 1905, Pocock went on to found "The Legion of Frontiersmen of the Commonwealth." He died November 12, 1941.
Custodial history
Scope and content
Pocock's 1891-1894 scrapook consists of approximately 56 sheets of textual and graphic items plus tipped in and loose items. This scrapbook consists of written entries about his extensive travels along with original sketches and imprint cuttings that supplement his descriptions. The diary entries are mostly tipped in. There are also many clippings of Pocock's published articles and stories, and many of the articles are supplemented by photographs taken by Pocock. The scrapbook also contain clippings and other ephemera of Pocock's interests.
Scrapbook contains:
Photographs of family and others, mostly unidentified; Cartagena, people and places around Kootenay, Istanbul, mines, miners, and mining equipment; ports and ships; and people and places in Crimea.
Imprint cuttings of areas and places including New York, Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Little Falls, New Hampshire, Virginia, Gibraltar, Seville, Tangier, Niagara Falls, The U.K., and Marseilles.
Theatre programs (often featuring Lena Ashwell) and concert programs.
Sketches of places around the U.K. such as Newcastle on Tyne, and other places such as Seville, Marseilles, Tangier, Cartagena, Sierra Nevada, and Cookham. There are also sketches of unidentified landscapes, seaports, buildings, and boats
Diary entries for the years 1891-1894, including descriptions of his travels from the UK to Lisbon, Gibraltar, Valencia, Cadiz, Algiers, to Tangier, and within the Black Sea.
Clippings of articles and stories written by Pocock including descriptions of the Behring Sea, Montana and of Sebastapol (sic)[Sevastopol, Crimea], "Ishmael", "A Romance of the Cornish Coast", "The Arrest of Deerfoot", "Brimstone Pete", "The Glory of Arms", "A Cowboy in Charge", "The Queen of the Dogger", and "Jameson's Raid". Other articles also include reviews for Pococks book "The Rules of the Game".
Certificates of discharge for Pocock from the services of the Board of Trade of the United Kingdom.
Hand-drawn maps of Gibraltar, Lisbon, Chideok, Istanbul, and the Sevastopol harbour.
Letters to his father and his sister, Daisy, and from various publishers such as Charles Dickens Jr., Stuart Reid, James Stogg, Oswald Crawford, Methuen & Co., and others.
Musical score for "The Ranchman's Bridal Song" written by Pocock and composed by E. Evelyn Barron.
Notes area
Physical condition
The scrapbook is in good condition ; Binding is still intact though the decorative label on spine is peeling off
Immediate source of acquisition
Arrangement
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
All researchers (including students, faculty, visiting scholars, and members of the general public) must submit a Retrieval Request Form at least 24 hours before their visit to Bruce Peel Special Collections in order to be sure that library materials have been retrieved from storage and are available for their use.
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Finding aids
Associated materials
Accruals
General note
Formerly accessioned as 2008.6.1.1.8