City Archives

The City Archives will be closed to the public temporarily as of October 14, 2025 due to the construction of the Archives Expansion.

Staff will have limited access to the collection to assist with research questions during this time. Please contact us at archives@thunderbay.ca or 807-625-2270 if you have any questions.

Regular Hours:

Monday-Friday: 8:30 am - 4:30 pm

We are open to the public from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. We encourage you to book an appointment so our staff can serve you better. Book your appointment online or call (807) 625-2270 or email archives@thunderbay.ca.

Address
235 Vickers St. N.
Thunder Bay, ON
807-625-2270

The City Archives will be closed to the public temporarily as of October 14, 2025 due to the construction of the Archives Expansion.

Staff will have limited access to the collection to assist with research questions during this time. Please contact us at archives@thunderbay.ca or 807-625-2270 if you have any questions.

The City Archives is open to the public from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. We encourage you to book an appointment so our staff can better serve you. Book your appointment online or call (807) 625-2270. 

Before visiting us, please be sure to read the Rules for Researchers section below. 

You can ask for a behind the scenes tour of the Archives by emailing archives@thunderbay.ca. Tours can also be given to school groups. Please book the tour more than a week ahead.

Request a Tour

The City Archives holds public open houses throughout the year. Please check the Events Calendar.

The City Archives keeps the corporate records of the cities of Thunder Bay, Fort William and Port Arthur. We also have land registry records for Thunder Bay and the surrounding townships. You can search our collection using our online search portal. 

Local history reference library

We also have a small local history reference library and historical directories for visitors to use at the Archives.

We do not have historical newspapers or records of private businesses, organizations, or individuals. View our Local History Resources to locate these records in Thunder Bay.

The Archives holds very fragile, one-of-a-kind materials that need to be handled very carefully by staff and researchers. We have some rules about how researchers should handle documents:

• Do not remove materials from the Archives.
• Use only pencils to take notes, no pens.
• Do not make marks on a document or erase anything from a document.
• Wear the gloves provided and be very careful when handling materials.
• Take items out of a box or folder one at a time and keep all items, files, and documents in the same order you find them.
• Credit the City of Thunder Bay Archives when publishing photographs or quoting from materials in our collection.

You can use your own camera or phone to take pictures of documents.

Photocopies and microfilm printouts

Photocopies and microfilm printouts are $1.00 plus tax per page. The student rate is $0.50 plus tax per page.

Digital copies of photographs and documents

High-resolution digital copies of photographs and other documents already scanned are $5 per image; students can have the first five images free.

Using images for publication

Using images for publication is subject to approval. The cost for images approved for publication is $20 per image. Researchers must sign an agreement about how photographs and other images can be used.

User Fees 

For a full list of other fees that may apply please visit our page on User Fees.

The Archives is open and accessible to everyone. When you visit the Archives for the first time, we will ask you to fill out a research application. Please bring some form of ID.

The public can access most of the documents in the City Archives. Some of our documents contain sensitive or personal information and an Archivist will have to review these documents to decide if they can be made available.

Restricted documents

If you want access to restricted documents, you may have to sign a research agreement or submit a Freedom of Information request.

If you want to see current City records, or records that are not yet in the public City Archives, you will have to submit a Freedom of Information request.

The City of Thunder Bay Archives mainly collects records created by City departments through our Records Management Program. If you would like to donate records to the Archives, please contact us by phone or by email.

The Archives does accept donations of documents, photographs, and other materials documenting the history of Thunder Bay, particularly when related to municipal government or municipally run programs or projects. Records of former Mayors, Councillors, committees, or individuals who have made significant contributions to the life of our City are also welcome.

The City of Thunder Bay Archives cannot accept all donation offers. In many cases where the donation cannot be accepted, we will work with you to find a suitable home for those records.