Collection 80-017 - Parks Canada Transcripts collection

Since the initial reservation of the Hot Springs at Banff in 1885, the Canadian Parks Service has grown to encompass more than 30 national parks, more than 70 national historic parks and major sites, and 10 historically significant canal systems. The Canadian Parks Service plans, develops, and operates National Parks and National Historic Parks and Sites. First controlled by the Dominion Lands Branch of the Department of the Interior through its Superintendent of Rocky Mountains Park, Parks became, in 1908, a unit of the Forestry branch and, in 1911, a separate entity known as the Dominion (later National) Parks Branch. From 1918 to 1966, the Canadian Wildlife Service was a unit within the National Parks Branch. In 1973, Parks acquired control of historic canals, previously under the control of several different government departments. In 1979, Parks Canada became part of the Department of the Environment and in 1988 it was renamed the Canadian Parks Service. (Taken from: "Government Archives Division: General Guide Series." Ottawa: National Archives of Canada, 1991.)