Collection search - Correctional Service, British Columbia Penitentiary, New Westminster, Miscellaneous Operational Files [textual record]

These files, relating to hobbies, visits, Christmas parcels, recreation, the canteen, library, and so forth, document inmate life in one of Canada's oldest federal penitentiaries. Almost all the correspondence is internal between various units of the penitentiary. They document how prison officials controlled these "privileges" of inmates: the careful monitoring of visits to catch smuggling of contrabrand or to overhear drug pick-up information, the control of the type and materials for prisoners' hobbies, the ordering (or refusal to order) of requested books for the prison library, etc.
There are also administrative files on staffing, training, budget, personnel, etc. Although the files are in Canadian Penitentiary Service file jackets, they do not appear to be part of any recognizable registry system.

These records were originally held in British Columbia. They were transferred to the National Capital Region in 2016 and are available for consultation there.