The collection consists of photocopies, originals and typescripts, brought together by Howard Pammett, of newspaper articles and unpublished articles on a variety of subjects such as Mossom Boyd, lumbering in the Kawarthas, Katherine Wallis, Peterborough Canoe Company, Trent Valley Navigation Company, and steamboats on the Trent-Severn system. The newspaper articles are from the "Progress of Peterborough" series by Pammett (Peterborough Examiner, 1950-51). The unpublished articles are "A Survey of Kawartha Lumbering 1815-1965" by Pammett and "The Peterborough Canoe" by Donald Cameron. There is also correspondence of Katherine Wallis, Mossom Boyd, and the Trent Valley Navigation Company.

This fonds consists of notebooks belonging to Carrie Brady. The notebooks cover a wide range of subjects such as grammar, French, geography, mathematics and calligraphy.

This fonds consists of research materials pertaining to the publication in 1978 of Ontario's Heritage: A Guide to Archival Sources.

The 15 microfilm reels from the Department of Lands and Forests holdings contain field survey notes for most townships in southern Ontario dating from 1784 to 1945. The handwritten guide to the survey notes was prepared by students in a geography course at Trent University. This guide is available in the Reading Room.

Fonds consists of research materials and notes, modern correspondence, photocopies of historical documentation, and genealogical resources for the Need family as well as other people living in both England and Newcastle District. The historical documentation includes wills, gravesite information, lot and concession records, military records, correspondence. As well as the Need family, there is also biographical information on other families, including the Dunsfords, Langtons, Campbells, and Sawers.

These research materials were accumulated by Dawn Bell Logan and used to write books, articles, and biographical entries about Thomas Need, including Thomas Need : settler in the backwoods of Upper Canada (self published, 2022), and the Dictionary of Canadian Biography entry for Thomas Need (V. 12). Photographs are of some sites in Lincolnshire, U.K, Peterborough, Canada, the Trent Severn Waterway, Thomas Need’s descendants, and gravestones of Need family members.

Fonds is organized into four series: Thomas Need journals and correspondence; Research materials and manuscripts; Dawn Logan correspondence; and Files on Dawn Logan’s publications.

Thomas Need Biography

Thomas Need (1808-1895) emigrated from Nottingham, England to Upper Canada in May 1832 and settled in Verulam Township in Victoria County in 1833 around Sturgeon Lake. He had graduated from University College, London, in 1830 and rejected the idea of becoming a member of the clergy. This contributed to his decision to leave England.

While in Upper Canada, Need was a member of the government commission that oversaw the construction of what became the first lock of the Trent-Severn Waterway, founded the Village of Bobcaygeon in 1834, and served as a magistrate for the Court of Requests from 1835 to 1837.

Need anonymously published his book Six years in the bush or extracts from the journal of a settler in Upper Canada (London, 1838) on his experiences in Upper Canada. The book was based on his journal entries he made in his personal journal which he called the “Woodhouse Journal.” Need returned to Nottingham, England permanently in 1847 and died in 1895. His authorship was confirmed with the publication of John Langton’s letters in 1926 and he was subsequently recognized as a contributor to early Canadian literature.

Source: Biography – NEED, THOMAS – Volume XII (1891-1900) – Dictionary of Canadian Biography. http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/need_thomas_12E.html. Accessed 11 Jan. 2024.