Fire Insurance Plans of British Columbia Cities with Multiple volumes
British Columbia Cities Fire Plan Collection - 1885 - 1968
1 v. (loose-leaf) maps; 30 cm

Fire insurance plans are detailed large-scale maps of cities, smaller municipalities, and industrial sites. The object of these maps is to show the character of any insured building. These plans were compiled by the fire insurance underwriters to assist their agents in assessing and controlling the risks of fire. Various symbols and colours are used to indicate the following characteristics: the shape and size of a building; the type of construction used; the existence of fire protection facilities; and the use of the building (e.g., a restaurant, a laundry, etc.). The plans were first drawn using a scale of 50 feet to the inch (relative scale 1:600). Later, this scale was increased to 100 feet to the inch (1:1 200), especially in residential areas, and finally 200 feet to the inch (1:2 400).

The earliest insurance plans are believed to have been made in the early 18th century, and were hand drawn for a particular fire insurance company. The earliest extant plan is a Map of London compiled by Richard Horwood for the Phoenix Assurance Company between 1792 and 1799. This is the same company, which produced the first insurance plans of Canadian cities in 1808. The American fire insurance plan industry began in 1850. The Sanborn Map and Publishing Company became the predominant fire insurance cartography company in North America. The name Sanborn is synonymous with fire insurance plans in the United States.

In 1875 Charles Edward Goad mapped Levis, Quebec, and later bought Sanborn's Canadian stock. In 1897, the Goad company began producing plans for British Columbia municipalities, along with various underwriters associations in the province. In 1917, Goad sold out to the Canadian and provincial underwriters associations. The associations amalgamated to form the Canadian Underwriters' Association in 1960 and subsequent production of fire insurance plans was centralised under the Plan Division of the Association. In 1974, the Association became the Insurers' Advisory Organisation. The following year, in 1975, production of fire insurance plans ceased.

Plans were revised periodically as buildings were burned, torn down, rebuilt, or a new area was developed. The revisions were printed and distributed to the agents to paste in. Sometimes revisions were made in pencil or crayon by the agent, or by the cartographers in the Plan Department. Plans with the same date may have different revisions. There are no plans for undeveloped areas, nor for a few areas which were developed.

Collection consists of fire plans regarding cities include Burnaby, North Vancouver, Oak Bay, Point Grey, Saanich, South Vancouver, Victoria, West Vancouver, University Endowments Lands and Vancouver. These plans have been catalogued and are searchable in the UBC Library catalogue. To locate fire insurance plans
of other Canadian provinces, please see the Phelps Publishing Company Fire Insurance Plans Collection.

Title based on content.

Inventory [PDF] available.
Online guide to Fire Insurance Plans of British Columbia Cities

Franco-Canadian (Dominion) Trust Company, 1792-1951
Franco-Canadian (Dominion) Trust Company Map Collection
310 maps

The Franco-Canadian (Dominion) Trust Company was a real estate and insurance firm active in Vancouver from approximately 1911 to 1947. The bulk of this collection, acquired from Lever Antiques, Vancouver in 1972, concerns properties handled by the Company in the interior of British Columbia and on Vancouver Island.

Collection consists of maps relating to British Columbia and Vancouver, in formats of blueprint, manuscript map, architectural plan and printed map.

Title based on content.

Inventory [PDF] available.

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