RCMP Book Collection of S/Sgt. Al Lund
Retired Staff Sergeant Al Lund joined the RCMP in March 1960, and shortly thereafter he purchased The Queen’s Cowboy by Kerry Wood. This purchase launched a campaign of collecting Mountie-themed materials that would continue for half a century and would build a comprehensive collection with many thousands of items in a wide range of formats, including books, comics, magazines, brochures, and pamphlets. The collection includes both fictional and nonfictional representations of Mounties, ranging from historical accounts to Harlequin romances, from memoirs to magazines. Most of the materials were published in Canada, Great Britain, or the United States, and were donated by Lund in installments beginning in 2008. The collection features a number of celebrated authors, including American author Zane Grey and Canadian novelist Ralph Connor. It also features well-known cartoon characters, such as Donald Duck and Dudley Do-Right, dressed in the iconic scarlet and gold that is recognized around the world.
Getting started: Most student researchers will want to employ a series of keyword searches in the University of Alberta Library catalogue in order to find relevant print and digital materials in all U of A library locations and collections, including the Peel library. Some of the books in this collection can be found by searching “RCMP Book Collection of S/Sgt. Al Lund” in the catalogue, while the other more ephemeral materials (comics, magazines, pamphlets, etc.) are itemized in an online finding aid. For more information about research in the Peel library, see Finding and Requesting Peel Library Materials.
Further resources: This collection nicely compliments the Sir Samuel Benfield Steele Family Archive. Some collection highlights were showcased in an exhibition that was accompanied by an award-winning book/catalogue titled Mounties on the Cover (2017), curated by Al Lund himself.
Collection Formats: 19th Century, 20th Century, 21st Century, Books, Ephemera -- click to see other collections with this format
A photo of Al Lund at Bruce Peel Special Collections with the exhibition catalogue for Mounties on the Cover.
The cover of Policing the Arctic by Harwood Steele, son of Sir Samuel Steele (HV 8157 S81 1936).
The Champion, A Weekly Publication of Sport and Adventure Stories for Boys, 1934 (FC 3216 S2 2.3.2.3).
The Historical Bulletin published by the Calgary Associated Clinic (FC 3216 S2 3.5.33).
A keepsake for storing sewing needles from 1950, depicting a Mountie (FC 3216.99 C36 1950).
Handbook from 1904 on police duties, compiled for non-commissioned officers and constables of the NWMP (HV 7642 Y8 R68 1904).