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Canada (English) Change

OCLC celebrating 10 years in Canada

Our doors first opened on July 14, 1997, and what an exciting decade it has been! The number of participating libraries has grown from about 100 libraries in 1997 to more than 1000 today.

As our membership continues to increase, my admiration for and appreciation of the countless, dedicated individuals who have contributed to OCLC’s success grows exponentially. And as a result of your continued support, we’ve in turn been able to achieve more on behalf of libraries throughout Canada. Please celebrate with us as we reflect on some of the major milestones:

July 14, 1997

  • OCLC opens its office in Montréal.

1997-1998

  • OCLC has more than 100 members throughout Canada.
  • The OCLC Office of Research awards Library and Information Science Research Grants to university researchers at the Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
  • The Ontario Colleges Bibliocentre joins OCLC. The Ontario Colleges Bibliocentre provides cataloging services to 25 community colleges in Ontario.

1998-1999

  • The OCLC Cataloging Express service (OCLC CatExpress), an easy-to-use, Web-based copy cataloging service, becomes available in the United States and Canada.
  • The OCLC FirstSearch interface becomes available in French.

1999-2000

  • OCLC acquires the Winnipeg, Canada-based Library Technical Services (LTS). OCLC LTS provides original and copy cataloging as well as physical processing of materials for libraries.
  • The Université du Québec becomes an OCLC member and begins contributing to WorldCat.
  • Four Canadians are appointed to OCLC advisory committees: Alexis Gibb, Gilles Caron, Sam Kalb and Frank Winter.
  • Bernard Dumouchel, General Director, CISTI, named Members Council delegate for OCLC Canada.

2001-2002

  • OCLC Canada Advisory Councils is established to provide OCLC with advice on how to facilitate cooperation and collaboration within and outside the country.
  • OCLC opens its official office in Chambly to better serve the needs of libraries in Canada.

2002-2003

  • Approximately 750 libraries participate in OCLC in Canada, which now has offices in Chambly, Quebec; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Ottawa, Ontario; and Calgary, Alberta.
  • OCLC acquires NetLibrary and begins growing eBook Canadian content.
  • OCLC participates in the joint conference of the American Library Association and the Canadian Library Association in Toronto.
  • OCLC Canada creates its own listserv to communicate with its member and participating libraries.
  • The ÉPC-Biologie Library at the Université de Montréal, a member of OCLC in Canada, begins using the QuestionPoint service via its French-language interface.
  • OCLC Canada and the Canadian Library Association announce the winner of the first OCLC Canada/CLA Award for Resource Sharing Achievement: the reference staffs at the University of New Brunswick and the University of Alberta Libraries.
  • Ernie Ingles, Vice-Provost from the University of Alberta, named Members Council delegate for OCLC in Canada.

2003-2004

  • OCLC opens a digitization and preservation center in Winnipeg, Manitoba; one of its first projects is digitizing Peel’s Bibliography of the Prairie Provinces for the University of Alberta.
  • OCLC LTS (Library Technical Services) in Winnipeg is doing contract cataloging and processing for the Universities of Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
  • The COOL consortium of Ontario libraries uses a collection of 4,700 NetLibrary eBooks.

2004-2005

  • OCLC completes the first phase of the Manitoba Library Consortium digitization project for the Manitobia: Life and Times Web site.
  • OCLC creates a Canadian Collection Set for eBooks from NetLibrary that includes more than 900 French and English titles.
  • About 1,000 libraries are using the QuestionPoint service in 21 countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom and the U.S. in which trained reference librarians are answering questions in shifts around the clock for users of participating libraries.
  • Windsor Public Library, Ontario, is named a grand prize winner in WebJunction’s annual Awards Program for Technology Planning.

2005-2006

  • OCLC now serves 1015 libraries throughout Canada.
  • OCLC signs agreements with its first two French Canadian Publishers, Option Santé and Septentrion, to make a selection of their titles available as eBooks.
  • University of Alberta renews a five-year outsourced cataloging agreement with OCLC LTS (Library Technical Services).
  • University of Saskatchewan uses LTS for cataloging on an ongoing basis.
  • OCLC launches a cooperative purchasing program for its members in Canada.
  • 63 millionth WorldCat Record entered by Toronto Public Library, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
  • OCLC publishes Canadian Libraries: How they stack up.
  • Advocacy ads are published in University Affairs and Canadian Public Administration on behalf of libraries.
  • Vancouver Public fields the 1 millionth question logged on QuestionPoint. The question was, “How can I get a library card."

2006-2007

  • OCLC Members Council takes place in Quebec City. This is the first Members Council meeting to take place outside the United States.
  • Ernie Ingles, Vice-Provost from the University of Alberta and OCLC delegate, becomes the first non-U.S. President of OCLC’s Members Council.
  • Province of British Columbia to acquire QuestionPoint to establish their AskAway provincial virtual reference service.

Thank you for your continued support!

–Daniel Boivin, Director, OCLC in Canada