CAMH Archives

Founded in 1982, the mandate of the original Archives for the History of Canadian Psychiatry and Mental Health Services was to preserve, and make available for study, material concerning the history and development of psychiatry including addictions and other mental health services in Canada, especially Ontario. In 2000, that original mandate was broadened towards a phased evolution as the Corporate (non-clinical/patient) Archives for the permanent operational and administrative records of CAMH.

Prospective researchers should make an enquiry beforehand on the nature of their interests by mail, phone or e-mail, and to arrange for an appointment.

Contact: John P.M. Court, Archivist
416 535-8501 ext. 32159
Fax: 416 583-1355
E-mail: john.court@camh.ca

Open Monday to Friday, by appointment.

For inquiries concerning patients/clinical records, please contact CAMH Health Records: health.records@camh.ca.

Friends of Archives

This is a separately incorporated volunteer organization associated with the CAMH Archives. The Friends of the Archives Newsletter is indexed and available online.

The Archives Association of Ontario 

The Archives Association of Ontario includes the following in its listing for the CAMH Corporate Archives:

• Archives' holdings include materials related to the history of mental health/illness including addiction treatment in Canada, with an emphasis on Ontario and selective administrative/operational records of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and its pre-merger (pre-1998) institutions.

Books available for sale:

Books available for sale through the CAMH Archives include:

• “Not this Time”:  Canadians, Public Policy and the Marijuana Question, 1961–1975, by Marcel Martel, 2006, $15.00.
• A Century of Learning, A Century of Caring: Centenary History of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, 2008, $15.00
• A Century of Medicine at Western, by Murray Barr, 1977, $15.00
• Psychiatry in Canada: Fifty Years (1951 to 2001). 2001, $15.00
• The Provincial Asylum in Toronto: Reflections on Social and Architectural History, 2000, $25.00
• The City and the Asylum, 1993, $5.00
• History of the Toronto Psychiatric Hospital, 1996, $15.00
• A Classified Bibliography of the History of Psychiatry and Mental Health Services in Canada, by Geoffrey Reaume, 1998, $15.00
• From Vision to Legacy: CAMH's Four Pre-merger Institutions, publ. 2000, $15.00
• Remembrance of Patients Past: Patient Life at the Toronto Hospital for the Insane, 1870-1940, by Geoffrey Reaume, publ. 2008, $30.00
• Additional information: Disabled access. Reproduction services available.

Ontario's Archival Information Network (Archeoin)

Descriptions of the archival holdings are available in Archeion. To access the relevant descriptions:

1. Click on the Archeion link.  
2. In the "Search" field, key in < Centre for Addiction and Mental Health >.
3. In the report of "Search Results" that appears, select any fonds or records series of interest to you by clicking on its individual link.

To view any of the actual materials listed within these finding aids (other than those that are restricted in accord with privacy/confidentiality provisions), contact the CAMH Archives as outlined above to arrange for scheduling your visit.