Anarchist Archive 9 Our Collections 9 Robert Walker Anarchist Collection (Sooke Libertarian Library)

Robert Walker Anarchist Collection (Sooke Libertarian Library)

Biographical History

Robert Walker (University of Victoria Professor of History, Emeritus) acquired this collection of books and pamphlets from an anonymous donor.

All items are stamped “Sooke Libertarian Library.” Many date to World War II and its aftermath and were produced by the Freedom collective in London, UK. This suggests an early connection with British-Canadian anarchist George Woodcock (a member of the Freedom group), who settled in Sooke in 1949 and lived there for three years before relocating to Vancouver in summer 1953.

Scope and Content

The collection includes a very rare illustrated folio by John Olday, The Life We Live, The Death We Die (Freedom Press, 1944), which is filed separately. On Olday see “Olday, John, 1905-1977, aka Arthur William Oldag aka Fredrick Frostick aka Frank Allen aka Willi Freimann, aka Michael Peterson.“

Books (Alphabetical order by title)

Box 1

  1. Errico Malatesta: His Life & Ideas, compiled and edited by Vernon Richards, 1965.
  2. The Expanding Environment : The End of Cities – The Rise of Communities by E.A. Gutkind, 1953.
  3. Help! Latt mij leven!: protest-poezie, 1967.
  4. The Impolssibilities of Social Democracy by Vernon Richards, 1978.
  5. Kropotkin: Selections from his writings, edited with an Introduction by Herbert Read, 1942.
  6. Lessons of the Spanish Revolution (1936 – 1939) by V. Richards, 1953.
  7. Lessons of the Spanish Revolution (1936 – 1939) by V. Richards, 1972.
  8. Memoirs of a Revolutionist by Peter Kropotkin, 1930.
  9. Marxism, Freedopm and the State by K.J. Kenafick, [1950].
  10. Marxism and Freedom … from 1776 until today with a new chapter on The Challenge of Mao Tse-Tung, 1958 (2 copies).
  11. Peace Eye poems by Ed Sanders, 1965.
  12. The Russian Enigma by Anton Ciliga, 1940.
  13. A Skeptic’s political dictionary and Handbook for the Discenchanted by Max Nomad, 1953.
  14. Soviet Documents on Nazi Atrocities: Illustrated by some 200 original photographs, no date.
  15. The Spanish cockpit by Franz Borkenau, 1963.
  16. Vietnam: inside story of the Guerilla War by Wilfred G. Burchett, 1963
  17. Workers in Stalin’s Russia by M.L. Berneri, 1945.
  18. Selected Articles from the Anarchist Journal “Freedom Press London” Volume 1, 1951 – Volume 12, 1962.

Box 2

  1. ABC of Anarchism, 1964 (3 copies).
  2. Anarchy: a journal of anarchist ideas, Contents of No. 2 May 1961 – No. 114 August 1970 (some issues missing).
  3.  Equality, (incomplete set May 1965 – August 1965).
  4.  id: published on behalf of all who care for freedom for children in and out of school, (incomplete set Sept. 1960 – May 1963).
  5.  Liberation, (incomplete set October 1960 – August 1965).
  6. Limbo, (incomplete set March 1964 – June 1965).
  7. Nationalism, Communism, Marxist Humanism and the Afro-Asian Revolutions, 1961 (5 copies).
  8. News from Nowhere: Canadian Anarchist Journal, (incomplete set (September, October 1973).
  9. Now, (incomplete set, no. 1, 194, no. 5-7).
  10. Politics, (incomplete set, July 1946 – Winter 1949).
  11. Posters (1: When the illusion of real change has been exposed, a mere change of illusion becomes intolerable. Who needs bosses – 2: Being let to the Slaughterhouse).

Box 3

  1. Press: A socialist publication, (incomplete set, September 1963 – March 1967).
  2. Resistance, (incomplete set, May 1947 – 1951, 1965, no date).
  3. Resurgence, (incomplete set, (Nov.-Dec. 1984 – Mar-April 1985).
  4. Solidarity for worker’s power, (incomplete set volume 3 number 5 – volume 5 number 2).
  5. Undercurrents, (incomplete set, June-July 1976 – Feb/March 1983).
  6. The University Libertarian: An Independent Journal of University Anarchism, (incomplete set, December 1955 – January 1960).
  7. Views and Comments, (incomplete set, January-February 1961 – Spring 1985).
  8. A way out: School of living, (September, October, 1963).