CANADA MILITARY NEWS: July7 Nova Scotia Black Battalion
Honoured/REMEMERING our troops-our Canada/NOVA SCOTIA- come visit, we’d love 2
have u- all ages and disabilities- kids matter- TheGreatWar
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Canada firsts...
The Discovery of Insulin: A Canadian medical miracle of the 20th
century
The role of this website is to preserve and document the history of
one of the most important medical discoveries of our time. By promoting the
history of the discovery of insulin we hope to increase awareness of the need
to follow a diabetes avoidance lifestyle and to promote the need for further
research.
In the fall of 1920 Dr. Frederick Banting had an idea that would
unlock the mystery of the dreaded diabetes disorder. Before this, for thousands
of years, a diabetes diagnosis meant wasting away to a certain death. Working
at a University of Toronto laboratory in the very hot summer of 1921 Fred
Banting and Charles Best were able to make a pancreatic extract which had anti
diabetic characteristics. They were successful in testing their extract on
diabetic dogs. Within months Professor J. J. R. MacLeod, who provided the lab
space and general scientific direction to Banting and Best, put his entire
research team to work on the production and purification of insulin. J.B.
Collip joined the team and with his technical expertise the four discoverers
were able to purify insulin for use on diabetic patients. The first tests were
conducted on Leonard Thompson early in 1922. These were a spectacular success.
Word of this spread quickly around the world giving immediate hope to many
diabetic persons who were near death. A frenzied quest for insulin followed.
Some patients in a diabetic coma made miraculous recoveries.
While insulin is not a cure, this medical discovery has and
continues to save millions of lives world-wide. The production of insulin has
changed a great deal since 1922. Modern science and technology has made high
quality insulin and delivery systems available to diabetic persons.
This website features biographical sketches of the discoverers,
descriptions of the experiments, a scrapbook of old newspaper clippings,
pictures, a recording of Banting?s voice, a list of books and videos available
on the history of the discovery and diabetes.
The Discovery of Insulin website is sponsored by
the Sir Frederick Banting Legacy Foundation. We are located in the former town
of Alliston Ontario, which has been renamed the Town of New Tecumseth. This is
the birthplace of Sir Frederick Banting and his birthplace is badly in need of
repairs.
Physics
Discoveries in Canada: Ernest Rutherford
Disintegration Theory of Atom Discovered
at McGill University, 1900
physics expert trained under scholarship at Cambridge University’s Cavendish Laboratory in England, Ernest Rutherford was stymied in furthering his research. It wasn’t a lack of skills nor was it money that was the problem - it was his age. At 26, he was too young under Cambridge rules to promote to full researcher status.
Around
the same time, Rutherford was offered the tempting position of McDonald
Professor of Experimental Physics at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. The
young physicist considered the advantages - full professorship in a research
position, the newest, best-equipped and finest facilities in the world,
according to McGill University, and excellent remuneration of
$2,500 per year. Rutherford accepted the post and sailed for Canada in the fall
of 1898. (And Cavendish changed their rules then, too, permitting advancement
of younger professors.)
Alpha and Beta Rays
Rutherford
made great leaps in progress at McGill. Using Becquerel Rays, a method
of ionization found in 1896, Rutherford’s immediate findings in Canada were the
non-penetrating alpha and penetrating beta rays. Radon, the product emitted by
radium and thorium, was another Rutherford breakthrough.(Radon is a radioactive
gas without colour, taste or odor, and is noted as a leading cause of lung
cancer by the Canadian Cancer Society.)
With
the collaboration of Professor Frederick Soddy, who had arrived at McGill from
England in 1900, Rutherford made a discovery in 1902 that would change the
world of atomic physics: the disintegration theory of the atom.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
The
theory concluded “that atoms could be transformed and that each atom
potentially crried a tremendous amount of energy,” noted McGill University.
This science-altering discovery lead to the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908
for Rutherford. (Soddy earned the Nobel Prize in 1921.) Rutherford, said The World and I, told friends that “the fastest
transformation he knew of was his own transformation from a physicist to a
chemist.”
The Oliver
Typewriter Company
Reverend Thomas Oliver Invented a
Typewriter with Visible Print
A
minister needs to compose a lot of sermons. He needs to be able to read with
confidence and grace at the pulpit to his awaiting congregation, not stumble
over illegible hand writing, even if it is his own. The Reverend Thomas Oliver
solved his legibility problems by taking tin can strips (or so the story goes,
according to Shannon Johnson in the Oliver Company History) and constructing a
typewriter.
Born
in Woodstock, Ontario in 1852, Thomas Oliver moved to the State of Illinois as
a young man after the death of his mother. He became a minister in the town of
Epsworth, preaching in a Methodist church. Needing a more legible way of
writing his sermons, he invented a mechanical means of putting words to paper.
Oliver Keys Struck Front of Platen
There
were other typewriters at the time – one of the first mechanical typewriters
was patented in the USA in 1868, but it had a major difficulty – the keys
struck the paper at the back of the platen, therefore the typist could
not see the words until the page had scrolled along. Oliver’s typewriter used a
novel approach, something he called “Visible Print”. The keys struck on the the
front of the platen and the letters could be seen fresh on the paper as they
were typed. For his modern machine, Oliver’s typewriter was awarded US Patent
No. 450,107 on April 7th, 1891. With a group of investors fronting capital of
$15,000, Thomas Oliver leased a building to manufacture the typewriter. In
1895, the Oliver Typewriting Company was incorporated.
The Canadian Oliver 3
Produced
with keys in banks on each side as if wings, the typewriter earned the
nickname, “iron butterfly’. The machines were sold in olive green shades (what
else, of course!) or in a nickel coating. Customers could choose black or white
keys for the three rows of letters. The “Canadian Oliver 3” specifically
featured black keys, according to the Anglo-Boer War Museum, and a shiny nickel body.
There were no numbers or lower-case type on the first typewriters; a fourth top
row for numbers was added in 1931. There was a handle on each side for ease of
picking up the portable typewriter and moving it wherever it was needed.
Located
initially in a two-room office in Chicago, Illinois in 1895, the Oliver
Typewriter Company constructed its own building on North Dearborn Street.
However, this was just the office building – the factory was in another town,
Woodstock, Illinois. A happy atmosphere must have made the workday pleasant for
workers. There were women’s and men’s baseball teams and a company band.
McIntosh Apple a
Tasty Canadian Development
John McIntosh and Son Allan Nurtured the
'McIntosh Red' Apple Tree
Fresh-picked
from the orchard branch or selected from the grocer’s display, crunching on a
juicy, crisp, red apple is an ordinary pleasure in Canada. One of those
favourite apples is a Canadian development: the McIntosh Red.
John
McIntosh came to Upper Canada from the Mohawk Valley in New York as a British
Loyalist during the hostilities of American Revolution, sometime between 1796
and 1801. He was most likely aged in his early 20s. Purchasing a nice chunk of
land in the St. Lawrence valley near Dundela, Ontario in March 1813, he made a
home for his wife and growing family. (John and Hannah eventually had eleven
children, six boys and five girls, noted the Dictionary of Canadian Biography.)
McIntosh Found Wild Seedlings
As
with many United Empire Loyalists coming to Canada, John McIntosh was a farmer.
The McIntoshes were clearing the scrubby land when they happened across apple
seedlings growing in the rough bush. Digging up the delicate plants, they
transplanted the wee fruit trees in a patch closer to the house. The seedlings
grew and flourished with apples, but eventually all but one tree died. The
trees produced hardy, red fruit, juicy and appetizing. John McIntosh named the
apple variety McIntosh Red.
Apples a Rarity
John’s
son Allan McIntosh took an interest in the seedlings, tending and propagating
the trees by budding and grafting. Allan “travelled about as an itinerant
preacher, handing seedlings to those interested, said the Ontario
Apple Marketing Commission, and that “he and his brother Sandy
organized a small nursery. Later, Allan’s son made the nursery a commercial
success, selling the apple tree seedlings across Ontario and transforming the
luxury of apples from rarity into a more common delight.
McIntosh Apple Tree Burnt
The
last original tree remaining by the McIntosh house lived a long and productive
life. The story has it that a devastating house fire damaged the apple tree
when it was nearly a century old. The sturdy tree continued to bear fruit on
the side that was not burnt until it died at 112 years old in 1908.
The Red River
Cart of the Metis
Versatile, 1800s Vehicle Had Wheels That
Squealed
Descendants of French fur traders and native Cree or Ojibwe women, the Metis people of Canada were known for their buffalo hunting skills and their role in the fur trade but mostly for their Red River carts. Basically a box that rested on 12-foot long shafts and equipped with two enormous wheels, the Red River cart first appeared in 1801 at Fort Pembina, according to fur trader Alexander Henry. The carts soon became common sights between Canada’s Red River (Selkirk) Settlement and St. Paul, Minnesota, and remained popular through much of the 1800s.
What
made them so popular? For one thing, they were constructed entirely of wood,
including the wheels, so they didn’t cost much to build. What’s more, if a cart
broke down while on route, it could easily be fixed with wood found along the
trails. Red River carts were also sturdy enough to carry anywhere from 400
pounds of weight in the early carts to 800 pounds in the later ones. Most
importantly, the Red River cart had versatility — its wheels could be removed
and the cart converted to a raft for crossing water — and tremendous usefulness.
Uses of the Red River Cart
Although
Metis-built, Red River carts didn’t just serve the Metis people. Settlers and
other fur traders also discovered the many benefits of these versatile
vehicles, which were pulled by horses and later oxen. People used the carts:
·
To
haul buffalo skins and meat after buffalo hunts
·
As
a means of transportation and shelter during long trips and migration
·
To
get to homesteads
·
For
everyday business
·
For
exporting furs to St. Paul, Minnesota
·
To
transport supplies from larger communities
·
As
a defensive mechanism during battles with the Sioux Indians
Sometimes,
Red River carts could be found moving in long trains made up of hundreds of
carts, like when large families migrated from one place to another. But while
these cart trains were quite a sight to behold, it was the carts’ wheels that
drew the most attention.
The Wheels
Over
five feet in diameter and dish-shaped, the wheels of the Red River cart could
be heard long before they were seen. That’s because the axles were never
greased. The reason? Oil would have mixed with dust from the trail and worn
them down. The axles were already the most often replaced part. (In fact, spare
axles could be seen tied to the backs of many carts.) Without grease, then, the
carts squeaked and shrieked as they made their way across the prairie. But the
huge, durable wheels — constructed with sturdy woods like elm and oak — had
advantages, too. They kept the cart from tipping over and made traveling over
stumps and mud much easier.
Elizabeth Laurie
Smellie, Nurse and Humanitarian
Registered Nurse was First Female
Colonel in Canadian Armed Forces
Elizabeth
Laurie Smellie, “Beth”, was born on March 22, 1884 in Port Arthur, near Thunder
Bay, Ontario, Canada. A member of a progressive family, Smellie’s father was
Thomas Stuart Traill Smellie, a prominent physician, businessman, newspaperman,
and politician in the Thunder Bay area. Perhaps following in the direction of
her father’s steps, she took up a medical career in nursing.
Smellie a Nursing Sister in WWI
Attending
the Johns Hopkins Training School for Nurses in Baltimore, Maryland, on
graduation, Elizabeth worked at the McKellar General Hospital in Port Arthur.
She must have been adept at her profession – she earned the post of night
supervisor in 1901 at age 17. When World War One erupted, the experienced nurse
signed up as a Nursing Sister with the Royal Canadian Medical Corps
in 1915. She put her valuable skills to use in England and France. Recognized
for her efforts, she was mentioned in dispatches in 1916 and received the Royal
Red Cross, First Class, Award in 1917.
Canadian Army Nursing Service Matron
Returning
to her home soil, Elizabeth was initially on transport duty, then appointed
Assistant to the Matron in Chief of the Canadian Army Nursing Service, a
military position she held until discharged from duty in 1920. Expanding her
medical knowledge, Elizabeth attended Simmons College in the Public Health
Nursing course, along with taking post-graduate studies at McGill University in
Montreal. She joined the Victorian Order of Nurses in January of 1924 and
was appointed Chief Superintendent shortly after.
Smellie the Chief Superintendent of VON
A
mention in the Public Health Nurse circular praised Elizabeth’s work
with the VON. “It is interesting to note that the Order has promoted one of its
own nurses, especially one of such outstanding ability, and with the strong
support of her own nursing associates,” noted the British Journal of Nursing in 1926. “Miss Smellie
was a Field Supervisor of the Order in Montreal and also as Instructor in
Public Health Nursing in McGill University.” At the time of the mention, the
VON had been in the business of health care in Canada for nearly 30 years. As
Chief Superintendent, Elizabeth helped expand the Victorian Order of Nurses
across Canada.
Colonel Smellie, Commander of CWACs
In
1940, Elizabeth Smellie took leave from the VON to rejoin the Canadian army,
contributing her talents to help the Allied soldiers in World War Two. A year
later, she was undertaking the advancement of women’s participation in the
army, helping to organize the Canadian Women’s Army Corps. The CWACs performed
many invaluable duties during the War, from clerical and administrative duties
to driving, sail-makers, supply assistants and teletype operators. Elizabeth
was placed in command of the new CWAC division in February 1942. She was
promoted to Colonel in 1944, the first woman to reach the higher echelon in the
Canadian army.
Joe Shuster,
Canadian Artist of Superman
Creators Regrettably Sold Superman
Copyright for $130 in 1938
Pencil
in hand, Joe Shuster enjoyed drawing and sketching as a young boy. Born in
Toronto, Ontario on July 10, 1914, Joseph Shuster’s parents Julius and Ida
Shuster, were hard-working but poor immigrants from the Netherlands and the
Ukraine. He had one sister, Joan, according to Absolute Astronomy, and was a cousin of Frank
Shuster. (Frank grew up to become half of the famous Canadian comedy team, Wayne
and Shuster.) Helping out, Joe had a newspaper route delivering the Toronto
Daily Star.
The
Shuster family moved to Cleveland, Ohio when Joe was 10 years old. He attended
the Glenville High School as a teenager and met Jerry Siegel in class. Joe
earned a scholarship to the Cleveland School of Art and took night courses in
art to hone his skills. After school hours, he worked at a sign painting shop.
Joe Shuster Set New Standards
Combining
their individual talents into a creative duet, Jerry wrote storylines and Joe
produced art for comic books. Publishing their work in science fiction magazines
and in DC-National, the cartooning pair created “Super-Man” in 1933, a
character that was on the villainous side of evil rather than the good. The
anti-hero didn’t fly with the publishers. Joe continued to draw comic books
such as Spy, Radio Squad and Slam Bradley. Altering the comic
book standards from the standard newspaper strip-style, Joe broke up the pages,
using fewer panels, fashioning angles and even whole splash pages to entertain
the readers.
It
was the Great Depression era and the public was ready for a hero. Jerry Siegel
turned their first comic book character from a villain into a crime-fighter in
1934, with Joe Shuster creating the handsome, brave, leading muscle man in blue
tights and with a red, fluttering cape. He also drew Superman’s meek alter-ego
Clark Kent with thick-lens glasses, his pretty love interest Lois Lane, and
other significant characters. Joe’s memories of Toronto helped him envision the
settings of Metropolis, said the Associated Press on CTV, and initially named
Clark Kent’s newspaper The Daily Star after the Toronto Daily Star. The
editor changed the title to The Daily Planet.
Superman Copyright to
Publisher
It
took four years to catch the interest of publishers and then Superman
soared into popularity under the DC’s Action Comics title. The policy of the
early comic book business was that the publishers held the rights to creations.
Joe and Jerry sold their first Superman pages - all 13 of them - for $130 plus
a waiver giving the publisher all rights.
Superman
Magazine,
Superman comic strips, and Superman Sundays in newspapers kept
the innovative creators busy. Though still a young man, Joe was having vision
difficulties, enough to hinder his drawing abilities. He hired several
assistants to help with the tremendous workload and the urgent deadlines
imposed from Superman’s burgeoning fame.
Shuster and Siegel Sued for Royalties
Working
on a ten-year contract, drawing and writing the Superman comic franchise was
profitable for the two creators. Superman was fast becoming the biggest comic
book hero of his time. Joe and Jerry wanted their fair piece of the pie from
the publishers and sued for royalties in 1947. Since they had originally signed
away the copyright in good faith, they lost the court case. National Allied
Publications settled with them for $94,000 but fired them, dropping the men
from participating in their own creation; in a crushing blow, their by-line was
also dropped.
After
losing the legal battle, Joe nearly evaporated from the comics arena. He drew
the unsuccessful “Funnyman” comic for a while, then, it is thought, Joe drew
horror comics for a while and produced freelance and pop art. By 1976, he was
living in a nursing home in California, destitute and legally blind. The year
before, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster began a campaign to regain some income
from their valuable creation. The Superman movie was about to take new
audiences by storm. Warner Brothers, then the owner of the DC Comics property,
reinstated the creators’ by-lines and gave each man $20,000 a year plus medical
benefits for the rest of their lives. (The amount was increased to $30,000 in
the 1990s.) Fortune and fame was to elude the inventors of one of the most
recognizable and lucrative characters in comics history.
Joe Shuster Awards
Just
after his 78th birthday, Joseph Shuster died on July 30, 1992. His cartooning
work “was very polished and illustrative, and his style itself became a model
for many artists in the comic book industry during the thirties,” commented
Comic-Art & Graffix Gallery. In the same year that he died, Joe was
inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame. In 2005, the Joe Shuster Canadian
Comic Book Creator Hall of Fame was introduced to acknowledge the fine work of
Canadian cartoonists, writers and publishers. The late Joe Shuster was made the
first member. A Canadian postage stamp was issued on October 2, 1995
commemorating Shuster’s Superman, and Shuster was remembered in a “Heritage
Minute” on Canadian television.
Jerry
Siegel continued to write scripts for the comic book industry, penning horrors,
romances, and the more famous comics of The Phantom and Mandrake.
He later wrote X-Men and the Human Torch. Jerry died in January
1996 at age 81. His widow and daughter have continued the battle to regain
copyright of Superman.
Canadian Cartoonist Changed the World
Superman boldly cleared
the road for other comics crusaders donned in colourful garb and heralding
amazing powers to save the world. And to think, it was an imaginative, talented
Canadian kid from Toronto and his innovative friend from Cleveland that really
changed the world.
Source:
The
Encyclopedia of American Comics from 1897 to the Present, edited by Ron
Goulart, published by Promised Land Productions, New York 1990. Pp 331-332,
351-353.
The copyright of the article Joe
Shuster, Canadian Artist of Superman in Canadian
History is owned by Susanna
McLeod. Permission to republish Joe Shuster, Canadian Artist of
Superman in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
Telegraphy in Canada, Sending Instant Messages
Telegraphy in Canada, Sending Instant Messages
In 1846, the First Telegraphic Message
from Toronto to Hamilton
The telegrapher of the Toronto, Hamilton, Niagara and St. Catherines Telegraph Company tapped out letters on a small metal machine. Dot, dot, dot... dash, dash. His finger was pressing on the brass key, sending the first telegraph message in Canada. At a desk in Hamilton, Ontario, the coded message from Toronto was received almost as immediately as it was sent, then translated and written down. It was December 19, 1846.
Samuel Morse and the Morse Code
Invented
in the late 1700s in Europe and first used in England in 1837, the
possibilities of telegraphy did not catch on in North America. The code was
complicated and not easy to operate Samuel Finley Breese Morse of Massachusetts
came along, and in 1837 devised a simple encoded method of dots and dashes to
form letters, numbers and symbols. (Morse was a fine artist and early
photographer.) He also developed equipment to send and receive the messages “by
opening and closing electric circuits,” said the Canadian Encyclopedia. Morse sent his first
message in the United States on May 24, 1844, a telegraph of four words. “What
hath God wrought” was transmitted from Baltimore to Washington.
Telegraph Lines Along Train Tracks
The
Montreal Telegraph Company opened for communications business in 1847 and held
the market until 20 years later when the Dominion Telegraph Company became a competitor.
(Western Union eventually took the lead.) Tapping out the code on a small
machine called the Key, commercial messages were sent through wire lines strung
from pole to pole alongside the railway tracks, first between Montreal,
Toronto, Hamilton and London by 1847 and, in time, all across Canada and into
the United States. In the late 1800s, the cost to send a telegram was 25 cents
for the first 10 words and then a penny each for additional words.
A Glimpse of Telegraphy Equipment
A
Key, made of brass and iron, used an up and down finger motion to tap out
messages. The first Keys held the possibility of shock due to lack of
insulation between parts, and later inventors came up with safer models. In
1878, Jesse Bunnell made improvements to the Key designed by Morse, noted the Alberta
Railway Museum, by adding an insulated knob for operation and making
the key semi-portable.”
A
Bug was a version of a Key but used a side to side motion, easing symptoms of
carpal tunnel syndrome from the repetitive up and down action. The Bug was
invented in 1904 by Horace G. Martin. He patented his design and created many
variants.
A Sounder produced the dot and dash notes for operators to hear and translate into a message.
A
Repeater was an electromechanical device used to boost the transmitted signal
along the land lines.
A
Pocket Test Set was a portable Key used by repairmen to send transmissions and
trainmen to make report of late trains.
The Last Telegraph Message in Canada
Along
with business and personal use, the telegraph became a life-line for shipping,
the railways, police and emergency departments. In Canada, the last message
transmitted by telegraph was on May 30, 1972, almost one hundred and twenty-two
years after the first message was issued. Sent from Batiscan, Quebec to
Montreal, the Canadian Pacific operator Rene Chevalier tapped out, “This is the
last telegram via Morse Code in Canada. What hath God wrought?”
Red Rose Tea, A Canadian Brew
Theodore H. Estabrooks Began the Tea
Company in 1899
On a cold December 24, 1861, Theodore Harding Rand Estabrooks was born to Stephen and Judith Estabrooks in Wicklow, Carleton County, New Brunswick. One of seven children, his father was a Registrar of Deeds and Wills, and Probate for Sunbury County.
On
graduation from Kerris Business College in 1894, Estabrooks went into business,
according to the Red
Rose Tea, website, finding a commercial site on Dock Street in St.
John, New Brunswick. He was a business leader, importing and exporting goods,
and thought that tea would be a good commodity. The first year of tea sales was
not as profitable as he hoped – less than $200 worth of tea was sold.
Red Rose Blend of Tea
In
1899, Estabrooks met a gentleman by the name of M.R. Miles, a renowned
tea-taster, and together they developed a delicious blend of Sri Lankan and
Indian tea leaves, something different from the usual oriental blends of the
time. Estabrooks registered the trademark for his tea in Canada, naming it Red
Rose Tea. The result of the blend “was a rich and flavourful tea.”
Red Rose Tea International
Sales
of Red Rose Tea soared across the Maritimes and into New England in the United
States. Within six years, Red Rose Tea was selling over a thousand tons of tea
a year. Red Rose Tea began shipping tea to stores across the border in the
1920s, being sold in Buffalo, Detroit and elsewhere.
Estabrooks Used Tea Bags
Originally
packaged as loose tea that needed to be scooped into an infuser for brewing,
Estabrooks began packaging the tea into cup-size portions in small bags in
1929. The Red Rose Tea company was one of the first to make use of tea bags, so
that having a cup of tea was a simpler, cleaner and tasty event for their customers.
Brooke, Bond & Co Tea Company
Ready
to retire in 1932, Estabrooks sold his tea company to Arthur Brooke of Brooke,
Bond & Company in England. (There was no Bond, only Mr. Brooke who liked
the sound of the name.) Brooke, Bond & Company had been in business since
1869 and had expanded from a single tea shop into an international tea
wholesaler. Red Rose Tea did not suffer under its new owner, in fact it
continued a steady growth. In the late 1940s, the English tea company opened a
branch in Montreal, Quebec, Brooke Bond Canada. The original Red Rose Tea
company sontinued to operate out of St. John, New Brunswick. In the 1960s and
1970s, Red Rose began including figurines and collectibles with its tea
packages. The collectibles were hugely popular, and, though decades out of
production, are still being traded yet today.
Red Rose Tea Bought and Sold
Unilever
Foods purchased Red Rose from Brooke, Bond & Company in 1985, and then
“sold the rights to the Red Rose brand in the United States to Redco Foods,”
according to the Red Rose Tea history webpage, “retaining the rights in Canada
and other parts of the world.” In the United States, Red Rose Tea has been
produced in Little Falls, New York since 1988. The New Brunswick operation was
finally closed and is now a heritage building. In 1995, Redco Foods was sold to
a German company, Teekanne.
But
back to the founder of Red Rose Tea... Theodore Estabrooks married Mary Emily
Crothers on September 6, 1886 and they had six children – five daughters and
one son. Estabrooks died in St. John, New Brunswick on April 5, 1945 and he was
buried at Fernhill Cemetery in St. John, NB. His delicious legacy of ambrosial
tea lives on across Canada and around the world.
Sitting Bull,
Medicine Man
Lives in Canada from 1876 to 1881
The Sioux had been trading with British and Canadian traders from 1767, and had sided with them during the American Revolution and the War of 1812 to protect their interests.
Sitting Bull Enters Canada
In
1876, Sitting Bull and the Sioux crossed the Medicine Line (49th Parallel) into
Canada after annihilating Custer’s army at the Little Big Horn when the U.S.
government had failed to keep miners out of their reservation, driving buffalo
before them with soldiers on their trail. They made camp in the Wood Mountain
area in what is now southern Saskatchewan.
Inspector James Walsh
Inspector
James M. Walsh, of the North West Mounted Police, rode with half a dozen men
into the camp which now contained over 5,000 Sioux. He passed a large herd of
horses and mules with the brand of the U.S. Army, and lodges where American
scalps hung drying in the smoke, to meet with the Sioux leaders of surly
warriors.
Inspector
Walsh told them how they would behave in the Great White Mother’s land. The
conditions were: they would harm no man, woman, child; steal nothing, not so
much as a horse; they would not fight, even amongst themselves, or with the
Canadian Indians; they would not hide behind the Medicine Line for the winter
and then go raiding down south as soon as the prairies dried; they would not
hunt beyond the Medicine Line, nor would they smuggle ammunition over it to
their friends. The police were outnumbered thirty to forty to one, with no help
for several hundred miles, and yet Walsh told them the rules and they said they
would obey.
Sitting
Bull assured Inspector Walsh he was tired of war, desired peace and would obey
the laws of the Great White Mother, and promised not to cross the Medicine Line
to conduct raids.
Once
news of Sitting Bull’s arrival in Canada became known to other branches of
Sioux who had remained in the United States, whether they were already living
on reservations or the remainder of the hostile natives who had taken part in
the battle against Custer or those natives harbouring grudges against the United
States government, they made the trek north.
During
the summer of 1877 minor incidents and disagreements between the different
native tribes threatened to erupt into war. The Sioux and Blackfoot had always
been enemies, with tension mounting over hunting parties on Blackfoot land.
Sitting Bull Refuses to Leave Canada
The
United States government wanted Sitting Bull and his Sioux to either return to
American territory or to settle permanently in Canada. Canadian officials, with
no desire to adopt them, arranged a meeting with General Alfred H. Terry of the
U.S. Army and Sitting Bull on October 17, 1877 at Fort Walsh (Saskatchewan).
Sitting Bull distrusted the Americans due to their broken promises and ill
treatment in the past, and refused to return to the United States.
Commissioner
James F. Macleod and Inspector Walsh continued to urge Sitting Bull to
surrender by stressing that he would never be recognized as a British Indian or
granted a reservation, while warning him that the buffalo would disappear soon.
Inspector Walsh’s Replacement
A
strong friendship developed between Inspector Walsh and Sitting Bull which
seemed to be the reason for the lack of trouble with the Sioux in western
Canada. Walsh was criticized for this friendship and blamed for his failure in
persuading Sitting Bull to return to the United States, resulting in Walsh’s
transfer to FortQu’Appelle in the summer of 1880, and later to Brockville,
Ontario to get him out of the way according to the Dictionary of Canadian Biography . Walsh’s
replacement, Superintendent Leif N. F. Crozier, was unable to develop the same
rapport with Sitting Bull.
With
the lack of buffalo and cold winters combined by the refusal of the Canadian
government to provide a reservation or food, many Sioux returned to the United
States where they had been promised provisions.
Sitting Bull Surrenders
In
the winter of 1880-81 Sitting Bull found food had grown scarce for his
followers, resulted in his inquiries about the reception of those who had
surrendered earlier. When spring arrived, he met at FortQu’Appelle with Colonel
Samuel B. Steele and Edgar Dewdney, the commissioner of Indian Affairs, who
encouraged him to cross the border. After receiving a wire from Inspector Walsh
in the east stating it was safe for him to return, on July 11, 1881 Sitting
Bull accompanied his remaining followers from Willow Bunch with Louis Legaré to
surrender at Fort Buford, North Dakota on July 11, 1881.
Sources:
Sergeant
331 by F.J.E. Fitzpatrick (1921)
Royal
North West Mounted Police by Captain Ernst J. Chambers (1906)
The Empress of Ireland, Canada's Worst Shipwreck
The Empress of Ireland Sunk in 1914,
Taking 1012 Lives
In
the darkest hours of May 29, 1914, the Empress of Ireland was steaming
just beyond Rimouski, Quebec at Pointe au Père, heading for the Gulf of the St.
Lawrence. At approximately 1:30 a.m., the river pilot completed his task of
guiding the ship downriver and was picked up by a tugboat for his return to
Quebec. The ship's crew was preparing for the ocean voyage to Liverpool,
England with Captain Henry Kendall was on the bridge, assisting his Officers
and Quartermasters with their duties.
A
thick fog sporadically cloaked the St. Lawrence River on the 96th voyage of the
Empress of Ireland, rolling in to stymie vision and rolling out again.
Many of the passenger ship's 1,472 passengers and crew were comfortably tucked
into their stateroom beds, the majority below decks in Third Class
accomodations. The passenger list, according to Lost Liners, included 171 members of the
Salvation Army Territorial Band from Toronto, Sir Henry Seton-Karr, a former
member of Parliament in England, and Laurence Irving and his wife, Mabel
Hackney, famous actors of their time. Single travellers, couples, families with
small children and others rounded out the list.
Empress
of Ireland and Storstad Approach
“Kendall
and First Officer Jones sighted a ship's masthead lights about 40 degrees of
the Empress' bow at a distance of about 6 miles,” said Lost Liners. In a
section of the St. Lawrence River that was about 30 miles wide, the other ship
was closer to shore than the Empress. “Kendall decided that a starboard passing
could be accomplished as the Empress would be well clear of the other vessel's
path before the two ships passed each other.” The other ship was the Storstad,
a Norwegian coal ship fully loaded and heading up-river. The Storstad crew
spotted what they thought were the port-side red lights of the Empress, said CBC Digital Archives, and made corrections to
their course, turning the ship starboard to pass.
Fog Thick as Soup
A
thick soup of fog rolled in as the two ships drew closer, blinding all.
Sounding their horns to signal their intentions, the two ships were certain of
a smooth passing. Captain Kendall ordered the All Stop for the Empress.
The fog dissipated; Captain Kendall saw the Storstad directly
approaching the Empress at a fast clip. He shouted for the engines
full ahead and attempted to turn the helm to avoid a full hit. Captain
Thomas Anderson of the Storstad urgently ordered his engines reversed.
It was too late.
Storstad Rammed The Empress
The
bow of the Storstad was solidly reinforced for the job of pack ice-cutting
in northern seas. At 1:55 a.m., it pierced 18 feet into the starboard side of
the Empress between the two funnels, crumpling the hull as if it were a
child's toy. As the Storstad reversed out, water deluged the passenger
ship through a hole 25 feet high by 14 feet wide. The lower Third Class and
Steerage sections flooded rapidly, washing sleepers from their beds into their
dark rooms with no escape. The engines lost power with no steam available from
the flooding boiler room. The Empress listed to the side as crew vainly
attempted to launch lifeboats and close watertight doors. Those passengers who
could escape rushed to the top deck and clung to the hull. Few had time to find
lifejackets.
Empress of Ireland's Boilers Explode
But
there was no safety to be found. The ship's colossal funnels crashed down as
the boat listed. The boilers that provided steam power for the engines
violently exploded, “bodies and debris launched into the air as the entire
vessel rumbled,” noted Lost Liners. As other passengers lost their grip, many
succumbed to the icy 34-degree-Fahrenheit water.
Empress of Ireland Sank
The
Empress of Ireland sunk in 14 minutes. Rescue ships arrived, able to
pull over 100 people from the waters. Suffering massive damage itself with a
large, open gash in its side, the Storstad did not sink. Instead, its crew
helped rescue many from certain death. The Empress crew in lifeboats pulled
many more to safety. In all, 465 people out of the 1,477 passengers and crew
were spared. One thousand and twelve people from the Empress of Ireland - 840
of those were passengers - died in the St. Lawrence River, more than had
perished in the disastrous sinking of the Titanic two years earlier.
Sir
Henry Seton-Karr perished, along with the actors Laurence Irving and his wife.
Four children were rescued, including the four-year-old daughter of the
Bandmaster of the Salvation Army's Band. Recovery and salvage missions were
organized and began the grim task of retrieving hundreds of bodies, mail bags,
gold bullion (then worth $150,000, now worth over $2 million) and the Purser's
Safe.
The
Empress of Ireland today lies on her starboard side 45 metres deep in
the cold waters of the St. Lawrence River. The ballrooms, the staterooms,
dining rooms and bars of the beautiful and comfortable ship have all
disintegrated and disappeared into the depths. Much of the every-day equipment
of a passenger ship, the dishes, trinkets, memorabilia, have been taken by
divers, and some is on display in maritime museums. Built by Canadian Pacific as
part of the Empress Line, the ship was constructed by Fairfield
Shipbuilding and Engineering Company in Govan, Scotland. The Empress of
Ireland was launched in Scotland's River Clyde on Saturday, January 27,
1906 and its sinking eight years later was the most devastating shipwreck in
Canadian history.
The Acadian
Dykes, Holding Back the Sea
French Descendents Build a System of
Farming Irrigation
In
1604, Samual champlain and Sieur de Mont along with a crew of about eighty men
sailed from France and landed on the island of St Croix, in the Bay of Fundy.
After spending a miserable winter during which half the men died of scurvy,
they sailed across the bay to Monte Royale (Annapolis) where in the spring of
1605, they established the first Acadian settlement in North America.
Canadian Acadians Begin Construction of
Dykes
Thus
began the Acadians epic struggle to build a series of dykes to keep the sea water
out, while allowing fresh water to irrigate the fertile land. They basically
had to harness the sea, no easy task, even by today’s standards. But it was
monumental, undertaking for a people using only horses, oxen, primitive hand
tools and good strong backs.
The Acadians started
construction at the edge of the marsh where the sea had formed a natural ridge
at low tide. Whole Acadian families toiled on the dykes from sun up to sun
down. Since it took two to four years for the fresh water to cleanse the
marshes of the salt, the dykes had to be constructed near fresh upland streams
or rivers.
Dykes
in the Cumberland Basin measured three metres at the bottom and rose to two
metres high and a metre wide at the top. At the bottom of the dyke, brush mats
were constructed by laying small hardwood trees close together and alternating
them end-to-end. Marsh mud and grass were used to seal the wood together. On
top of the brush mat more cross ties of wood were laid. Then posts were driven
at an angle into the cross ties securing the brush mat below. Sods of grass
from the marsh anchored the face of the dykes further sealing off the high
tidewaters. But, by the 1740s many were much larger reaching heights of seven
metres high by thirteen metres wide at the base.
The
most ingenious feature of the Acadian dykes were the sluices or “aboiteaus”
which were a series of wooden gates designed to swing open, allowing fresh
Acadian Technology Part of French
Culture
The
Acadian French were the only ones in the new world to use this method of
farming. It is thought, they brought the technology with them because it had
been used previously in both Holland and France
By
the 1750s, the Acadian people had dyked more than 5,000 hectares of land. Acadian
history reveals a diligent and tenacious people who survived both
being torn between the warring factions of the France and England, and the
banishment from their lands by the British during the Acadian expulsion,
“derangement” of 1755.
At
Tintamare, and all around the Fundy basin, many of these dykes are still
standing and functional today. The Acadian dykes truly are an engineering
marvel and serve as a testament to a resilient and industrious, Acadian
culture.
Carboniferous History of Nova Scotia
Geologist JW Dawson Found the Oldest
Reptile Fossil in the World
Lush
green ferns rustled as 6-foot-long centipedes scuttled across soft peat and
leaves for cover. The cool rain fell, but it provided only a temporary respite
from the steamy year-round heat. Overhead, dragonflies with wingspans of nearly
2-1/2 feet fluttered, settled on the huge, high treetops and took flight again.
The plants, amphibians, reptiles and insects were thriving in the tropical
rainforest of Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia?
Fossils in the Carboniferous Period
Located
near the equator over 350 million years ago, Nova Scotia was part of Pangaea,
“wedged between the ancient North American and African continents,” according
to Nova Scotia Museum. As the oversized plants and
animals cycled through life and death, they fell, decaying in the marshy and
boggy ground. After hundreds of millions of years and resettling of the earth's
surface, the sediment transformed into a thick layer of coal, with fossils
buried deep, waiting to tell the stories of their time. Set in the late
Paleozoic era, the time of coal development was named the Carboniferous Period.
Dawson Found World's Oldest Reptile
Skeleton
Fascinated
with geology even as a young boy, William Dawson of Pictou, Nova Scotia took a
year of geology studies in 1840 at the University of Edinburgh when he was
twenty years old. Returning home, he was employed in the mining industry and
published articles on geologic field work. With Dawson as guide for renowned
geologist Charles Lyell, the two men visited Joggins, a coal-deposit site on
the Atlantic coast. The area been surveyed only a few years earlier by William
Logan of the Geological Survey of Canada. (Mount Logan in British Columbia is
named after the prestigious geologist.) On a second trip in 1851, Dawson and
Lyell found the fossils of ancient tree trunks and reptiles buried in the rock cliffs.
One small fossil found trapped in a tree trunk, named by Dawson the Hylonomus
Lyelli after his colleague, was determined then to be the oldest reptile
skeleton ever found. The site became known as the Joggins Fossil Cliffs.
Longest-serving Principal of McGill
University
Joining
McGill University in Montreal, Quebec in 1854, Dawson was Principal, teaching
the sciences of paleontology and geology. During his tenure, he turned the
agricultural area school into an influential, respected institution. With honour
of being McGill's longest-serving Principal, Dawson retired from the job in
1893 at age 73 – after almost 4 decades of service. He received Knighthood from
Queen Victoria in 1884. Occasionally, Dawson was criticized for his theories
and discoveries that often disagreed with those of another prominent scientist
of Dawson's era, Charles Darwin.
Though
recognized internationally as a top geologist, Dawson was not often celebrated
for his geological successes. “Dawson was a man so far ahead of his time that
much of the research he did was not appreciated in his lifetime,” said Robert
Carroll, McGill University Paleontologist in the 2008 Montreal Gazette article,
“Rocking the Science World” by Marian Scott.
Joggins Fossil Cliffs are World Natural
Heritage Site
The
Joggins Fossil Cliffs were named a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in 2008,
recognizing the area as “the world's richest, most representative and most
significant Coal Age Fossil site,” said Joggins Fossil Cliffs announcement. The
fossil site joined the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reefs, among
others, in having the international heritage honour. The Joggins Fossil Cliffs
had found a taste of fame much earlier also, being mentioned by Charles Darwin
in his famous writings on evolution in the mid-1800s.
Fossils of the Carboniferous Period
Fossils
of the flourishing tropical life from the Carboniferous Period continue to
surface in Nova Scotia under the skilled hands of geologists yet today. There
are a number of other sites dating to the coal age on the globe but, “many
geologists,” says the Canadian Encyclopedia, “believe that the cliffs
preserve the most complete record of life in the Pennsylvanian [late] Period
(341 to 289 million years ago) anywhere in the world.” After many other
findings of fossils and skeletal remains, Dawson's Hylonomus Lyelli still
holds the title of the world's oldest reptile fossil.
Canadian
History- The First Nations
First Inhabitants of Canada Crossed
Bering Straight Land Bridge
According
to archaeological and genetic evidence, North and South America were the last
of Earth’s major landmasses to be inhabited by humans. It is believed that the
first inhabitants of North and South America arrived during that last ice age,
as the result of an event known as the Wisconsin Glaciation. The result of
large ice sheets that covered much of Canada and the northern United States,
the Wisconsin Glaciation caused a severe drop in sea levels. This triggered the
formation of a land bridge between what is now Siberia and Alaska.
The Arrival of the First Nations in
Canada
Approximately
16,000 years ago, the glaciers began to melt, making migration to the south and
east possible. Before this time the First Nations were confined to Alaska,
which is thought to have been ice free due to the lack of snow. There are two
theories describing how this might have been done. The most commonly accepted
theory is that an ice-free corridor opened east of the Rocky Mountains as the
glacier melted. A second theory posits that small groups of humans sailed down
the west coast of North America in primitive boats. While scientists believe
that this would have been possible, it has proven to be a much harder theory to
prove for a number of reasons, including a dramatic rise in sea levels
worldwide over the past 16,000 years.
Regardless
of which theory is correct, however, it is thought that the First Nations
settled in Canada roughly 10 to 20,000 years before contact with the Europeans.
Canada's
First NationsThe
Arctic
In
the Canadian North, groups of Paeleoeskimos popularly referred as the Dorset
People have been reliably dated to approximately 500 AD. Based on digs
conducted in the Arctic, it is conjectured that the Dorset People were the
“Skraelings” encountered by Leif Ericsson, around 1000 AD when the Vikings
landed on the eastern coast of North America. It is further believed that they
were displaced by the Inuit by 1500 AD. This belief is supported by Inuit legends
which describe the expulsion of the “Tuniit” or first inhabitants. It is also
supported by archaeological evidence.
Central
Canada and the Maritimes
In
Canada’s eastern woodlands, two different linguistic groups, the Algonquians
and the Iroquois, vied for supremacy. The Algonquian tribes stretched from the
plains of Idaho, north to Hudson Bay, south to Virginia and east to Nova Scotia
and Newfoundland. Among the Algonquian tribes were the Mikm’aqs, the Abenaki
and the extinct Beothuks. In central Canada, the Algonquians were composed of
the Ojibwa, the Ottawa and the Potawatomi tribes.
From
1000 AD onward, the Iroquois were centred in what is now Upstate New York.
However, their influence could be felt in southern Ontario and parts of Quebec,
particularly around what is now Montreal. According to surviving oral
traditions the Iroquois Confederacy was founded in the year 1142 AD. At first,
agriculture allowed the Iroquois to expand at the expense of the Algonquian
tribes. However, the Algonquians also eventually developed agriculture. When
this happened the Iroquois found themselves to be in conflict with the
Algonquian tribes.
The
Praires and the West Coast
The
Canadian Prairies were inhabited mainly by the Sioux and the Cree.
The
Pacific coast was inhabited by Athabascan tribes, such as the Salish, the Haida
and the Tlingit. Archaeological finds dating from the 1500s indicated that
tribes living around what is now the city of Vancouver used primitive stonework
and trenches to defend themselves from raiding parties sent by northern tribes.
Impact of European Contact
Archaeological
evidence indicates that the First Nations had complex societies and extensive
trading networks. Their geographical isolation, minimal development and lack of
immunity to European diseases left them vulnerable when they came in contact with Europeans in the 15th and 16th
Centuries.
Works
CitedArchaeology
in North America, Dorset Culture, University of Waterloo, Ontario
Robert
McGhee, Nunavut '99, Ancient History
Ives
Goddard, 1994. "The West-to-East Cline in Algonquian Dialectology."
In Actes du Vingt-Cinquième Congrès des Algonquinistes, ed. William Cowan:
187-211. Ottawa: Carleton University
The
History of the Ojibway People, An Excerpt from The Land of the Ojibwe,
Minnesota Historical Society, 1973
B.C.
Archives, First Nations - People of the Northwest CoastBruce Granville
Miller, Be Of Good Mind: Essays on the Coast Salish, UBC Press, 2007
The Russell
Motor Car A Canadian Automobile
Thomas Alexander Russell Built a Car
Completely Made in Canada
While
other men were building cars for the masses in the early 1900s, low-priced
vehicles that almost anyone could afford, Thomas Russell had his eye set on the
well-to-do. Though he used slogans like “A high-grade car at a wonderfully-low
price” and “Made up to a standard, not down to a price,” his namesake car, the
Russell, was hundreds of dollars more than the competition - $450 more than
Henry Ford's Model C, to be exact.
The
beautiful Russell Model A was in a class of its own, with ball-bearing hubs,
pneumatic tries, hand-stitched leather padded seats, gasoline 2-cylinder
engine, and a shaft drive with sliding gear, three-speed transmission. Produced
at the Russell Motor Car Company starting in 1905, the automobile was
Canadian-made, through and through, “the only Canadian owned company to ever
produce and market a product designed by Canadians, built by Canadians and sold
to Canadians,” according to Steve Pitt in the January 2002 issue of Legion Magazine. The Russell was a hit
internationally, too, selling in Britain, Australia and New Zealand.
Thomas Russell Named General Manager of
CCM
At
24 years old, Thomas Alexander Russell was a farm boy with a political science
degree. Business was not in his background, but he took on the post of
Executive Secretary of the Canadian Manufacturers Association in 1899 and made
a grand success of the job. Russell's exuberance for the task helped membership
explode by over 400 percent; he also started the the trade magazine, Industrial
Canada. Canadian Cycle and Motor Limited (CCM) of Toronto, Ontario came calling
two years later, scooping up the energetic young man to take charge as General
Manager of the flagging bicycle company.
Russell Cars Were Luxury Automobiles
Bicycle
sales had dropped dramatically at the turn of the century, leaving CCM in a
lull. (The company's time as a top skate manufacturer was yet to come.) Two
automobiles that CCM tried out were not successful – the steam-powered
Locomotor and the electric Ivanhoe runabout. Russell was more interested in the
new gasoline engines. After the company produced the Russell Model A in 1905,
the larger Russell Model B was designed a year later, said Bill Vance in Canadian Driver Magazine in 2000. Shortly after,
the Model C, with a power-ready four-cylinder engine was developed. Later
luxury cars were appointed with brass trims, acetylene headlamps, and polished
hardwood. The extravagant vehicles were priced well beyond reach of the average
car buyer.
The Russell Car Versus Iceboat
In
January 1907, the Russell car was put to the test, but this was no car versus
car ordinary race. This publicity stunt was a trial of car versus iceboat on
frozen Lake Ontario. The automobile was already a heavy vehicle, weighing in at
half a ton, plus four men along for the ride. The raceboat was light, less than
a quarter ton, with only two passengers. It was powered by the wind pushing a
large sail on a 30-foot mast, and in its element on that day. The ice was
clear, the cold wind steady. The racers were neck and neck (and no doubt frozen
in their fine coats and bowler hats) until the end. To much cheering and
celebration by the large number of onlookers, the Russell Car won.
Canadian Rights to Knight Engine
The
Russell Car Company continued to expand, building sleek automobiles with larger
engines – up to 50 horsepower in the 1908 models - and moved into the
manufacture of new utility vehicles: fire trucks, buses, ambulances and
delivery trucks, said Bill Vance. Receiving the full Canadian rights for Knight
engines, Russell captured the market for quiet motors. Even American-built cars
with the Knight engine were not permitted import in Canada due to his licence.
Originally a branch of CCM, the business was so successful that CCM became a
branch of the Russell Motor Car Company.
Canadian Car Company Built WWI Vehicles
Called
to duty (in Canada) during WWI as automobile purchasing agent for the
government in 1914, Russell returned to his booming business, now producing
bicycles on the CCM side and “staff cars, trucks and even a bizarre squadron of
armoured vehicles that could be driven from either end,” under the Russell
Motor Car Company. The business was also manufacturing munitions for the war
effort.
Willys-Overland Needed Knight Engine
The
era of the wholly-Canadian made car ended in 1915 when John Willys of the
Willys-Overland Company, Toledo, Ohio, purchased the Russell Motor Car Company.
(He needed the rights to the Knight engine so that he could sell his vehicles
in Canada.)
Thomas
Alexander Russell married Olive Lillian Brown in Toronto in 1903. He was 26
years old, she was 25. He moved to the Massey-Harris company as president in
1930, holding the post for ten years. Russell died at home on December 24, 1940
at age 63, having succeeded in manufacturing vehicles that were truly “Canadian-made”.
Source:
Mount
Pleasant Cemetery,
written by Mike Filey, published by Dundurn Press, June 1999. Pg 188.
Albert Guay's
Sabotage
Canada's First Act of Air Terrorism
Occured in 1949
On
September 9, 1949 a Canadian Pacific Airlines DC3 airplane exploded over the
small town of Sault-au-Cochon on a flight from Quebec City to Baie Comeau. The
crash killed all 22 passengers and crew on board.
The Third Instance of In-Flight
Terrorism
It
did not take long for authorities to ascertain that the explosion was the
result of a time bomb in the forward luggage compartment, making the crash of
the DC-3 the third episode of in-flight terrorism in the world, and the
deadliest at the time.
The
investigation centred on three people: Albert Guay, husband of Rita Guay, a passenger
on the airplane, Marguerite Pitre of Quebec City, and Genereux Ruest, an
employee and friend of Albert Guay. Guay had met Rita, nee Morel, during World
War II when both were working at Canadian Arsenals Limited in St. Malo, Quebec.
They were married, and Guay opened a jewelry shop after the war ended. Though
neighbours and acquaintances stated that Alberta made a show of embracing Rita
in public, the marriage was not a happy one and things only got worse after
their only child was born. Albert was jealous and possessive, in debt, and
struggling to keep the jewelry business afloat.
In
1948 Guay met Marie-Ange Robitaille. She was a seventeen-year-old night-club
waitress and Albert soon fell in love with her. Using the name of Roger Angers,
he bought Marie-Ange an engagement ring, but Rita found out about the affair
and confronted the couple in the Robitaille home. Marie-Ange’s parents had no
idea that Albert was married and threw their daughter out of the house. Divorce
was out of the question, and so Guay determined to murder his wife.
Role of Marguerite Pitre
Guay
enlisted the help of Genereux Ruest, his employee and close friend. Together,
they learned how to build a time bomb from 20 sticks of dynamite, and alarm
clock, and a battery.
Guay
persuaded Rita that it was imperative that she go to Baie Comeau to retrieve
some jewels that he had bought for his jewelry and watch-repair business. Rita
was very unwilling to go and, in fact, argued with Albert in the airport. He
insisted that she go as he had already bought the ticket. At the same time that
he had purchased the ticket, Guay had also invested in a $10,000 life insurance
policy on his wife.
The
same morning that the Guay’s were arguing over the trip to Baie Comeau, a woman
arrived at the airport with a heavy parcel that she wished shipped to Baie
Comeau. Her name was Marguerite Pitre and she was a sister of Genereux Ruest.
When questioned by police, Marguerite said that she had been given the package
by Albert Guay, and that she didn’t know what was in it.
Ten
days later Marguerite Pitre attempted suicide by taking an overdose of sleeping
pills. She told the police that Guay had come to her house and told her that
the package she had shipped contained the bomb. He also encouraged her to
commit suicide as she would be blamed for the explosion.
Sentences of Albert Guay, Marguerite
Pitre, and Genereux Ruest
Guay
was arrested on September 23, 1949 and charged with murdering his wife. He was
found guilty in February, 1950. When he imposed the death sentence, the trial judge stated: “Your crime is infamous: it
has no name.”
Both
Ruest and Pitre were also sentenced to death. Marguerite maintained her
innocence until the Supreme Court of Canada rejected her claim. She was hung on
January 9, 1953, the last woman executed in Canada.
The Battle of
Crysler's Farm
Canada's "Other November 11th"
Prevents U.S. Invasion
In
November, 1813, two large American armies developed a strategy to attack
Montreal in a pincer movement. Major General Wade Hampton, and almost 4,000
men, would move north from the Champlain Valley in upper New York State. Major
General James Wilkinson, commanding almost 8,000 troops, would march east from
Sacket's Harbor, rendezvousing with Hampton near Montreal.
The Battle of Chateauguay
On
October 26th, General Hampton's advancing army encountered a force of Quebec
militia, the Voltigeurs Canadiens. The regiment was uniformed and trained as a
British Regiment of Foot, but consisted mainly of French speaking Canadian
volunteers. The Voltigeurs were joined by another militia regiment, the
Canadian Fencibles, and a band of Indian warriors from the Kahnawake Reserve
near Montreal.
The
units were commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Charles-Michel d'Irumberry de
Salaberry, a career British army officer, who was born in Quebec City. With no
British regulars among their ranks, and outnumbered by Hampton's force, the
Canadians pushed the troops out of Canada, winning the battle at Chateauguay.
Wilkinson Plans to Invade
General
Wilkinson, unaware of Hampton's defeat, prepares to cross Lake Ontario, and
advance towards Montreal. Wilkinson and his troops are in bad shape. The cold
weather, and poor sanitary conditions, have caused illness among his army. Many
are suffering from fatigue and hunger, while others are poorly trained. Even
Wilkinson has the fever, and is barely able to rise from his bunk.
Many
farmers along the banks of the St. Lawrence River are American Loyalists,
exiled and forced to relocate to Canada after the Revolutionary War. The
farmers regularly fire shots at the passing American boats which are ferrying
troops across the river.
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Morrison Prepares for Attack
Commanding
the British and Canadian troops is Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Morrison. Although
his army is much smaller than Wilkinson's, they are in good health and better
trained. A brief skirmish is fought at Hoople's Creek, before the Americans
continue their march towards Cornwall.
Morrison's
army numbers just over 1,200 men. Among his ranks are British regulars from the
49th and 89th Regiments of Foot, three cannons and crews from the Royal Artillery,
militiamen from the Canadian Fencibles and Voltigeurs, and a band of Mohawks.
In
addition to his troops, Morrison has support from Royal Navy gunboats on the
river, under the command of William Howe Mulcaster.
The Battle of Crysler's Farm
The
fighting began on November 11, and raged for three hours on the muddy fields of
John Crysler's farm. Morrison's troops maintained a disciplined British style
of fighting, marching and firing as a single unit, closely following the orders
of their officers.
The
Americans, meanwhile, fight in a more individualistic way. Many had been
frontiersmen, taking cover and firing from concealed positions, at their own
pace. It proves no match for the British regulars, many of whom are veterans of
the Napoleonic Wars in Europe.
The
49th, wearing grey overcoats, are mistaken for militia.Thinking they will have
an easy victory, the Americans are cut to pieces. Panic ensues, followed by
confusion and then retreat.
U.S.
Brigadier General Leonard Covington is killed, followed by his second in
command, and then three more officers. The Americans manage to bring a cannon
ashore, but it is quickly over-run and captured. Confused, lacking leadership,
and many of them ill, the Americans retreat from the field.
Retreat of the American Army
The
American army retreats to their winter quarters near Frenchtown, and the
invasion of Canada is halted. Although Wilkinson claims the invasion on
Montreal is only "suspended", no further attacks are carried out.
Wilkinson,
ill with fever, retires to a private home in Malone, New York to convalesce. He
blames the defeat on Hampton, who retires from the military. The army at
Frenchtown is broken up, and those who survive the winter are re-deployed to
other regiments.
Crysler's
Farm is a major victory for Britain and Canada, and also represents the first
time in our country's history that the three founding nations, British, French
and Native, stood together in battle.
Sources:
The
Fighting Canadians. Our Regimental History from New France to Afghanistan, by David
Bercuson, Harper-Collins Publishing, 2008
The
Invasion of Canada, 1812-1813, by Pierre Berton, McClelland and
Stewart, 1980
Pablum is
Healthy Baby Food, Canadian-Made
Canadian Doctors Developed Pablum Baby
Cereal to Improve Nutrition
What
food contained the magic blend of five vitamins, wheat and wheat germ, oats,
alfalfa, corn meal, bone meal, and brewer's yeast? And when mixed with milk,
formed the tasty breakfast for baby? Still a staple in infant diets today, it
was Pablum, the flaky cereal that boosted nutrition and filled little growling
tummies with comfort.
Illness
from malnutrition was a serious problem for infants in the early 1900s in North
America. The lack of essential vitamins and minerals caused difficulties,
including ricketts - a medical condition that causes softening of bones,
particularly in children. Much investigation and experimentation in nutritional
science using the hungry stomachs of both animals and babies kept laboratory
staff busy. Three doctors at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto came up
with a solution: an easy-to-eat cereal that contained the necessary elements in
one food. Dr. Frederick Tisdall, Dr. Alan Brown and Dr. Theodore Drake named
the infant specialty Pablum, meaning “food” in Latin.
Pablum an Instant Nutritious Meal
Combining
the healthy ingredients together, the doctors found that the cereal required a
long cooking time. This was not a handy method for mothers with hungry babies
waiting impatiently for food. Using the same method for producing dried milk
powder, the cooked cereal “was dripped on a red-hot revolving drum,” according
to Sick Kids Hospital, and quickly scraped off. “The
mixture came off the drum as a bone-dry, flaky powder.” The cereal was ready –
only milk or formula was needed for an instant nutritious meal for baby.
Pablum Raised Research Funds
Pablum
was the second baby food created by the three pediatricians. The cereal was
formulated after Sunwheat, their first food development. Sunwheat was a biscuit
for toddler nutrition that contained nearly all the same ingredients, but was
not in a suitable form for the youngest children to eat. Along with good taste,
both Pablum and Sunwheat were easily digested and did not cause constipation or
diarrhea. Sunwheat was sold by the McCormick's company, Pablum by Mead Johnson.
Pablum was a popular item with parents, continuing to sell well today in a
variety of modern flavours. Sale of the baby food produced royalties that were
paid to the Toronto Pediatric Foundation's research department for 25 years,
said Mount Allison University.
Nutritional Improvements
The
Canadian doctors used their in-depth knowledge to make another improvement in
nutrition. Adding Vitamin D in flour for bread, noted Mount Allison University,
“eliminated the need for daily doses of cod liver oil for many children.”
Pediatricians of Great Achievement
Dr.
Fred Tisdall was the lead physician on the the nutrition project at the
Hospital for Sick Children. The enthusiastic, imaginative doctor was born in
1893. He joined the Hospital in 1921 and became Director of the Nutritional
Research Laboratories in 1929. The author of two textbooks on Pediatrics, he
also wrote numerous articles on the subject and was a member on several
significant health-care boards. Dr. Tisdall died unexpectedly at age 56.
Born
in Webbwood, Ontario in 1891, Dr. Theodore Drake graduated from the University
of Toronto in 1914. He was a Medical Officer with the Canadian military during
World War I, where he developed nutritious diets for military personnel and
POWs. Drake joined the Toronto General Hospital after the war, becoming Head of
the Research Institute. His work was recognized when he was bestowed membership
in the Order of the British Empire. Dr. Drake died in 1959.
Graduating
in 1909 from the University of Toronto School of Medicine, Dr. Alan Brown was
born in Clinton, Ontario in 1887. (His mother was one of the first two female
students to attend that same medical school, said International Pediatrics,
Vol. 15/No. 3, 2000 article, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto.)
Completing internships at hospitals around the world, he accepted employment at
the Hospital for Sick Kids. Dr. Brown became known as a pioneer in pediatrics,
having reduced the infant mortality rate by nearly half in only a year's time.
He died in 1960.
All
three doctors spent their careers improving health and extending the lives of
children in Canada and internationally. The creation of Pablum was one great
achievement among many for the dedicated men.
Black History
Month: Elijah McCoy
Engineer and Inventor, McCoy Was Born in
Canada About 1843
Bravely
facing the unknown, George McCoy and his wife, Mildred Goins, fled the
repression of slavery in the State of Kentucky. Using the Underground Railroad,
they made their way across the border into Ontario, Upper Canada, where slavery
had been abolished in 1834. George McCoy enlisted and served with the British
Army, receiving 160 acreas of farmland near the town of Colchester, Ontario in
return for his service. The family grew to 12 children and one of those was
Elijah McCoy.
Elijah
McCoy was born between 1843 and 1844, the date not specifically known. He was a
curious boy, “fascinated with machines and tools, learning by watching and
constantly asking questions,” according to Byron
Crudup's black history page. The
family pulled up stakes and returned to the United States when Elijah McCoy was
still a youngster, making Ypsilani, Michigan their home.
McCoy a Mechanical Engineer
At
a mere 15 years old, McCoy's parents saw Elijah's mechanical abilities. They
sent their son overseas to an apprenticeship in Mechanical Engineering in
Edinburgh, Scotland. Blacks were unable to gain such training in the United
States at that time, said the Black
History Society. Unfortunately, that same problem followed when
he returned home, so that even as a qualified mechanical engineer, McCoy was
unable to get work in his field of expertise. He took a job as an oil man with
the railway in Michigan. It was the age of the industrial revolution and the
rail line became the perfect place for an inspired mind.
Mechanical Lubricating Devices for
Locomotives
The
locomotive trains had to be stopped every few miles to permit oiling of the
essential workings. Machinery in factories had to be shut down often for
similar purposes. Workmen had to manually apply lubricant with oil cans. Noting
how time-consuming and inefficient this was, McCoy created a lubricating
device, a can-shaped container with an adjustable stop-cock that automatically
oiled moving parts while in motion. The cup held a piston that drove a measured
amount of oil onto the operating parts with steam pressure. McCoy's invention
was a revolution in the industrial world, becoming standard equipment on
trains, steamships, manufacturing machinery and ocean liners.
Fifty-seven Patents under McCoy Name
The
automatic lubricating device was patented by Elijah McCoy on July 23, 1872, the
start of many patents to follow. Most of his inventions were in the lubrication
improvements area, but he also created an ironing board stabilizer and a
turtle-shaped lawn sprinkler. In all, McCoy listed 57 patents in Canada and the
United States. In Detroit, Michigan, he and several investors opened the Elijah
McCoy Manufacturing Company in 1920 to produce graphite lubricating systems.
The reliable devices picked up a popular moniker, still used today - when
someone wants an authentic item, they ask for the Real McCoy.
Racial Discrimination Continued
Racial
discrimination continued to be a problem for McCoy, even as a seasoned inventor
and engineer. Speaking engagements and “scheduled appearances were cancelled at
the last moment,” said the Black History Society, and many “were often
surprised to see that this so-called genius was a Negro.”
Married
first in 1868 to Ann Elizabeth Stewart, McCoy was remarried in 1873 to Mary
Eleanora Delaney, a year after his first wife died. His second marriage lasted
50 years, until Mary died from complications due to a car accident in 1923.
They had no children. Elijah McCoy died on October 10, 1929 after suffering
dementia and high blood pressure. He left a legacy of devices that continue to
enhance the mechanical industry even today, and is an important participant in
Black History in North America.
John Alexander
Macdonald, Canadian Boyhood
The Childhood of Canada's First Prime
Minister
It
seems Canadians have not given much mind to the lives the first leaders of the
country. Their early years are often left to the imagination of the few who
might care to think about them. Perhaps it's time to learn more about our great
politicians and leaders, to get a better understanding of who they were and how
they made their way to the top. January 11th is the birthdate of Sir John A.
Macdonald, one of Canada's Fathers of Confederation and the country's first
Prime Minister. Let's celebrate!
John
Alexander Macdonald was born in Glasgow, Scotland on January 11, 1815. He was
the third of the five children born to Helen and Hugh Macdonald. The oldest son
William died in infancy in Scotland. Margaret, John, James and Louisa made the
emigration voyage across the ocean with their parents in 1820, joining
relatives of their mother. Helen's half-sister Anna and her husband, retired
British Army officer Lieutenant-Colonel Donald Macpherson family, were already
long settled in Upper Canada, said Donald Creighton in John A. Macdonald:
The Young Politician, The Old Chieftain. The Macphersons had lived in
Kingston for more than 12 years and their home was adequately appointed. The
rough pioneer existence had given way to urban comfort, and the Colonel was
well-known and respected in the town.
A Quiet, Studious Boy
The
Macdonald family settled in, John's father Hugh opening a shop, similar to one
he owned in Glasgow, and hoped for the prosperity that had evaded him in
Scotland. John was nearing five years old, getting ready to attend school. “A
rather quiet, thoughtful boy – and yet, at times, full of exuberant fun and
inventive mischief... he quickly became passionately interested in books,”
noted author Donald Creighton. He was a tall and slender youngster with “his
mother's prominent nose, her generous mouth, her wide-set dark eyes...,” and,
“a copious crop of dark, curly, almost frizzy hair.”
An
event marred the childhood of John when he was six years old. He witnessed the
horriftying death of his brother James when the small boy was injured at the
hands of an employee of his father. It was something that John kept secret
until his elder years, said Collections Canada.
School in 1822
The
shop not prospering, the Macdonalds moved to Hay Bay, near the Bay of Quinte,
slightly west of Kingston but still well within its reach. John had begun
school in Kingston in 1822 and switched briefly to the local school at
Adolphustown. His parents decided to send him back to Kingston for the winter
months, and so John boarded in several homes and also was a regular visitor
with his relatives, the Macpherson family.
Languages
of Latin and French were mastered by John at a young age; he was not an
athletic sort, said Collections Canada. Instead, he devoured
books and read for hours on end, deeply drawn into the passages. By age 15, the
teenage John found he had no interest in shop-keeping, soldiering or trades. He
was interested in law. The procedure at that time was not further schooling but
direct training and work in a lawyer's office. John began articling with a
prominent Scottish lawyer in Kingston in 1830, George Mackenzie.
A Lawyer at 21
John
A. Macdonald was called to the Bar in 1836 and opened his own legal practice in
Kingston. His future held posts in politics as alderman, Member of Parliament,
Attorney General of Province of Canada, and eventually, one of the Fathers of
Confederation and then first Prime Minister in 1867. The Queen knighted him for
his dedicated work in nation-building.
The
mark on Canada's history and vision by John Macdonald is enduring, never to be
forgotten. The birthday of Sir John A. Macdonald is a good time each year to
give him his long-belated due. Happy birthday, Sir!
Source:
John
A. Macdonald: The Young Politician, The Old Chieftain, by Donald G.
Creighton, published by University of Toronto Press, 1998.
Rare Bible
Returns to Canada 236 Years Later
Historic “Vinegar Bible” Comes Back to
Lunenburg, Nova Scotia Church
The
Bible’s name and fame relate to an error it contains.
This
edition of the Bible, printed in 1717 by John Baskett, printer to King George
III, is thought to be one of only seven of its print run now in existence. Book
dealers and historians consider it valuable not only because it is rare, but
also because the word “vinegar” appears where the word “vineyard should be.”
Why Vinegar Bible?
The
mistake occurs in the Gospel of St. Luke’s parable of the vineyard. In this
edition it is called the “parable of the vinegar.” Baskett’s Bibles are often
referred to as “a basketful of errors” because of the mistakes made in the
handset type.
The
Lunenburg Vinegar Bible once belonged to Rev. Robert Vincent, second Anglican
missionary assigned to the fishing village’s St. John’s Church. He also doubled
as the town’s first schoolmaster.
Vincent
died young, leaving a widow who couldn’t make ends meet. She sold the Bible to
Michael Francklin, then Nova Scotia’s governor, in 1766.
Bible Returned to England in 1772
Gov.
Francklin returned to England in 1772, taking the Bible with him. It apparently
remained in his family’s possession for several generations. What became of it
was not known until it turned up at Cambridge University about 20 years ago. It
does contain notes by Francklin written in the back. They include births and
deaths of family members buried in Halifax.
Marie
Elwood, former head curator of the Nova Scotia Museum, negotiated the return of
the Bible to Lunenburg after MLA Michael Baker said the province would pay
$5,000 for the book. The library at Cambridge University agreed to the
unusually low price. It is estimated to be worth around $400,000.
"It's
tremendously exciting to get this Bible returned to us," says historian
George Munroe, a St. John's Anglican Church parishioner.
Lunenburg Church Celebrates 255th
Anniversary
The
book was once placed in the pulpit of Lunenburg's historic St. John's Anglican
Church, founded 255 years ago and considered to be one of the finest examples
of a style of construction called Carpenter Gothic. The church was destroyed by
fire in 2001, but has been painstakingly restored by local craftsmen after an
international fundraising effort.
The
Vinegar Bible brought back to Lunenburg is believed to be one of only two
Vinegar Bibles this side of the Atlantic. The other is at St. John's Episcopal
Church in Portsmouth, N.H.
SOURCES:
“Vinegar
Bible Returns to Lunenburg,” Oct. 1, 2008, Anglican Journal (Canadian)
Westcott,
B. F., General View of the History of the English Bible (New York,
1912), p. 90.
'In Flanders
Fields': Remembrance Day
Canadian Doctor and Soldier Lt Col. John
McCrae Wrote WWI Poem
During
the First World War, Lieutenant Colonel John Alexander McCrae found himself
tending to the wounded, the dying and the dead in the midst of the gory Battle
of Ypres. The young doctor was born on November 12, 1872 in Guelph, Ontario. He
graduated from high school at age 16 and received a scholarship for the
University of Toronto. He participated in the Highfield Cadet Corps and at 17,
joined the Militia field battery. Attending university for three years, his
schedule was interrupted for a year when he was struck down with severe asthma,
said Veterans Affairs Canada. During that year, he
worked as assistant resident master teaching Math and English at Guelph's
Agricultural College. McCrae returned to the University of Toronto to complete
the final year of a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1894. Medical school was his next
step.
Through
the University of Toronto, McCrae interned at fascinating medical facilities
including working with ailing children at a convalescent home in Baltimore,
Maryland. To earn his tuition fees, he tutored students, including two women
“who were among the first women doctors in Ontario,” said Veterans Affairs.
While at university, he was also Company Captain in the Queen's Own Rifles.
McCrae completed his medical degree in 1898 and went on to further studies at
Baltimore's Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1899.
Military Physician in South Africa
Late
in 1899, McCrae joined the Canadian Field Artillery, D Battery and sailed for
the war theatre in South Africa. He spent a year there, and several more years
with the 1st Brigade of Artillery, resigning in 1904. The next ten years McCrae
filled with many appointments, such as physician and pathologist at the
Montreal Foundling and Baby Hospital and the Royal Alexandra Hospital for
Infectious Diseases, and as lecturer and medical author. Friendly, outgoing,
compassionate and no doubt charming, he was a popular doctor and teacher, with
many friends.
In Flanders Fields
Feeling
the call to serve again when World War One broke out in 1914, McCrae re-joined
the military as a Major in the First Brigade of the Canadian Forces Artillery.
The good doctor did not go to Europe alone – he took his horse, Bonfire, with
him. McCrae was promoted to the position of brigade-surgeon. It was there, a
year later, that McCrae was serving in the field, surrounded by all the bloody,
terrifying misery that that war produced; it was also there that his friend and
fellow officer, Alexis Helmer, was killed in a German shell attack. A day
later, May 13, 1915, McCrae wrote In Flanders Fields.
Poet, Artist and Writer
McCrae
was a talented man, not only at medicine, graduating at the top of his class,
but also in writing, art and poetry. When his young sweetheart died, he
expressed his thoughts in verse, and he continued to place his heart and his
emotions of distress at events and war through words of many later poems,
including In Flanders Fields. McCrae had 16 poems and writings published
while a student at University of Toronto, including a piece in the prestigious Saturday
Night magazine. When home in Canada, he was a member of the Pen and Pencil
Club (a group of artists, writers and poets that included Stephen Leacock) and
a
Advanced
to the post of Chief Medical Officer at the No. 3 Canadian General Hospital in
France, asthma continued to bother McCrae. In 1917, he suffered severe attacks
and bronchitis, which gradually lead to pneumonia and then meningitis. McCrae
died at age 45 on January 8, 1918 in Europe; his horse Bonfire lead the funeral
procession. Lieutenant Colonel McCrae was buried with military honours at
Wimereaux Cemetery in France, according to the Guelph Museum
In
Flanders Fields
struck the heart-chords of civilians and soldiers alike when it was published
in the December 8, 1915 issue of Punch Magazine in England. It was
viewed as representing the aching voices of soldiers killed in battle. The poem
was adopted by Canada and several Allied countries as part of the Remembrance Day ceremonies. The poppy, also
mentioned in the poem, has also become a standard of Remembrance Day. Flanders
Fields Cemetery is located in Belgium.
May
we never forget.
In
Flanders Fields
In
Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between
the crosses, row on row.
They
mark our place; and in the sky
The
larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce
heard amid the guns below.
We
are the dead. Short days ago
We
lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved,
and were loved, and now we lie
In
Flanders Fields.
Take
up our quarrel with the foe;
To
you from failing hands we throw
The
torch, be yours to hold it high,
If
ye break faith with us who die
We
shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In
Flanders Fields.
Oak Island
Buried Treasure Mystery
Uncovering the Old Secret of Nova
Scotia's Money Pit
The
digging began in 1795. Three boys were hunting on Oak Island when they noticed
a certain expanse of ground did not match the terrain of the surrounding
surfaces. Additionally strange--a tall, worn oak tree was growing in the spot
with a marred branch, as though it once had been used to haul up something
heavy.
Daniel
McInnis, Anthony Vaughn and Jack Smith decided to scrutinize the area more
closely. Returning to the Island after their hunt, the boys began digging. As
they dug it became apparent that the earth had been dug before as it was softer
than the surrounding areas. Eventually their digging uncovered a
"...platform of logs."[1]
Months
drifted into years. Now men, and out of money, McInnis,Vaughn and Smith almost
had to abandon the digging. Their project was rescued by a Dr. Lynds who used
his influence to form a company. With new resources, the digging commenced
again.
Old Pirate Tale
Late
one evening lights were seen burning on Oak Island of the year 1720. Local legend
at the time alleged that pirates were burying treasure.
Area
fishermen were curious. Two of them set out to explore the strange lights. They
disappeared, presumably murdered by the supposed pirates on the island. The
story was forgotten by the local residents, but not by their wives.
Failure
Year
after year though the depth of the excavation increased, diggers and interested
groups appeared and faded as their resources diminished. One of the problems,
sea water flooded the excavation site. Even though newer techniques over time
were used in the hopes of preventing the flooding, the ocean would
never-the-less, find a way to overflow the site.
The
last known digging ended during the 1860's when the 118 ft. shaft collapsed.
Before it collapsed, a "...small piece of parchment..."[2] with
letters written on it was uncovered. This remains a mystery. Also found was a
stone with symbols on it. Though attempts were made to decipher the symbols,
the results were questionable.
Facts
There
are several facts that seem to support that something, maybe treasure, is truly
buried in that spot:
·
Someone
or a crew dug a pit;
·
The
pit appeared to be intentionally linked to the ocean to prevent anyone from
stealing whatever is buried there; and,
·
Every
so many feet there is a platform of logs.
How
were the diggers able to dig to the depths of the shaft without sea water
flooding them? How were they able to place a platform of logs every ten to 20
feet? What tricks or techniques did the diggers have at their disposal that
allowed them to bury something significant?
Almost
100 years later, with improved technology, diggers could not perform the same
maneuvers as the original diggers without severe flooding and eventual
collapse. How were the first diggers able to accomplish so much?
There
is reported evidence of containers at the bottom, problem is, just how to
recover them. A gold chain and human remains have also been found. [3]
Unfortunately,
to date, there are no answers.
Renewed Attempts in 2008, New Investors
"Four
investors from Michigan (namely: Marty Lagina, Craig Tester, Rick Lagina, Alan
Kostrzewa) have teamed up with long-time treasure seeker Dan Blankenship in
hopes of unlocking the Oak Island mystery.
Dan
Blankenship, the President of Oak Island Tours... is responsible for developing
the future exploration plans." [4]
Blankenship has obtained the necessary
licenses. Sophisticated research has already begun. Hopes are high the mystery
will soon be solved using the latest technologies.
The One-Room
Schoolhouse in Canada
All Primary Grades Were Taught in Single
Classroom of Rural Schools
In
early Canada, rural children were spread far and wide, living on farms and in
small villages. There were no buses to gather them up each morning and take
them to class, and not enough children to construct large schools. The one-room
schoolhouse was the solution to the problem. Hire one teacher to give lessons
to all of the children in one room, from six-year-olds right up to teenagers.
The first buildings were constructed in short time of whatever was handy, and
if the area was poorer, the furniture was whatever was available, too.
Building Kits by Eaton's
The
schoolhouse buildings were often similar in structure: peaked roof with a
chimney, clapboard siding, a small entrance porch at the front and windows
along the sides. Windows were used as a means of lighting, according to Jean Cochrane,
author of The One-Room School in Canada, since “much of rural Canada
didn't get electricity until after World War Two, and even when they did, they
didn't always take it into the school.” Differences were made by adding fancier
window trims, a nice bell at the top or maybe a second floor. Plans and
complete building kits were sold by the T. Eaton Companyin the early 1900s.
There were exceptions to the school buildings, such as those in rural Quebec
and Alberta, where surdy school buildings were constructed of hewn logs. The
bathroom was often a separate little structure behind the school, the outhouse.
The
Ontario Department of Education in 1885 had several requirements for the new
schools:
The
school should be at least 30 feet from the highway,
There
should be at least 12 square feet of floor space and 250 cubic feet airspace
per student, and
There
should be separate entrances and cloakrooms for boys and girls.
Unfinished Interiors
Classrooms
were outfitted with student desks and seats, teacher desk and chair, a pail,
basin and cups, books, blackboard, maps, globe, mirror and ... a punishing
strap. The interior walls were often bleak, unfinished without insulation to
keep out the cold or heat. Wood stoves or coal stoves, sometimes made of old barrels
with pipes attached, were used to heat the buildings, sometimes causing the
classrooms to fill with smoke. Those children next to the stove would be very
warm during the day, the unlucky kids furthest away would be chilled by the end
of class. The children were often required to bring in wood for heating the
classroom.
The
day in the one-room schoolhouse usually began with the Lord's Prayer, then
singing of the national anthem. When studying was underway, the older grades
helped the younger grades with questions, while the teacher was busy
instructing one group at a time. Inspectors came on occasion to see how things
were progressing.
Property Taxes Paid Bills
In
Ontario, the 1871 Grammar and Common School Act was passed, enabling kids to
attend school without cost to the family. The bill was paid through property
taxes and government grants, said Larry Turner in his book, Ernestown: Rural
Spaces, Urban Places. Some schools were used for other purposes, also.
Church services on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings and revival meetings
were popular uses.
One
of the goals of school was to prepare youngsters to write the high school
entrance exam. The youngest learned to read with primers such as Dick and
Jane and Aesop's and La Fontaine's Fables. Older children
used books by authors Mark Twain and Robert Louis Stevenson. The Bible was also
part of the curriculum in some schools. History, geography, music, gardening
programs, art, sports, home economics and shop classes filled the days of
students. The education was varied and beneficial to kids of all ages.
Gradually,
larger, more solid buildings were constructed to accommodate grades in separate
classrooms, becoming the school systems we are familiar with today.
Sources:
The
One-Room School in Canada, by Jean Cochrane, published by Fitzhenry and
Whiteside Limited, 1981.
Ernestown:
Rural Spaces, Urban Places, by Larry Turner, Dundurn Press, Toronto 1993.
Sir Sandford Fleming's Time Zones
Fleming Organized International Standard
Time by Longitude Sectors
Sir
Sandford Fleming was a multifaceted man of brilliance and led a life of
influence and success. A professional in many aspects, as noted on biographi.ca, he wore a number of specialized
hats:
·
Professional
Civil engineer in railway construction
·
Construction
engineer, promoting metal bridge structure rather than timber
·
Surveyor,
mapmaker and outdoorsman, surveying several towns and rail lines
·
Advocate
of telegraph and Undersea cable lines across the British Empire
·
Chancellor
of Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, 1879 to 1915
·
Advocate
for education, helping to establish the School of Mining and Agriculture, and
the School of Science
·
Director
of several government and private projects
·
Inventor
- he created an in-line skate prototype, designed the first postage stamp of
Canada (the Three-Pence Beaver), and devised the Standard Time system by
establishing the structure of universal time measurement around the world
The
Canadian rail system completed, Fleming took the train from Halifax to
Montreal. Comparing the clocks on arrival with his watch, he found no
comparison. “Between Halifax and Toronto,” commented Hugh Maclean in his 1969
book, Man of Steel, “he finds the railways employing no less than five
different standards of time.” Confusion did not end in Canada. The systems
around the world were not in lines and in the United States, time-keeping was
even more chaotic, making train schedules almost impossible. Sanford Fleming
decided to do something about it.
Standard Time Zones proposal devised
Using
Greenwich, England as the starting point, he divided the globe into zones,
assigning times at one-hour intervals. The governments of the world were not
ready and he couldn’t even get his ideas heard. With assistance from the
Marquis of Lorne, Canada’s Governor General of the time and the Canadian
Institute, an organization for the advancement of science that he helped to
establish in 1849, Fleming’s proposal was printed and sent to nations around
the world. His plan was met with approval.
The
International Prime Meridian Conference was held in Washington, DC in October,
1884. After discussions and votes, Standard Time was set to begin on January 1,
1885 across the globe. Though there were some countries jealous over England
being classed as the Prime Meridian, eventually all countries followed. There
were some variances for local standards, as there are even yet. Ahead of the
crowd, Canada had already instituted the program in 1883, a year before the
conference.
Sandford Fleming appreciated Canada
But,
Fleming wasn’t doing decades of work to the detriment of his personal life.
Born on January 7, 1827 in Kirkaldy, Scotland, he immigrated to Canada as a
teenager, making his way to Peterborough, Ontario in 1845. In 1855, Fleming
married Jean Hall at age 28 and they had nine children, five boys and four
girls. His affection for Canada was evident in his gracious words at age 88:
“It
has been my great good fortune to have my lot cast in this goodly land, and to
have been associated with its educational and material prosperity. Nobody can
deprive me of the satisfaction I feel in having had the opportunity and the
will to strive for the advancement of Canada and the good of the Empire.”
Among
many other awards, Sandford Fleming was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1897. He
died on July 22, 1915 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Canada was fortunate to have
such a skilled, innovative man to guide national development in his beloved
adopted country.
See
a vignette clip Fleming's devising Standard Time
Laura Secord's
Rush to Save Canada
Hearing US Plans to Overthrow the
British She Ran to Deliver Message
Quietly,
unobtrusively, Laura Secord served the evening meal to the American soldiers
billeted in her home against her will in June, 1813. Her husband, James Secord,
a sergeant in the local militia, was upstairs, recovering from serious wounds
gotten in the capture of York and their own town, Queenston Heights earlier in
the War of 1812. Some townsfolk had been captured and taken across the border
as prisoners, others escaped to join the British army in the fight against the
invaders.
As
she poured their wine, Laura overheard the officer and his men planning their
next attack. Colonel Boerstler and 650 men with artillery and field guns would
be arriving soon. “If we take Fitzgibbon and capture Burlington Heights, Upper
Canada will be ours,” the officer said in Laura, A Portrait of Laura Secord
by Helen Caister Robinson. Lieutenant James Fitzgibbon led a troop of only 50
men, after all. It would be easy.
When
dinner was finally over, Laura rushed to discuss the news with her husband.
Since he was in no condition to go, it was decided that Laura would make the
trek to Beaver Dams to warn Fitzgibbon of the impending attack. No one else
could be trusted with the task.
Laura Secord took the boggy path to
avoid capture
In
the dark of night, she found her way to the “Black Swamp,” a dangerous path
through a boggy area that was longer but would be safer for Laura to take. The
soldiers would be travelling on the main road and she did not want to be
captured - they would not be pleasant with her family if that happened. The way
was hard and Laura lost her shoes in the muck and river on the 32-kilometre
journey. Pressing on with haste, she injured her feet on sharp rocks and
piercing branches.
Climbing
to the top of a ridge, the path disappeared. While Laura tried to find the
trail, she found herself surrounded by natives. Alarmed, she forced herself to
remain calm. “I want to get to Beaver Dams. Please tell your Chief I must speak
to Lieutenant Fitzgibbon.” Finding the Chief, she assured him she was a friend
of Fitzgibbon and that her message for him was vital. The Chief ordered one of
his men to take Laura to Beaver Dams.
Lieutenant Fitzgibbon heard her urgent
message
The
native guide rushed Laura through the woods to Fitzgibbon’s headquarters.
Exhausted and dehydrated, dirty and without shoes, she met with the Lieutenant.
Hesitant at first to accept her information, she was able to convince him of
the details that she heard herself. The American troops were about to attack
and take control of Upper Canada. Fitzgibbon immediately set a plan into action
to interrupt the American’s invasion. Too worn and injured to walk herself,
Laura was carried to a nearby home for food, a bed and care of her injuries.
Colonel
Boerstler and his men were indeed interrupted. On their arrival at Beaver Dams
on June 24, 1813, they were ambushed by 400 Mohawk and Odawa warriors lead by
Dominique Ducharme and William Johnson Kerr. The American troops surrendered
into the hands of Fitzgibbon’s 50 soldiers. Laura Secord’s undertaking was a
success.
Laura Ingersoll Secord was born the
daughter of a Patriot
Laura
Ingersoll Secord was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts on September 13,
1775. Her father, a Patriot against the British at first, tired of the ongoing
battles and danger in Massachusetts at the time. He accepted an offer of a land
grant in Upper Canada and moved his large family north when Laura was 20 years
old. Their new town, Ingersoll, was named after her father.
The
son of an officer in Butler’s Rangerscaught Laura’s eye in Upper
Canada. James Secord was a young merchant in Queenston who had arrived in the
Niagara area in 1778. Laura and James married and had seven children – six
girls and one boy.
Receiving
almost no recognition, Laura Secord’s brave accomplishment was finally given
proper due in 1860 by the visiting Prince of Wales, notes Biographi.ca. Laura died in Chippewa, now known
as Niagara Falls, Ontario, in 1868 at age 93.
Laura
Secord is recognized as one of Canada’s great heroines.
The Halifax
Explosion of 1917
Tons of Explosives Detonated in a Fire,
Demolishing Part of Halifax
The Imo, a Belgian relief ship
The
Imo was cruising through the same waterway on its way to port in New York
City, where it would pick up a cargo of relief supplies destined for Belgium.
Citizens
of the City of Halifax
As
events unfolded over a very short period of time, many watched from windows and
hundreds ran to the waterfront, captivated by the excitement of a fiery ship
floating in the busy harbour.
The Chronicle of a Disaster:
With
a full cargo of munitions for Allied use in Europe, the Mont Blanc’s
load contained 200 tons of TNT, 10 tons of gun cotton, 2,300 tons of picric
acid (used in explosives), and 35 tons of a highly explosive mixture called
benzol. As the ship slowly sailed toward Bedford Basin, another ship, the Imo,
was moving fast in the same water lane.
“At
the entrance to the narrows, after a series of ill-judged manoeuvres, the Imo
struck the Mont Blanc on the bow,” said the Maritime
Museum of the Atlantic. “Although the collision was not severe, fire
immediately broke out on the Mont Blanc.” Understanding the direct
danger, the Mont Blanc crew immediately took to the lifeboats.
A huge explosion in a “blinding white
flash”
Engulfed
in flames, the deserted French ship drifted toward the Halifax harbour, given
momentum from the collision. Hundreds of spectators, men, women and children,
flooded down to the city’s north shoreline to watch the saga playing out before
their eyes. Others watched from windows in their homes and businesses. The
sight was captivating. The Mont Blanc brushed a pier, setting it on
fire. Fire crews arrived right away and attempted to put out the ship’s flames.
At 9:05 a.m., Halifax.ca said, there was “a blinding white
flash creating the biggest man-made explosion before the nuclear age.”
The
fiery blast was so big that the Mont Blanc was splintered into bits; the
barrel of the ship’s cannon was launched 3.5 miles away, a portion of the huge,
heavy anchor shank became a missile that landed two miles in the opposite
direction. The anchor piece weighed over 1,000 lbs. Numerous ships in the
bustling area were damaged or destroyed. The shockwaves were felt almost 300
miles away, and windows were broken in a 50-mile radius. The north section of
the city of Halifax and part of Dartmouth were demolished, exploded and
disintegrated by fire. Everything in its reach was destroyed – churches,
schools, businesses and homes.
Thousands dead and injured; a winter
blizzard hindered rescuers
But
most devastating was the injury and loss of life. Rescue efforts began
immediately to find the casualties. Almost 4,000 people were injured in the
sudden blast, nearly 1,000 people with eye injuries from flying glass. After
weeks and months of searching through the rubble, it was determined that almost
2,000 people were dead. Hindering the urgent rescue process was a blizzard the
day after the explosion, covering the city in 16 inches of snow.
Help
came from far and wide for the people of Halifax. Foreign aid flowed in from
China and New Zealand, England and the United States. Living nearby, the state
of Massachusetts “donated $750,000 in money and goods and gave unstintingly in
volunteer assistance…” noted Halifax.ca. “To this day, Halifax sends an annual
Christmas tree to the city of Boston in gratitude.” Gradually, the ruined
sections of the city were rebuilt.
This
year, the Halifax Explosion Memorial Service will be held
on December 6, 2007 in the Bell Tower at Fort Needham Hill in Halifax, Nova
Scotia, to honour the victims on the 90th anniversary of the explosion.
Canada's First
Christmas in 1535
Christmas for Cartier and his Crew was a
Meager Celebration
The
first recorded Christmas celebration in Canada, said CBC.ca, was held by French explorer Jacques
Cartier in the year 1535. The 44-year-old experienced explorer was on his
second trip to the New World from Saint Malo, France. Dispatched on missions by
Francois 1, the King of France, to find gold and valuable minerals, Cartier
meticulously noted every detail of the land and its peoples. This trip, he was
bringing an initial group of settlers ready to make their home in Canada.
Cartier was also bringing home the sons of Chief Donnacona - at the end of his
first expedition to Canada the previous summer , he had taken the two Iroquois
men to France. They were taught the French language and customs in hope that
they would be interpreters.
Cartier’s settlement buildings were not
ready for the bitter winter
The
three seafaring ships with 110 men arrived at the Iroquois village of Stadacona
in August, 1535, when the weather was comfortable and warm, noted Elizabethan-era.org. (Stadacona is now Quebec
City.) Situated on the St. Croix River at a distance from the village, the men
built a settlement in preparation of winter. Unfortunately, the buildings were
not well-insulated against the bitter winter cold and had no cellar space to
store essential supplies. By the time the frigid November arrived, “all the
drinkables were frozen hard, and melted snow had to be used for water,”
according to Canadafirst.net, since all the rivers were frozen
over. Even the ships were solidly iced in, immobile until spring.
Over
time, the explorers felt that their interpreters had turned against them and
were “sowing disaffection among the people of Stadacona.” The French became
unsure of the Stadaconans, whose small population was still much greater than
that of the settlement’s inhabitants. The Natives discouraged the explorers
from travelling further up the St. Lawrence River, wanting to keep the French
traders for themselves. Cartier went anyway, meeting the native residents of
Hochelaga (now Montreal) and sailing the river until the ship could go no
further due to rapids.
The
first Christmas dinner in Canada was a meager event
Christmas
was a meager event in the New World. The menu consisted of deteriorating
vegetables, salted meat, and little else from the precious food stores. But the
men were still hopeful for a good life, listening to the stories told by Chief
Donnacona of great wealth and magnificent peoples beyond Stadacona. (The Chief
was apparently a great imaginative storyteller and the French were not fully
aware of this.)
After
Christmas, as many as 85 French settlers fell ill with scurvy from lack of
Vitamin C. Twenty-five died during the winter months, and the rest recovered
after receiving an Iroquois potion made possibly from fronds of Cypress trees.
Fifty of the Natives died over the same winter, thought likely from European
diseases to which they had no immunity.
Jacques
Cartier and his crew of ten men returned to France in the spring of 1536. On
the way, Cartier kidnapped ten Iroquois and took them home, including Chief
Donnacona and his two sons, noted the CBC.ca timeline . Only one of the ten, a young
girl, survived. He made a third trip to Canada in 1541 to begin colonization of
Canada.
Read
more of the history of Jacques Cartier:
Christmas Seal
Campaign in Canada
Begun 1908, Christmas Stamps Raised
Funds to Ease Tuberculosis
Who
would have thought that a stamp would build a hospital? Or that the simple
stamp would provide x-rays or medical tests? A postman in Denmark thought it
would.
Einar
Hoeboell was processing the mail in December 1903 when he came upon an idea to
help those in dire need. He saw that “large sums of money could be donated
without it costing anyone very much,” noted the Canadian Lung Association site
at lung.ca.
The inspired Hoeboell set plans in motion for Christmas Seals in the 1904
Christmas season, with great success.
Tuberculosis
became the beneficiary of the fundraising campaigns. Tuberculosis is a
life-threatening lung infection that may also spread throughout the body,
attacking major organs. The disease has troubled humans for thousands of years.
The
Christmas Seals campaigns were so successful that after two years, there was
enough money to start building two sanatoriums for tuberculosis patients. At
the time, infectious tuberculosis was rapidly transmitting, causing more deaths
than “wars or famines” in Europe. By 1907, the Christmas Seal Campaign itself
was spreading, making its way to the United States via the American Red Cross.
The first American Christmas Seals stamp featured a classic wreath of holly in
bright red. A year later, Canadians were purchasing their own fundraising
stamps to affix to Christmas cards and letters.
A
newspaper, the Toronto Globe, helped boost stamp sales by adding a daily story
of news about Christmas Seals, surrounded by a festive holly border. The column
told positive stories of stamp fundraising across the country. The Toronto
campaign, said Lung.ca, raised the huge amount of $6,114.25. The money
collected in Canada was at first used to build hospitals, then for tuberculosis
prevention; the campaigns also raised awareness of the disease and its
treatment. Tuberculin tests and x-rays provided through Christmas Seal funding
caught the disease early and prevented the mass spread of the appalling disease.
Tuberculosis
is still considered a global pandemic, according to mayoclinic.com, but most cases can now be treated
with success.
The
Canadian Tuberculosis Association changed its name in 1977 to the Canadian Lung
Association. The Association’s focus was widened to include “all the things
that make breathing difficult for so many – lung diseases, air pollution and
cigarette smoking.” Throughout the decades, Christmas Seals have been designed
by talented artists who created delightful wintry scenes of the Christmas
season. Their charming appearance alone is enough to attract purchasers. The
money raised through Christmas Seals is used for prevention and community
programs.
Imagine.
All of that good care through the purchase of a small paper stamp.
This
year’s Christmas Seal offer is a departure from the stamps. “Holiday Ice” is a
limited edition full-sized print of an oil painting by artist Shirley Deaville
of Toronto. A wintry game of shinny on a frozen pond is the theme of the
artwork and your favourite CHL team name can be added. See the Lung Association
page for more information.
Canada's First
Coins Issued 1858
Province of Canada Initiated Bronze and
Silver Money
Before Canada’s Confederation in 1867, the Province of Canada printed its paper bank notes in denominations of both dollars and pounds. The Currency Act of 1854 ensured that provinces could blend their currencies and “use pounds, shillings and pence as well as dollars and cents,” according to the Canadian Economy site.
Not
suiting their purposes, the Province of Canada changed the Currency Act in 1857
so that their monetary basis was only dollars and cents. (Other provinces
followed suit shortly after, and the Uniform Currency Act was enacted in 1871,
aligning all areas of Canada under one currency.)
First Coins issued December 1858
On
December 12, 1858, the first coins of the Province of Canada were issued. Since
Canada did not yet have its own mint, the silver coins were struck at the Royal
Mint in London, England in denominations of 1-, 5-. 10-, and 20-cent pieces.
(The penny was the value of a British half-penny, said Calgary
Coin; 20-cent coins were supposed to equal the value of one
shilling, noted coinsite.com.) The first stamping consisted of
500,000 5-cent coins, 1,250,000 10-cent coins and 750,000 20-cent pieces.
Composed
of silver (except for the penny in bronze), the coins displayed the profile of
a young Queen Victoria and the word Canada underneath her on the front, and two
maple boughs with the crown of St. Edward on the back along with the
denomination and the year. L.C. Wyon was the engraver who made the initial
coins. That year and the next, 1858 to 1859, were the only years that Province
of Canada coins were made. The next issue came in 1870, after Canada had become
a country through John A. MacDonald’s Confederation.
Canadians did not like the unique
20-cent coin
The
unique 20-cent coin was not favoured by early spending Canadians. They
preferred to follow the American system. The 20-cent coin was taken out of
circulation in 1870 and melted down; the higher-valued 25-cent coin was added
to the currency and became a standard. A 50-cent coin also was made part of
Canada’s new monetary system. The later coins featured an older version of
Queen Victoria. The 1870 coins were also struck at the Royal Mint in London, or
at Heaton Mint in Birmingham, England.
The
1858 Canadian coins are valued by collectors and are still available through
coin dealers. As of today’s market, an 1858 bronze penny appears to range in
price from $49 to $135.
Canadian
currency was not “made in Canada” until 1908, when the Royal Canadian Mint was
instituted by the Government of Canada.
CHECK THE COINS ON THIS PARTICULAR PAGE... THINK U HAVE A COUPLE ORIGINAL CANADA COINS..
Canada's North
Pole
Doesn't Santa Claus Live at the North
Pole?
A
frosty cold place near the top of the Earth, the North Pole has become legend.
In the story created by American illustrator/writer Thomas Nast for the 1862
issue of Harper’s Weekly, Nast created Santa Claus on the German
tradition of Saint Nicholas. By 1881, his character had transformed into the
kindly, bearded gentleman clothed in a red and white suit that is a mainstay of
our Christmas season. Thomas Nast made the North Pole the base for Santa Claus’
distant home and workshop.
But
the North Pole is not a singular place on the planet. Along with the
imaginative home of Santa, surrounded by snow-laden fir trees and sweet
animals, there are also the Geographic North Pole and the North Magnetic Pole.
The Geographic North Pole is part of an
axis
The
Earth is on a steady rotation, spinning day into night, night into day, as it
orbits around the sun. Its axis for turning (an imaginary stick at the centre
of the planet) spears through the south and north poles. It is not straight up
and down, but on a tilt of 23 degrees, noted Science Netlinks, thus giving us the seasons of
being closer and further away from the sun. The Geographic North Pole is
located at 90 °N latitude and is the place where all longitudinal lines
converge. There is no land since it is in the middle of the barren Arctic
Ocean. According to AllThingsArctic, the area receives six months of
sun and six months of darkness each year. There is no sign of Santa or his
elves living there.
The North Magnetic Pole is a Magnetic
Field
The
North Magnetic Pole is a thousand miles away from the Geographic North Pole,
located at 82.7 °N Latitude and 114.4 °W Longitude as of 2005
According to Natural Resources Canada, “The Earth's magnetic
field is shaped approximately like that of a bar magnet and, like a magnet, it
has two magnetic poles,” as if the Earth had a giant rectangular magnet upright
in the core. The North Magnetic Pole is shifting by many kilometers each year –
what had originally been on Canadian land has shifted into the ocean. (The
South Magnetic Pole is found off the coast of Antarctica.) Santa has not been
seen.
Canada’s Claim on the North Pole
In
the mid-1950s, the Canadian Government claimed the North Pole as part of
Canada’s northern lands. Under the waters and ice of the Northwest Passage, the
ownership of a huge ridge of land has recently come under dispute by Denmark,
Norway, Russia and the United States. (See Canada and Russia Re-Start Cold War on Suite101.)
All are now putting in their own claims on the territory with precious minerals
and oil-rich reserves. The countries have sent scientists and explorers on
missions to find bases for their claims on the North Pole. Russia recently
dropped a national flag onto the deep floor of the waterway to make its claim
known. The Canadian government has increased northern activity in an attempt to
hold others at bay, but none of that activity includes Santa Claus.
It
seems Santa’s North Pole home in Canada is elusive, maybe to keep nosy,
unwanted photographers away. Mr. Claus does like his privacy the rest of the
year, after all.
See
photos from the North Pole.
Dr. Alexander
Milton Ross
Black History Month, Abolitionist Helped
Slaves Flee to Canada
Dr. Alexander Milton Ross had a passion for nature. A licenced physician, he was also an active naturalist and ornithologist, traveling throughout Canada and the United States to document the varying nature and bird populations. But on his trips to the southern US, he also made clandestine contact with black slaves. Under the guise of bird watching on plantations, Ross gave hope to desperate freedom seekers.
Born
in Belleville, Upper Canada (now the Province of Ontario) on December 13, 1832,
Alexander Milton Ross became a slavery abolitionist at a young age, his parents
firmly against the practice. During the era, racism may have run rampant in
Upper Canada, but slavery was not permitted. It had been abolished in 1793.
After
the death of his father, Ross moved to New York City. The teenager became a
compositor at the Evening Post, noted Famous Americans. Working days at
the Evening Post, he took up night classes in medicine at the College of
Physicians and Surgeons, according to Biographi.ca. He graduated at age 23 as a Medical
Doctor in 1855. He was a strapping young man with a large personality.
According to Biographi.ca, Ross was “basically an idealist and he manifested
his idealism in radical, anti-establishment activity and in vigorous, often polemical
writing.”
Ross Part of Underground Railroad
In
1955, Ross toured those southern states that permitted slavery, using his bird
studies as a reason to visit plantations. While at the farms, he
surreptitiously spoke with the black slaves, supplying them with detailed
information about the networks of the Underground Railroad into Canada and safe
houses for hiding during the daytime. Occasionally he provided “a compass,
knives, pistols and food,” said Great Clan Ross, to help them
escape from their lives of desperate oppression.
Taking
little notice of the dangers to himself, Ross often accompanied small groups of
black slaves on their flight to freedom into Canada, escorting them to safety
between Niagara Falls and Windsor. It was a huge risk for all involved. Slave
owners often posted Wanted ads for the return of their slaves, occasionally
offering cash rewards for their capture. The runaway slaves risked vicious
beatings, lashings by whips and possible death if they were caught, according
to Spartacus Schoolnet. If they left family behind at the plantation,
those family members could face punishment. The people aiding runaway slaves
did not get off easy themselves, and were severely disciplined for their acts
of kindness.
Ross’s
posts as physician took him to fascinating places. One of his first jobs was as
a surgeon in Nicaragua. He then served with the National Army during the
American Civil War in the early 1860s. Leading a life of intrigue, Ross took a
post in Canada as “confidential correspondent” to President Lincoln during the
Civil War. His work involved monitoring Confederate activities on Canadian
soil. Ross’s efforts were praised by President Lincoln as a contribution to an
early ending of the Civil War.
Ross a Naturalist
Later,
Ross performed a stint of surgical duty with the Mexican Army. The doctor then
returned to Canada, putting his focus on his passion as a naturalist. He
“collected and classified hundreds of species of birds, eggs, mammals,
reptiles, and fresh-water fish,” plus, Famous Americans said, “3,400
species of insects, and 2,000 species of Canadian flora.” Ross wrote many books
on nature, including “Ferns and Wild Flowers of Canada in 1877, “Mammals,
reptiles and Fresh-water Fishes of Canada” in 1878, and “Medical Practices of
the Future” in 1887, just to name a few.
His
vast knowledge of many topics lead Ross to the position of Ontario Treasurer
and Commissioner of Agriculture. He was a one of the founders of the Society of
the Diffusion of Physiological Knowledge and was also appointed to the Canadian
Consul in Belgium and Denmark. Ross was knighted by the Emperor of Russia and
awarded medals from the European countries of Italy, Greece and Portugal.
France’s government presented him with the “Academie Francaise”.
Dr.
Alexander Ross died on October 27, 1897 in Detroit, Michigan, leaving behind
his wife Hester and three children. Considered a “conductor” on the Underground
Railway, he was able to assist a number of black people to freedom from
oppressed lives as slaves.
Cairine Wilson,First
Woman Senator
Canada’s Senate was a Male Domain Until
1930
Cairine Wilson was born Cairine Reay Mackay on February 4, 1885 to the upper-class Mackay family who made their home in Montreal, Quebec. They were a strict Presbyterian family of Scottish background. Her father was Robert Mackay, politician and member of the Canadian Senate from 1901 until his death in 1916. While politics formed the background of her whole life, Cairine was not interested in being a politician herself. She was concerned about women’s rights, though did not participate in the efforts of suffragettes. Nor was she part of the Famous Five, who in 1929 eventually managed to achieve women’s rights to be “persons under the law” in the “Persons Case.”
But
as an adult, Cairine was active in the underpinnings of politics. Volunteering,
she was president of the Eastern Ontario Liberal Association then helped found
the National Federation of Liberal Women in Canada. She also gave her time to
the Victorian Order of Nurses and the YWCA. Though unpaid work was permissible,
it was not “proper” for a married woman to have paid employment.
Women Now “Persons”
By
February 1930 at age 45, Cairine Wilson had been living in Ottawa for nearly
ten years. The wife of former MP Norman Wilson, she was the mother of 8
children.. Four months earlier, in October 1929, the Judicial Committee of the
Privy Council of England ruled that women were “persons” in Canada; Women could
at last take part in the Senate of the Government of Canada. It was fully
expected that the leader of the Famous Five, Judge Emily Murphy, would receive
a post as Senator in the Upper House for the years of effort she put in to
facilitate change. Instead, Prime Minister Mackenzie King made the call to Mrs.
Cairine Wilson.
Friends
with the Prime Minister and many others in high government, Cairine Wilson was
still taken by surprise. She did not know she was under consideration; before
she was even asked, the announcement of her impending appointment was leaked in
the Ottawa Evening Journal, said Valerie Knowles in her book, First
Person: A Biography of Cairine Wilson, Canada’s First Woman Senator.
“The
appointment of Canada’s first woman Senator is likely to go to Ottawa. It was
being forecast today in well-informed political circles that Mrs. Normal
Wilson, wife of Norman F. Wilson, ex-M.P. for Russell County, is to receive the
vacancy in the Upper House …,” noted the article.
Canada’s First Woman Senator
At
first, Cairine Wilson hesitated. According to the Prime Minister’s notes, said
Knowles, “Mrs. Wilson seemed confused, said she was flattered to be asked but
said she could do more out…” Her husband also balked, but after discussions
with Prime Minister King, Cairine agreed to the offer stating that it “might
mean a divorce but she wd accept.” The official announcement was made on
February 15th. There was no divorce and her husband became her staunch
supporter. Cairine Wilson was ceremonially welcomed to the Senate on February
20, 1930 with her husband and two of their children in the audience. She hid
her nervousness and appeared outwardly serene.
While
there was general agreement with the new Senator’s appointment, there was some
fuss raised, that a woman with children had no business in the Senate House,
said coolwomen.ca. Undaunted, Cairine made her first
speech to the House on February 25, 1930. Though not a natural public speaker,
she spoke well in both French and English, and in her message, paid tribute to
Emily Murphy and the Famous Five for their commitment to the Persons Case.
Her
serene personality seemed to be part of the reason Prime Minister King selected
Cairine for the senatorial position. While determined and dedicated, she was
soft-spoken and peaceful, not “a militant politician like Agnes McPhail, the
hard-working, sharp-tongued pioneer, who had become Canada’s first female MP in
1921”, said Knowles, and Cairine was “a woman of wealth with high ideals and a
social conscience.”
As
a Senator, Cairine was placed for life; only dire actions could cause removal
from office, such as criminal conviction, missing two consecutive sessions of
the Upper House or treason, as a few instances. The remuneration for a Senator
at the time was $4,000 per 65-day session of Parliament.
Senator Wilson a Humanitarian
Cairine’s
contributions to improving the lives of Canadians were many. Health insurance,
infant and mother mortality, easing divorce laws, education and working
conditions, and trying to expand immigration for desperate Jewish refugees and
orphaned children from war-torn countries were the greatest issues for Senator
Wilson. She was dubbed “Mother of the Refugees” for her kindhearted if not
always successful endeavors.
The
firsts for Cairine Wilson only began with the Senate seat. In 1949, she became
Canada’s first female delegate to the United Nations General Assembly, the
first woman to chair the Senate Standing Committee on Immigration and Labour,
according to Collections Canada, and the first woman to chair
the Canadian National Committee on Refugees. She earned the honour of being the
first woman to become Deputy Speaker of the Canadian House of Parliament in
1955.
For
her tireless efforts on behalf of Canadians and immigrants, Cairine received
several awards:
Honourary
Doctorate in DCL from Acadia University, 1941
Honourary
Doctorate from Queen’s University, 1943
Cross
of the Knight of the Legion of Honour, from France, 1950
Named
“Mother of the Year” by the American Mothers Committee of New York
B’nai
B’rith Woman of the Year, 1960
The
Honourable Cairine Wilson died on March 3, 1962 at 77 years old. She was a
member of the Senate for 32 years. Over that time, she suffered cancer,
osteoporosis, two broken hips and a shoulder from falls. Her beloved husband
Norman died in July, 1956 at age 79. Cairine’s accomplishments as a female
pioneer in the Senate forged a solid path for many Canadian women to follow.
The Red Cross Society in Canada
The Humanitarian Agency was Officially
Founded in 1896
The
insignia is instantly recognizable from near or far. The cross of bright red
bars symbolizes shelter, safety and help when it is truly needed. A part of the
international Red Cross community, the Canadian Red Cross is seen as a
life-saver in times of desperate need around the world. (In Muslim countries,
the Red Cross is replaced with Red Crescent, equally recognizable.) The Red
Cross Society had its early beginnings in Geneva, Switzerland in 1863 with the
founding of the International Committee for Relief to the Wounded by a
five-member group. The organizer, Monsieur H. Dumont had been on a bloody
battleground with no medical services in sight years earlier, and saw that with
immediate care, more wounded soldiers could be saved. The first international
Geneva Convention in 1864 was the product of M. Dumont’s work, said the Canadian Encyclopedia, the agreement giving
protection to medical aid workers and the wounded in wartime.
The
Canadian Red Cross Society’s history of providing assistance dates back to 1896
when Dr. George Sterling Ryerson organized the Canadian branch of the British
Red Cross Society. The Society was a structured entity, with Dr. Ryerson named
the first Chairman of the Executive. Two years later, according to Red Cross,
the Canadian Red Cross Society (CRCS) held their first public meeting in
Toronto and began raising funds for the injured in the Spanish-American War.
Canadian Red Cross Society Act
Branches
opened across Canada as needs grew. During the war in Africa in 1899, 65
Canadian Red Cross Society branches collected goods and donations to help the
wounded. The CRCS was legally established in Canada in 1909 under the Canadian
Red Cross Society Act, making it “the corporate body responsible for providing
volunteer aid in Canada in accordance with the Geneva Convention.”
World
War One brought a new function for the Red Cross. Volunteers were recruited to
raise money and supplies for hospitals caring for injured soldiers. Five
hospitals in England and one hospital in France were maintained by the $35
million in Canadian relief, said the Canadian Encyclopedia, and also provided
ambulances, medical supplies and much needed cash. During the Great War, “Red
Cross women volunteers knitted khaki sweaters and gray socks for the soldiers,
or sewed dressings, bandages, surgical coveralls and bed linen to be sent
overseas,” noted Red Cross.
Junior Red Cross
As
the War ended, the Red Cross Society turned their focus to health and
prevention of disease. The number of CRCS branches grew to include the new
Junior Red Cross in 1922 and Visiting Homemaker Service in 1925. The Canadian
Junior Red Cross guidelines were taught in classrooms across the country,
instructing children on healthy living, citizenship and promoting an
understanding of other countries. The Junior Red Cross was blended into the
regular CRCS in 1987.
Mobilizing
again for WWII in 1939, the Red Cross formed the National Women’s War Work
Committee to generate goods for soldiers in Europe. The Canadian Red Cross
Corps was created the same year to send trained volunteers overseas to work as
cooks, servers, transport and ambulance drivers, nurses, and nurse’s aides
during the War: 641 women contributed in dangerous European and African war
theatres. Continuing operation into the Korean War and later, over 15,000 women
were proudly part of the Canadian Red Cross Corps.
CRCS Developed New Products
The
Canadian Red Cross Society began its blood donor recruitment programs in 1938,
and added blood transfusion service in 1947. The Society developed blood
products to help hemophiliacs, polio sufferers and others, along with creating
the Unrelated Bone Marrow Registry in 1988. Unfortunately in the mid-1990s, the
company met with disaster with the Tainted Blood Scandal in which some blood
products were found to have Hepatitis C from 1986 onward. A new agency,
Canadian Blood Services, was set up to control blood donations.
Seen
as an international life-saver, the Canadian Red Cross Society has a long,
successful history of providing programs, basic needs, funds and humanitarian
aid locally and at the disaster sites around the world. In Canada, the CRCS
also leads the way in First Aid Training, Water Safety and Boating Safety
Programs, Violence Prevention and so much more.
Nova Scotia
Artist Maud Lewis
Folk Artist Lived in Poverty But Created
Beauty in Oil Paints
Her
hands gnarled into untenable positions, her shoulders permanently hunched and
with a chin marred at birth, Maud Lewis sat at the window in her tiny home and
created bright, cheerful scenes of rural Nova Scotia. An untrained oil painter,
Maud created simple, striking folk art that would bring the world to her
doorstep.
In
1903, John and Agnes Dowley of Ohio, Yarmouth County, NS, and their son
Charles, welcomed the birth of a baby girl into their family. Born small with
facial irregularities – she had almost no chin – Maud grew to be a happy little
girl, according to Canadian Artist Biography Database. She developed
childhood rheumatoid arthritis that caused her hands and arms to pull in and
tighten in awkward positions and made movement painfully difficult. But even
with such hardship, the beloved Maud learned to play the piano, entertaining
her family with delightful music. And Maud learned to paint.
Lewis Painted Christmas Cards
At
Christmastimes for years, Maud’s mother taught her daughter to paint and they
created and sold festive cards to family and friends. This was the only art
training Maud received. Attending school until Grade 5, Maud left school,
probably due to the endless mean teasing of classmates, said Canadian
Encyclopedia. She was 14 years old.
Maud’s
parents died in the 1930s, first her father in 1935, then her mother in 1937.
She lived with her brother and his family briefly then moved in with an aunt in
Digby, Nova Scotia. Her brother claimed the family inheritance as his own,
leaving Maud dependent. Maud bore a child in the 1930s who was put up for
adoption and disappeared from her mother’s life.
An
ad for a housekeeper in Marshalltown caught Maud’s eye in 1938. Everett Lewis
was a fish peddler who needed help. Maud moved in to his home, a small one-room
cottage with a loft bed-space and before long, they married. The house had none
of the modern conveniences: no electricity, no indoor plumbing, no television.
Not the most pleasant of lives, Maud’s only source of information about the
world was a battery-powered radio. Her arthritis reached a stage where she was
unable to do the housework, but painting was still possible. Bursting with
ideas, Maud painted every surface of the tiny building, inside and out,
including the woodstove and cookie sheets. Most days were spent sitting on a
chair by the front window, with its good natural light for painting.
Painted Vibrant Colours
Painting
on anything, Maud’s brush brought pieces of paper, cardboard, wood, pulp board,
anything with a paintable surface, to life with flowers, kids, trees and
churches. Winter scenes, water scenes, roadside scenes, cats, horses and oxen
were painted in vibrant hues. Maud did not mix paints but used the strong
fullness of primary colours. She used any oil paint on hand, from house paint
to marine paint to cheap craft paint, and any brushes handy. The artist was
prolific in her work, creating hundreds of pieces.
Selling
her cards on her husband’s fish delivery route, Maud also sold her folk art
paintings from home for a very low price. Some sold for $2.50 each. A store
took some of her paintings to sell and business perked up but, Canadian
Encyclopedia said, none sold for more than $10. Her husband was of a miserly
spirit, hiding her profits under floor boards and taking the batteries out of
the radio to conserve power.
Fame Found Maud Lewis
Fame
knocked on Maud’s door in 1965 through a CBC documentary on her life, and with
a Toronto Star Weekly article displaying the work of photographer Bob
Brooks that included Maud and her art. Then in her 60s, she found herself
inundated with painting projects that included two from American President
Richard Nixon’s White House. Some of the orders were never filled due to the
painful progression of arthritis in her hands.
Maud
Lewis died in 1967 of pneumonia, probably aggravated by the wood smoke and
paint fumes that were part of her daily life for decades. On her passing, her
paintings rose dramatically in price. Her husband Everett tried his hand at
painting, managing to make forgeries of her pieces that were then selling for
huge fees. Everett died nine years later in 1975, after resisting an intruder.
Thomas D'arcy
McGee
First Political Assassination in Canada,
1868
In
an era of rebellion in Ireland, Thomas D’arcy McGee was born into the Catholic
family of James and Dorcas Catherine McGee on April 13, 1825 in Carlingford,
County Louth. He was their fifth child.
McGee
left Ireland at age 17, climbing aboard a ship bound for North America in 1842.
He arrived in Quebec then made his way to an aunt’s home in Providence, Rhode
Island. Moving on to Boston, McGee made his first public speech at a Fourth of
July festivity for Irish Americans, said Canadian Biography. He gave an
enthusiastic speech on animosity toward the British and earned himself a post
on staff at a Catholic newspaper, the Boston Pilot.
Writing
articles on the history of Irish literature, giving lectures and collecting on
overdue accounts, McGee captured the minds of newspaper readers. He became
editor of the eastern paper before he was 19 years old. A strong Irish-Catholic
supporter, he was also a proponent of the annexation of Canada to the United
States. “The United States of North America must necessarily in the course of
time absorb the Northern British Provinces… Either by purchase, conquest or
stipulation, Canada must be yielded by Great Britain to this Republic.” But
McGee made that statement before he had gained a taste of Canada.
McGee Fled to Canada
McGee
spent the next several years back across the ocean, working at newspapers in
Dublin, Ireland and participating in rebellion against Great Britain. (He was
asked to leave one newspaper and his efforts in the rebellion were not
successful.) He married Mary Theresa Caffrey on July 13, 1847. (The McGees later
had five daughters and one son, of whom only two girls grew to adulthood.) A
year later, he was arrested for sedition, though the charges were dropped
almost immediately. The McGees fled and set sail for America, arriving at
Philadelphia in October 1848.
Founding
newspapers and writing books about Irish life filled McGee’s time in the United
States for the next ten years. The New York Nation and the American
Celt and Adopted Citizen were two of his newspaper enterprises used to
support Catholic-Irish living in America. Unfortunately, his vocal opinions
antagonized the Bishop of New York, and the Fenians (Irish rebels), who then
challenged him to a duel. McGee was forced to leave.
Gradually,
McGee’s perspective of the United States changed. He moved to Montreal in Lower
Canada on the invitation of the Irish Catholic community in 1857. He supported
his family as editor of the newspaper, New Era. McGee also took up the
study of law at McGill University, graduating in 1861, noted the Concordia University archives.
Plans
for a United Canada
His
eyes opening to life in Canada, McGee reversed his opinion on the annexation of
Canada. He “defended Canada as a place where Catholic rights were recognized,”
said Biographi.ca. Returning briefly as a lecturer to
Ireland, McGee promoted Canada as the place to live instead of the United
States. Back in Montreal, he devised a political plan for Upper and Lower
Canada, a development for “a new nationality”. His plan was based on “railway
construction, the fostering of immigration… economic cooperation between Canada
and the Maritime colonies....” It would be “a federal system,” that, “would
solve Canada’s constitutional problems and provide for the survival of French
Canada.” His ideas included a province for the native peoples and economic
assistance. It was to be a country maintaining a relationship with Great
Britain, yet under its own rule.
McGee
was elected to the Legislative Assembly in December 1857. A gifted speaker, he
supported the union of Upper and Lower Canada and tried to make changes to
George Brown’s Reform Party of the time, so that it would appeal to both
provinces. (The Brown Reform Party did not last.) Re-elected in the next
election, McGee made efforts to improve the civil service and other government
departments. Thwarted, he was dropped from Cabinet. Running as an independent
in the next election, McGee was once again voted in.
By
1863, McGee was part of the Conservative government, the Minister of
Agriculture, Immigration and Statistics. Concerned about education, he made
educational rights of minority religions a priority. He attended the
Charlottetown and Quebec conferences in 1864, leading up to the formation of
Canada and becoming one of the Fathers of Confederation. Describing his earlier
actions as an Irish rebel as “folly,” he was once again in hot water with Irish
immigrants, and in trouble with his own government. In the election of 1867, he
lost the Irish voters and was defeated in Prescott.
Canada's First Political Assassination
Tired
of the political arena, McGee prepared to leave politics behind for a civil
service job, offered by new Prime Minister John A. Macdonald. After a session
on Ottawa’s Parliament Hill in which he gave a rousing speech about national
unity, McGee was returning to his rented room at 1 a.m. As he turned the door
key, he was shot in the head from behind. He died immediately, on April 7,
1868. McGee’s was Canada’s first political assassination. A young man assumed
to be an angered Fenian was arrested. Though evidence was circumstantial, James
Patrick Whelan was tried and publicly hung for the murder.
Thousands
turned out for the state funeral of Thomas D’arcy McGee, held on his 43rd
birthday. On June 29, 1927, McGee was honoured with Canada Post’s 5-cent stamp;
on Parliament Hill, a statue commemorates his short but significant impact on
Canadian politics. Along with his political advancements, McGee’s work included
many books, newspaper articles and a large number of poems. A peaceful man,
according to CBC’s history series, McGee “condemned violence
and all secret societies that preached it.” It would seem he paid the full
price for his values.
The 'Toronto No.
2' Locomotive
The First Railroad Steam Engine Built in
Canada in 1853
The
black locomotive was a big, iron beauty. Constructed in 1853 to be rugged and
sturdy, the Toronto Number 2 Locomotive was the first railroad engine
built in Canada. The Toronto was not the first steam locomotive in
Canada – that honour went to the Dorchester. The smaller, lighter steam
engine was imported from England but was not quite up to the difficult northern
conditions. Built by Robert Stephenson and Company of Newcastle upon Tyne, the Dorchester
arrived by ship in 1836. It operated on the first Canadian rail line owned by
the Champlain and St. Lawrence Railroad Company, hauling two passenger coaches
from Laprairie to Dorchester in Quebec, according to Collections Canada.
The
first Toronto No. 2 engine emerged from James Good’s Foundry in the
spring of 1853. James Good emigrated from Ireland to Upper Canada in 1832 at
about age 16. He became an ironworker, working his way up to factory owner.
With the financial help of his father-in-law, Bartley Bull, in 1840, Good
purchased the Union Furnace Company of Toronto, a functioning foundry. After a
devastating fire, the factory was rebuilt in 1841 and the business grew. (It
was re-named several times: Toronto Locomotive Works, Toronto Engine Works and
later Toronto Stove Works.) James Good bid on and won the contracts to build
steam engines for the new rail lines being constructed across the countryside
that was to be confederated as Canada.
The
Toronto Was a Large, Heavy Locomotive
The
locomotive was heavy, weighing in at a hefty 25 tons. According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, the engine was a 4-4-0,
meaning it had four driving wheels and four smaller front wheels, and no rear
truck. The wheel placement gradually became known as the predominant American
standard. The engineer’s cabin had several large windows and a front-row view
of the huge funnel-shaped stack billowing gray smoke. Behind the cabin, a
tender stored the fuel and water to feed fire box and heat the boiler.
Fresh
out of the foundry on April 16th, the Toronto No. 2 “was rolled on
temporary wood rails along Queen and York Streets to the permanent track at
Front Street,” stated the North American Railway Hall of Fame. A month
later, the locomotive was pulling its first four passenger coaches for the
Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Railroad. A short rail line, the train’s initial run
was from Toronto to Machell’s Corners (now Aurora). The route eventually
lengthened to 94 miles one
The Foundry Built Many Locomotives
Over
the three years to 1856, James Good’s Foundry produced 21 locomotive engines,
nine of them for the Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Railroad at a cost of
approximately $5,000 each, wrote George Graham Maines in A Dictionary of
Canadian Biography. Other foundries started to produce similar sturdy
engines; the Canadian Pacific Railway had a fleet of almost 400 Toronto-style
locomotives by 1887. Good was not only a successful foundry-man, though. In
elections, he won a seat as Councilman for the St. James Ward in 1854 and won
again the next year.
The
Canadian-made Toronto No. 2 engine was capable of hauling heavier loads
than the lighter British-built Dorchester locomotive that weighed in at
just over 5 ½ tons, and was much better equipped to withstand the drastic
climate changes. As locomotive designs progressed to larger machines powered by
electricity and diesel, the Toronto No. 2 and its equals gradually
disappeared from the rails.
Source:
A
Dictionary of Canadian Biography, George W. Brown et al, published in
1966 by University of Toronto Press, pp 357-358.
1st North
American Oil Well, 1858
Tripp Brothers, J. M. Williams and John
Fairbank Lead Petroleum Boom
Oil is a precious commodity today. Without the gasoline, diesel, heating oil and lubricants it provides, vehicles and machines would sputter to a standstill. The massive plastics industry would collapse without petroleum. In the mid-1880s, oil was not required to operate cars or trucks, but it was essential for lamp fuel - whale oil was becoming scarce, and kerosene was needed as a substitute.
Henry
Tripp located oily deposits in southwestern Ontario, thick and sticky gum beds
that held an oozy substance. Calling his brother Charles to join him, the Tripp
Brothers gathered samples for analysis in 1853. Thinking their discovery would
be suitable for asphalt, a chemist examining the samples in New York City said
there were many more uses. “Paints, mastics or adhesive products, waterproofing
materials, and if distilled, lighting oil,” noted the Oil Museum of Canada.
World's First Oil Company
Henry
and Charles Tripp purchased a large amount of acreage in the area and
incorporated their new petroleum business on December 18, 1854. The
International Mining and Manufacturing Company was the world’s first oil
company. Not yet interested in the kerosene lamp oil, in 1855, Charles Tripp
sent a sample of his gum bed asphalt to the Universal Exhibition in Paris,
France. The International Mining and Manufacturing Company received an order
from Paris and shipped it across the ocean to pave the grand French city’s
streets. With poor transportation and little road infrastructure in the local
Oil Springs area, the Tripp brothers’ business flagged.
Hamilton
businessman and carriage-maker James Miller Williams met Charles Tripp in the
same year as the Exhibition. Interested in lamp oil, Williams purchased
resource-rich parcels of land from Tripp. Making a success of “refined
illuminating oil,” Williams founded the J. M. Williams Company, later called
Canadian Oil Company. Not long after, Williams “was digging for water with his
work crew, when he discovered a black, smelly substance in a shallow pit, only
14 feet deep". He found the black gold: Oil.
First Commercial Oil Well
Registering
the first commercial oil well in North America in 1858, Williams received
awards from England, a bronze medal for “Father of the Oil Industry” and “Best
Refined Oil in North America,” said the Oil Museum of Canada. Williams was only
39 years old.
Word
of the success began to spread. Founded as the town of Black Creek in 1856, two
years later the name was changed to Oil Springs, noted the Town site.
The population grew to over 3,000 as explorers flooded into the small town,
bringing innovation and energy to the new industry. A surveyor from Niagara
Falls, John Fairbank was one of many men who moved to Oil Springs.
Purchasing
half an acre with a $10 deposit, Fairbank dug a well and found oil. He dubbed
his well the “Old Fairbank” and within a few years, became a wealthy
businessman in the oil industry. With partners, he invested in real estate,
hardware, grocery, hotel and liquor businesses, and was elected several times
to local council. Fairbank bought more land in Petrolia, a village just down
the road from Oil Springs. The area was equally rich in oil.
Spring Pole Drilling Rig
Fairbank
was also an inventor, devising a “jerker-line system” of running many well
pumping machines with the power of only one boiler and two engines. The
derricks were not the huge metal structures of modern oil fields - they were
initially constructed of wooden beams. The well drilling was accomplished at
first by spring pole rigging, a labour intensive method. The Oil Museum
described the rigging as, “a long ash tree trunk was placed parallel to the
ground over a y-shaped fulcrum. A heavy drill bit was suspended from the end of
the pole. By jumping on a treadle, drillers jerked the bit up and down.” The action
eventually broke up the rock.
By
1861, the count of oil wells in the area was over 400 rigs, and oil was going
for the price of $10 a barrel. This year, 2008, the town of Oil Springs,
Ontario celebrates the 150th anniversary of the “First Oil Well 1858”.
Black Loyalists
in Nova Scotia
Allegiance to British, Black Loyalists
Came to Canada 1783-1785
There
was no happy medium to be reached. Divided by loyalty to the United States or
standing strong with the British, the American Revolution for independence in
1776 tore families apart. Those faithful to the British had to go, white and
black. The emigrants included the Black Pioneers Regiment, slaves who were
freed on condition of service to the British cause, and indentured slaves still
under service to their masters.
And
go they did. By the thousands, United Empire Loyalists spread across the world,
many coming north to Canada. It was not a haphazard exodus for the Black
people. Those leaving, whether free or still slave, were required to have
Certificates of Freedom and their names were recorded a log entitled the Book
of Negroes, said the Nova Scotia Museum.
Destination: Shelburne County
Of
the 30,000 or so people who arrived in Canada, approximately 3,500 were Black
Loyalists who made their home in the British colony of Nova Scotia. Halifax,
Birchtown, the Annapolis and Digby areas filled with new residents, with
Shelburne County taking on nearly 1,500 black settlers between 1783 and 1785.
The town of Birchtown became, noted the Museum, the “largest Black township of
the time in North America” with 1,200 freed Blacks. Colonel Stephen Blucke,
commander of the Black Pioneers Regiment (the only official regiment of black
soldiers on the British side) set his militia men to work building the towns of
Shelburne and Birchtown.
The
new Black settlers were not a rag-tag group. Both men and women, and their
families, they were educated, professional people. Teachers, ministers and
skilled craftsmen and labourers came north as citizens loyal to Britain.
Unfortunately, a better life was not to be for a large portion of these early
Black colonists.
Black Loyalists Disillusioned
Promised
improved conditions in Canada, all did not go as planned for the Black
Loyalists. All Loyalists were assured “three years’ worth of provisions to
sustain themselves while establishing homes and farms,” stated Biographi of Library and Archives Canada. But,
the Blacks of Annapolis County were given only 80 days’ worth of supplies. They
were also required to put in road work labour, while white Loyalists were not,
and were paid less for any other work they did. Grants of acreage were promised
to Loyalist immigrants, and again, the Blacks did not receive their proper
share. Waiting years for small plots unsuitable for farming or for no land at
all, the settlers were disillusioned.
Thomas
Peters, a Black military man and leader of the Annapolis group, petitioned
first the Governor of the colony in 1784, and then directly to the British
government in 1790, for fair and equal treatment. His missions were failures.
Instead, the group took up the offer of the Sierra Leone Company in Africa to
populate a new British Colony. On January 15, 1792, “a fleet of 15 ships left
Halifax for West Africa” with 1,200 people aboard, according to Biographi, and
included community leaders, farmers, soldiers and tradespeople.
For
the indentured Black slaves who chose to remain in Canada, life eventually took
a positive turn. The unsavory practice of slavery was not condoned in Canada.
It was abolished in 1834.
------------------
Alice Wilson,
1st Female Geologist
A Geology Pioneer, Dr. Wilson Opened
Doors for Women in Science
Like a lot of little kids, Alice Wilson loved to play outside, examining the rocks and fossils with her brothers, and on family camping and canoe trips. But Alice didn’t outgrow her love of geology when she grew up. Instead, she made it her job, a career that lasted into her 80s.
On
August 26, 1881, Alice Evelyn Wilson was born in Cobourg, Ontario. Her parents
promoted education, and the small girl was learning Latin and Greek from her
mother before she even entered school, said Merna Foster in 100 Canadian
Heroines: Famous and Forgotten Facts. In school, science was Alice’s
passion. She entered Victoria University in 1901 to take courses toward a
teaching degree, one of the small number of professions available to women at
the time.
Career Changed to Geology
Becoming
ill, Alice dropped out of the program and was unable to attend the final year
of her studies. When recovered, she returned to university but this time
working in her area of enthusiasm: assistant at the Mineralogy Department of
the University of Toronto Museum.
In
1909, Alice joined the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC), working as a
temporary clerk in the Invertebrate Paleontology division. Her work, said Natural Resources Canada, was cataloguing,
arranging and labeling “the collection for the Victoria Memorial Museum in
Ottawa, now the Museum of Nature.” Meanwhile, she finished her BA degree, and
was promoted to Museum Assistant in 1911. With the promotion came a raise in
pay, from $800 a year to $850. A rare woman in a male-dominated world, Alice
was now the first female with a professional post at the Geological Survey of
Canada.
Advanced
again in 1919, Alice became Assistant Paleontologist. But all was not equal for
the singular professional woman. While her male colleagues were given cars to
travel to their distant work sites, it was thought inappropriate at the time
for a woman to be at the wheel. Alice was given a bicycle and areas closer to
the GSC to research such as the Ottawa-St. Lawrence Seaway. (She circumvented
the ruling by buying her own Model T Ford.) Requesting leave beginning in 1915
and on to obtain a PhD, Alice was refused repeatedly. The Canadian Federation
of University Women offered her a scholarship in 1926, but still the GSC
refused, noted Collections Canada. It was not until a fuss was
made to politicians and government that Alice was given leave to complete
graduate studies.
Promoted to Geologist
After
years and years of battling for the time, Alice received her Doctorate in
Geology in 1929 from the University of Chicago. Promoted to Associate Geologist
in 1940, she was again advanced to full Geologist after the War; at age 49,
Alice was the first woman Geologist in Canada. Still, the GSC did not recognize
her as Dr. Wilson until 1945.
The
barriers put before Alice did not stop others from recognizing this
ground-breaking woman. In 1935, she was awarded the Order of the British
Empire. In 1936, she was the first Canadian woman to enter the Geological
Society of America, and in 1938, the first woman as Fellow in the Royal Society
of Canada.
Earth Science Work Continued
Compulsory
retirement from the Geological Survey of Canada came for Alice at age 65, but
she was able to keep her office and continued to work at her beloved earth
science. Enjoying the sharing of her knowledge with others, especially children
interested in rocks and fossils, in 1947 Alice wrote “The Earth Beneath Our Feet”,
a school textbook. She taught in lectures and field trips through Carleton
College, now Carleton University in Ottawa, and traveled the world, visiting
the Amazon and other exotic destinations in South America. Carleton University
bestowed Alice with an Honourary Doctor of Laws degree in 1960.
Dr.
Alice Wilson continued working until late 1964, when she retired finally at age
82, just a few months before her death on April 15, 1964. Her career spanning
50 years with the GSC, the love of Geology had captured Alice’s whole life. Her
struggles for advancement in “a man’s world” pushed opened the door for
Canadian women to advance in science.
Source:
100
Canadian Heroines: Famous and Forgotten Faces, by Merna Forster, published by
Dundurn Press, Toronto 2004. Pp. 276-277.
Peter Lymburner
Robertson's Screwdriver
The Invention of the Square-Head Screw
and Driver
There are several versions of the story: Whether he was demonstrating a spring-loaded screwdriver, as mentioned in Mysteries of Canada, or setting up a booth to sell tools, as noted by Canadian Home Workshop, the fact is that Peter Lymburner Robertson cut his hand while he used a regular slot-head screw and screwdriver. The injury was enough to encourage the man to come up with a new device, something that would have a firmer hold and less slippage.
In
1909, Robertson received Canadian patents for his invention of a square-head
screw and driver. The design permitted driving “a screw more quickly…,“ said Cool Canada, “and the screw was self-centering so
only one hand was needed.” The screwdriver fit better in the head of the screw,
so there was less opportunity of sliding out, and less chance of injury.
Competition for Robertson
The
competition did not care for Robertson’s invention. The Steel Company of Canada
tried to have his patents quashed and “a scathing story about him appeared in a
1910 issue of Saturday Night magazine,” according to the book, I Know
That Name! , by Mark Kearney and Randy Ray. Robertson sent his own letter
to the editor, and the attempts to overthrow his gains were unsuccessful.
The
Robertson screw and screwdriver were hugely popular, seen by manufacturers as a
way to speed up production and lessen product damage. Mysteries of Canada
mentioned that “The Fisher Body Company, which made wooden bodies in Canada for
Ford cars, used four to six gross of Robertson screws in the bodywork of the
Model T and eventually Robertson produced socket screws for metal for the metal
bodied Model A.” Henry Ford so appreciated the new screw that he wanted a
licencing arrangement for control of the time-saving tools. Peter Robertson
refused to give up control.
500 People Employed
With
his company, Recess Screws Limited, founded in England, Robertson opened a
manufacturing facility in Milton, Ontario. At the end of World War II, he
employed 500 people in the production of three colour-coded sizes of the
Robertson – green for small, red for medium and black for large. (There is now
yellow, for very small drivers.) Still remarkably popular, the square-head
screw controls 85% of the market in Canada, said Canadian Home Workshop. The Americans are less
familiar with the design, but the Robertsons still own 10% of the American
market.
Born
in 1879, Peter Robertson went from salesman to millionaire with his invention.
A good design that is tough to top, there has been nothing to improve on the
Robertson screw since. Robertson made good use of his fortune, becoming a
renowned philanthropist. He died in 1951.
Source:
I
Know That Name!: The People Behind Canada’s Best-Known Brand Names, by Mar Kearney
and Randy Ray, published by Dundurn Press 2002. Pp 24
Thomas Ahearn: Streetcars to Electric Appliances
Canadian Businessman and Inventor,
Ahearn's Lamps Lit Ottawa Nights
The
industry of telecommunications seems like a modern invention, but it was in its
infancy in the late 1800s. The young Thomas Ahearn saw his future in
telecommunications, training as a telegrapher at age 15 in Ottawa, Ontario –
for free. His skills lead him to the Montreal Telegraph Company in 1878. Two
years later, said his obituary on Rootsweb, he became manager of the local Bell
Telephone Company.
Developing
a business partnership with fellow telegrapher and manager of the Dominion
Telegraph Company, Warren Soper, the two men opened the electrical contract
business, Ahearn and Soper in 1881. Men of vision, they opened a number of
companies related to power, light and heat, noted OC Transpo. One of their first accomplishments
was lighting the darkened night streets of the City of Ottawa with electric arc
streetlamps - 165 of them.
New Electric Streetcars
In
Ottawa, Ahearn saw the need for better transportation for the growing city. The
original system used “ten small horse-drawn streetcars, 15 sleighs and 12
omnibuses.” These were not particularly modern. Electric streetcars were the
answer. Ahearn and Soper opened the Ottawa Electric Railway, gaining the contract
to build and run the new rail line in 1891. The new system consisted of four
open rail cars that traveled from “car barns” near Parliament Hill through
central Ottawa to Lansdowne Park. Eventually, there were 29 miles of track
through the city with 68 cars to provide proper transportation around the city.
While
the first electric streetcars came from St. Catherines, the rest of the cars
were built at another of Ahearn’s firms, the Ottawa Car Company. To keep people
moving in winter, a high-speed sweeper was designed for the front of the
streetcars to clear the snow. Electric heaters, invented and patented by
Ahearn, were installed for customer comfort. The innovative streetcars built by
the Ottawa Car Company were sold across Canada, from Newfoundland to Alberta.
Electrical Appliance Patents
A
creator at heart, Ahearn devised several electrical appliances, patenting the
designs for each. The year 1892 was a prolific era for him, achieving patents
for the electric water heater, the electric heater, the electric flat iron, and
for an “apparatus for electrically heating an automatic water supply,”
according to Collections Canada. The same year, he also invented the electric
oven.
The
electric oven was quite different from today’s sleek version. “The oven,” said
CBC Ottawa, was “of brick, about six feet wide and somewhat deeper and about
six feet high… .” Ahead of its time, the oven had small “peepholes” of “heavy
plate glass” so the chef could watch the food cook. The first dinner prepared
in the oven was for guests at the Windsor Hotel in the summer of 1892. The
hotel manager was so impressed with the delicious, well-cooked food that he
ordered an oven on the spot.
Ahearn the Businessman
Still
interested in telegraphy, in 1897 Ahearn built Canada’s initial coast-to-coast
telegraph line and was later involved in the first nation-wide radio
broadcasts. The list of his interests displayed his sharp acumen in a variety
of businesses. Along with the Ahearn and Soper Company, and the Ottawa Car
Company, Ahearn was president of:
·
Ottawa
Electric Company
·
Ottawa
Electric Railway Company
·
Ottawa
Gas Company
·
Ottawa
Investment Company
·
Ottawa
Land Association.
He
was a director of many other firms:
·
Bell
Telephone Company
·
Montreal
Telegraph
·
Bank
of Montreal
·
Canadian
Westinghouse Company
·
Northern
Electric Company
·
Royal
Trust Company.
Chairman
of the Federal District Commission, a great honour was bestowed upon Ahearn for
his work in the beautification of the City of Ottawa. In 1928, he was named a
member of the Queen’s Privy Council.
Ahearn
was the son of Irish parents, John and Honora Ahearn. Born in 1855, he married
Lilias Mackey in 1884 and they became parents of two children, Thomas and
Lilias. (His son became a Member of Parliament.) After the death of his first
wife, he married Margaret Howitt. Thomas Ahearn died in Ottawa on June 28, 1938
at the grand age of 83.
Elsie MacGill: Canada's First Woman Engineer
Designed the Maple Leaf II Trainer,
Adapted the Hawker Hurricane
Her
exterior of pretty, fine features and slender build did not give a clue to the
indomitable strength of spirit intrinsic to Elsie MacGill. Born Elizabeth
Muriel Gregory MacGill in 1905 to upper-middle class Vancouver parents, Elsie’s
father was a lawyer, her mother a judge: the first woman judge in British
Columbia. Judge Helen MacGill was also a suffragist for women’s rights, no
doubt inspiring her daughter with positive aspirations.
Attending
the University of Toronto, Elsie graduated in 1927 as the first woman in Canada
with an electrical engineering degree in hand. She accepted a position with the
Austin Automobile Company in Pontiac, Michigan, just in time for their
introduction to aircraft manufacturing. Aeronautics, it seems, captured Elsie’s
imagination, noted Collections Canada. Enrolling at the University
of Michigan, she graduated in 1929 with her Masters Degree in Aeronautical
Engineering. Once again, she was the first woman to hold such degree. But the
horizon held surprises for the talented engineer, and they were not all pleasant.
Slowed by Polio
An
unexpected challenge presented itself the same year Elsie received her
aeronautical degree. “Acute Infantile Myelitis”, a form of polio, struck her
down. Polio is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system and may
cause permanent or temporary paralysis. Staring at the grim prognosis of never
walking again, Elsie refused to be daunted. To support herself and pay her
medical bills, she wrote articles about aviation for magazines. She also used
her time for further education, enrolling at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology to complete her Doctoral degree. And Elsie began to recover. It was
not an easy task, though. After much determined effort and using two canes, she
was able to get around on her own two feet.
Stepping
back into her work in the aeronautics field in 1934, Elsie took a post as
Assistant Aeronautical Engineer with Fairchild Aircraft Ltd. in Longueuil,
Quebec. Four years later, she moved on to the Canadian Car and Foundry Company
in a position suited to her education and skills: Chief Aeronautical Engineer.
As the world’s first woman aircraft designer, Dr. Elsie MacGill designed the
essential Canadian trainer airplanes, the Maple Leaf II. Due to her
disability, she was not able to become a pilot and test her creation herself,
but she was aboard the plane on all test flights.
Hawker Hurricane Adaptation
During
WWII, Hawker Hurricane fighter airplanes were in urgent production for use in
the Battle of Britain. Now a powerful leader, Elsie
“was in charge of all engineering work, adapting the Hurricane to fly in cold
weather,” Collections Canada stated. “Between 1939 and 1943, Can-Car built
1,451 Hawker Hurricanes under her leadership.” She also was lead engineer for
the United States Navy’s Curtiss-Wright Helldiver fighter planes.
Home
and family were not left out of Dr. MacGill’s life. Elsie married William
Soulsby in 1943, but set another first for the era by keeping her own last
name. The new family (Soulsby was a widower with two children) moved to
Toronto, Ontario, where Elsie began her own aeronautical engineering consulting
firm. She also took on the role of the first woman Technical Advisor of the
Civil Aviation Organization to the United Nations in 1946.
Dr.
Elsie MacGill received numerous awards and honours for the inroads she made in
her career. To list only a few:
·
1941
Gzowskie Medal of the Engineering Institute of Canada
·
1953
Award from the American Society of Women Engineers (She was the first
non-American to receive the honour.)
·
1967
Canada’s Centennial Medal
·
1971
The Order of Canada
·
1973
The Julian Smith Award, Engineering Institute of Canada
·
1975
Amelia Earhart Medal, International Association of Women Pilots
·
1979
Gold Medal from the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario
·
“Queen of the Hurricane: Elsie MacGill” was published
during the 1940’s, a comic book that described the accomplishments of the
inspiring woman.
Member of the Royal Commission
Following
in her mother’s path, Elsie was interested in the betterment of women’s lives.
She became a Commissioner on the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in
1966, making her mark with differing, modern views. An example provided by
Collections Canada said Elsie, in a “Separate Statement”, “wanted abortion
removed from the entirety of the Criminal Code,” and urged paid maternity
leaves for mothers. She also wrote a book about her mother, “My Mother the
Judge: A Biography of Helen Gregory MacGill,” published in 1955.
Becoming
a trail-blazer did not seem like anything special to her. “I’m no hero. I was
lucky,” she was quoted on Inventive Women, “I got a good education. So my
mother was a judge; so what? I didn’t think it was any more remarkable for a
woman being a judge than it was for me to be an engineer.”
After
a long and remarkable life of opening closed doors for herself and other women
in science, engineering and business, Dr. Elsie MacGill died in 1980.
Posthumously, she was inducted into the Canadian Science and Engineering Hall
of Fame, and into the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame.
Maple Leaf is National Emblem of Canada
Symbol of the Land and People for
Centuries
Native people were the first to discover 'sinzibuckwud', the Algonquin word for maple syrup, meaning literally 'drawn from wood'. They knew that the sap was a source of nutrition, and shared their knowledge with the settlers.
Maple Leaf Symbol of the Land and People
The
people of New France (Quebec) settled first along the St. Lawrence River more
than three centuries ago. They learned the value of maple wood and revelled in
the trees’ glorious autumnal colours. They believed that the maple symbolized
the land and its people.
Maple Leaf First Display as Symbol
·
1834
First Mayor of Montreal, Quebec, Jacques Viger, described the maple as
"king of the forest...the symbol of the Canadian people"
·
"Le
Canadien" newspaper selected maple leaves to embellish its heading
·
The
maple leaf design began to appear on flags and banners in Quebec
Distinctive Maple Leaf Badge
·
1848
“Maple Leaf”, an annual literary publication in Toronto, described the maple
leaf as Canada’s chosen emblem
·
1858
The Prince of Wales' Royal Canadian Regiment of Foot 100th was raised. Based in
Quebec, it was the only regiment to have the distinctive maple leaf on its
badge
·
1858
Silver coinage bears two maple boughs that surround the value and the date
·
1859
Coinage has wreath of maple leaves
Maple Leaf Pins as Emblem of Canada
·
1860
During the visit of Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII), citizens in
Toronto were urged to wear maple leaf pins as the emblem of Canada
·
1867
Canada’s confederation song, “The Maple Leaf Forever”, was written by teacher
Alexander Muir
·
1870
Governor General’s flag was the first official flag with a garland of maple
leaves in the centre
·
1876
The maple leaf appeared on all Canadian coins and would do so until 1901
Maple Leaf Insignia in South African
Boer War
·
1899
Insignia worn by Canadians serving in the South African Boer War included the
maple leaf
·
1907
Unofficial badge of Canada was a composite of each province’s
emblems, many with maple leaves
Maple Leaf on Canadians in World War I
·
1914 Lester B. Pearson (Canadian Prime Minister
1963-1968) noted that insignias of almost every battalion from Canada included
the maple leaf. He vowed that he would campaign to have the maple leaf on
Canada’s flag
·
1919
Pattern for Arms of Canada emerged with maple leaves and Royal emblems of
England, Scotland, Ireland, and France
Maple Leaf Regimental Badges of World
War II
·
1939
World War II troops from Canada wore regimental badges that bore the maple
leaf. Canadian army and navy equipment had maple leaf insignia
·
1964
Fifty years after promising to do so, Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson
campaigned for a Canadian flag with a maple leaf. After a month of debate, the
flag was adopted by the Canadian Parliament October 22, 1964.
Maple Leaf on Canadian National Flag
·
1965
February 15, Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson was present when the red and
white Canadian National Flag, with its distinctive red maple leaf, was
proclaimed
As
stated by Prime Minister Paul Martin in a Canada Day speech in Ottawa, July
2005, “The maple leaf is a symbol of duty and valor, pride
and perseverance, ingenuity, diversity and, of course, global hockey supremacy.
More than anything else, it's a symbol of what we as Canadians stand for”.
WILLIAM
NEILSON HALL FOR CONSPICUOUS BRAVERY- FROM NOVA SCOTIA
Born
in Horton Bluff, NS, Hall was the first black, the first Nova Scotian, and the
first Canadian naval recipient of the Victoria Cross (courtesy Library and
Archives Canada/C-18743).
For
most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent act of valour or
self-sacrifice or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy."
Such dry words to describe the courage and daring ascribed to the Victoria
Cross (VC), the Commonwealth's highest decoration for bravery
William
Neilson Hall, the son of former slaves, won the VC for his actions on behalf of
the Crown during the Indian Mutiny. He was the first Canadian naval recipient,
the first black and the first Nova Scotian to win the prestigious medal.
Hall
was serving in the Far East aboard the HMS Shannon in June 1857 when the
Sepoys of the Indian Army of the East India Company mutinied. The insurrection
spread rapidly, fuelled by resentment against the colonizing British and
sparked into flame by the rumour that the Sepoys' Enfield rifle cartridges were
greased with the fat of pigs and cows. Contact with them would destroy the
Mohammedan's purity and the Hindu caste.
Nearby
British warships were dispatched to Indian ports, the Shannon to
Calcutta, where the captain received orders to send men overland to Cawnpore
and Lucknow.
Cawnpore,
an important military post on the Ganges River, was guarded lightly by the
British, its commander, Sir Hugh Wheeler, having faith in the loyalty of his
Sepoy troops. The Cawnpore 2nd Cavalry mutinied on June 5. The Sepoys outnumbered
the British and quickly gained the advantage. They killed every white person,
believing that if all the whites were dead, the British would not retake the
city. Help arrived too late.
The
Lucknow garrison, under Sir Henry Lawrence, was surrounded by rebels. The
British force there was prepared for battle and put up a good fight waiting for
reinforcement. Relief columns fighting their way to the garrisons were badgered
by Sepoy rebels. The "Shannon Brigade" made its way up the
Ganges to Allahabad. They began the arduous overland journey on September 2,
dragging eight ship's guns to take back the garrisons, and suffered many
losses. The guns proved useful for fighting their way forward. Each required
six men to operate it; each man was numbered, beginning with the officer in
charge. If that officer were killed or wounded, number two man would move up
into his position, and so on. The system avoided confusion and kept the gun
firing.
As
the Shannon group advanced toward Cawnpore, the Sepoys' attacks
intensified. The naval force was joined in Cawnpore by Sir Colin Campbell and
his Highlanders. They began the treacherous 72-km trek to Lucknow, where the
British — soldiers, women and children — had retreated to the Residency and
were held down by the Sepoys. Escape was impossible with the narrows streets
under rebel control.
They
reached Lucknow in November. Campbell needed to take the outer walls and fight
his way through the streets to reach the Residency. He launched the main attack
from the southeast, where the mutineers' line was disrupted by the jungle. On
the west of Lucknow stood a huge mosque, the Shah Najaf, from which issued a
deadly hail of musket balls and grenades. The British had to take the mosque,
but without scaling ladders and with a 6-metre wall to surmount, they had to
breech the walls. They dragged the guns to within 350 metres of the wall,
banging shell after shell at it, making little impact. The guns had to move
closer.
The
sailors dragged the guns up, sustaining heavy casualties in the process. The
mosque walls were loopholed in such a way that the naval gunners were safe from
fire at a certain point. But every shot from the big guns caused them to recoil
back into the fire zone. Soon only Hall and one officer, Lt Thomas Young, who
was wounded, were still standing to man their gun. Hall, now Number One on the
gun, kept loading and firing, dragging it back after every recoil, over and
over. Finally the wall was breached sufficiently to allow a number of
Highlanders to scramble through and open the gate to admit the rest of the
force. For his heroic actions that November 16, 1857, Hall was awarded the
Victoria Cross. He served in the Royal Navy until 1876, then retired in Horton
Bluff, NS, where he lived until his death.
Laura
Neilson Bonikowsky is the Associate Editor of The Canadian Encyclopedia.
PORTIA
WHITE- NOVA SCOTIA
White,
Portia
Portia White, the singer who broke the colour barrier in Canadian classical music (photo by Yousuf Karsh, courtesy Library and Archives Canada/PA-
Portia White, the singer who broke the colour barrier in Canadian classical music (photo by Yousuf Karsh, courtesy Library and Archives Canada/PA-
Portia
(May) White. Contralto, teacher, b Truro, NS, 24 Jun 1911, d Toronto 13 Feb
1968. Portia White was raised in Halifax, where she sang in her church choir as
a child. After taking teacher training at Dalhousie University in 1929, she
became a schoolteacher in Nova Scotian Black communities, eg, Africville and
Lucasville. She took voice lessons (as a mezzo-soprano) with Bertha Cruikshanks
at the Halifax Conservatory of Music, and sang on
devotional radio broadcasts hosted by her father, a church minister, in the 1930s.
She competed in the Halifax Music Festival, her extraordinary voice winning the
Helen Kennedy Silver Cup 1935, 1937, and 1938. The Halifax
Ladies' Musical Club provided a scholarship for study with Ernesto
Vinci at the Halifax Conservatory of Music in 1939. Under Vinci,
White began to sing as a contralto.
After
giving only a handful of recitals, eg, at Acadia and Mount Allison universities
in 1940, White made her formal debut at age 30 at Toronto's Eaton
Auditorium 7 Nov 1941. Hector
Charlesworth 's review observed, "she sings Negro spirituals
with pungent expression and beauty of utterance" (Toronto Globe and
Mail). Writing in the Toronto Evening Telegram, Edward Wodson said
White had a "coloured and beautifully shaded contralto all the way. . . .
It is a natural voice, a gift from heaven ."
Portia
White became the first Black Canadian concert singer to win approval across
North America, despite difficulties obtaining bookings because of her race. She
reached the high point of her brief career with a widely acclaimed recital at
Town Hall, New York, 13 Mar 1944. She then embarked on a highly successful tour
of Canada and the northern US, attracting comparisons to African-American
contralto Marian Anderson. During this period, White lived in New York.
Later
Career
Following
a tour in 1946 of Central and South America, White found herself in vocal
difficulties as well as problems with her management. In 1948 she toured the
Maritimes and sang in Switzerland and France, but she soon retired from public
singing. In 1952 she moved to Toronto and began studying with Irene
Jessner at the Royal Conservatory of Music. White herself began
teaching voice in Toronto, at Branksome Hall school and privately. By the
mid-1950s she resumed her career, although sporadically, singing only a few
concerts in the 1950s-60s, one of which was before Queen Elizabeth at
Charlottetown's Confederation Centre 6 Oct 1964. White's final
concert took place July 1967 in Ottawa.
Teaching;
Tributes
Among
White's few recordings was a song recital under the title Think on Me
(White House LP 6901). Dinah Christie was a pupil of White in the
mid-1960s, as were Judy Lander and Anne-Marie Moss; she also taught Lorne
Greene and Robert Goulet. A memorial scholarship in her
honour is presented by the Nova Scotia Talent Trust (established in 1944 to
assist White's career). Other tributes include a commemorative postage stamp; a
monument in Truro, NS; a film documentary (Think on Me); and the 2007
East Coast Music Awards' Helen Creighton lifetime achievement award. White
has been called "the singer who broke the colour barrier in Canadian
classical music" (Halifax Chronicle-Herald, 27 Apr 1996).
Discography
Think
on Me.
1968. White House Records WH-6901
Great
Voices of Canada, Vol 5. White et al. Analekta AN 2 7806
First
You Dream.
1999. C. White W001-2
Library
and Archives Canada also holds audio recordings of White's live performances.
Bibliography
Aitken,
Margaret. 'Portia White, the new Canadian star of the concert stage,' Saturday
Night, 8 Apr 1944
Geller,
Vincent. 'I, too, am Nova Scotia,' Performing Arts in Canada, vol 23,
Sep 1986
White,
Jay. "Portia: A portrait," paper presented to the Royal Nova Scotia
Historical Society 15 Sep 1992
White,
Jay. 'Portia White's spiritual winter,' Collections of the Royal Nova Scotia
Historical Society, vol 44, 1995
Russell,
Hilary. "Portia White," paper, Historic Sites and Monuments Board of
Canada, 1995
Nurse,
Donna Bailey. 'Portia White, 1911-1968,' Opera Canada, vol 39, Fall 1998
Goodall,
Lian. Singing Towards the Future: The Story of Portia White [juvenile]
(Toronto 2004)
Links to Other Sites
Black History Canada
An extensive Internet portal featuring links to online resources about the history and culture of the Black community in Canada. Topics include enslavement, early Black settlements, human rights, immigration, and prominent personalities and community leaders in business, government, religion, sports, the military, and the arts. A Historica Foundation of Canada website.
Portia White fonds
A Music Division archival guide for the Portia White fonds. Includes a brief biographical sketch. From Library and Archives Canada.
Portia White
About the life and career of outstanding classical singer Protia White, recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the East Coast Music Association.
Think on Me
A brief tribute to Canadian contralto Portia White. From the website novascotia.com.
Who Will Remember Us?
This Parks Canada brochure highlights women whose accomplishments have been recognized by commemorative plaques in Atlantic Canada. It also illustrates some of the places and events associated with women.
Nova Scotia's Black Heritage
A series of articles about the history of Nova Scotia's Black community.From the website for Highway 7 magazine.
An extensive Internet portal featuring links to online resources about the history and culture of the Black community in Canada. Topics include enslavement, early Black settlements, human rights, immigration, and prominent personalities and community leaders in business, government, religion, sports, the military, and the arts. A Historica Foundation of Canada website.
Portia White fonds
A Music Division archival guide for the Portia White fonds. Includes a brief biographical sketch. From Library and Archives Canada.
Portia White
About the life and career of outstanding classical singer Protia White, recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the East Coast Music Association.
Think on Me
A brief tribute to Canadian contralto Portia White. From the website novascotia.com.
Who Will Remember Us?
This Parks Canada brochure highlights women whose accomplishments have been recognized by commemorative plaques in Atlantic Canada. It also illustrates some of the places and events associated with women.
Nova Scotia's Black Heritage
A series of articles about the history of Nova Scotia's Black community.From the website for Highway 7 magazine.
Only
a small percentage of the great inventions invented by Canadian inventors are
listed below.
·
5 Pin
Bowling A truly Canadian sport invented by T.E. Ryan of Toronto
in 1909[
·
Able Walker The walker was patented by Norm Rolston
in 1986
·
Air-Conditioned Railway Coach Invented by
Henry Ruttan in 1858
·
Abdominizer The infomercial exercise darling
invented by Dennis Colonello in 1984
·
AC Radio Tube Invented by Edward Samuels Rogers in
1925
·
Acetylene Thomas L. Wilson invented the
production process in 1892
·
Acetylene Buoy Invented by Thomas L. Wilson in
1904
·
Agrifoam Crop Cold Protector Co-invented in
1967 by D. Siminovitch & J. W. Butler
·
Analytical Plotter 3D map-making system invented by
Uno Vilho Helava in 1957
·
Andromonon Three-wheeled vehicle invented in 1851
by Thomas Turnbull
·
Anti-Gravity
Suit Invented by Wilbur Rounding Franks in 1941, a suit for high
altitude jet pilots
·
Automatic
Foghorn The first steam foghorn was invented by Robert Foulis in
1859
·
Automatic
Postal Sorter In 1957, Maurice Levy invented a postal sorter
that could handle 200,000 letters an hour
·
Basketball
Invented by James Naismith in 1891
·
Bone Marrow Compatibility Test Invented by
Barbara Bain in 1960
·
Calcium
Carbide Thomas Leopold Willson invented a process for Calcium
Carbide in 1892
·
Canada
Dry Ginger Ale Invented in 1907 by John A. McLaughlin
·
Chocolate Nut Bar Arthur Ganong made the first
nickel bar in 1910
·
Computerized Braille Invented by
Roland Galarneau in 1972
·
Creed Telegraph System Fredrick Creed
invented a way to convert Morse Code to text in 1900
·
Compound Steam Engine Invented by
Benjamin Franklin Tibbetts in 1842
·
CPR
Mannequin invented by Dianne Croteau in 1989
·
Electric Car Heater Thomas Ahearn
invented the first electric car heater in 1890
·
Electric Cooking Range Thomas Ahearn
invented the first in 1882
·
Electric Light Bulb Henry Woodward
invented an electric light bulb in 1874 and sold the patent to Thomas Edison
·
Electron
Microscope Eli Franklin Burton, Cecil Hall, James Hillier,
Albert Prebus co-invented the electron microscope in 1937
·
Electric Organ Morse Robb of Belleville,
Ontario, patented the world's first electric organ in 1928
·
Electric Streetcar John Joseph Wright invented an
electric streetcar in 1883
Continue>> More
Canadian Inventors - F to Z
Fathometer An early form
of sonar invented by Reginald A. Fessenden in 1919
Film Colourization Invented by Wilson
Markle in 1983 Garbage Bag
(polyethylene)
Invented by Harry Wasylyk in 1950
Goalie
Mask
Invented by Jaques Plante in 1960
Gramophone Co-invented by
Alexander Graham Bell & Emile Berliner in 1889
Green
Ink
Currency ink invented by Thomas Sterry Hunt in 1862
·
Half-tone Engraving Co-invented by
Georges Edouard Desbarats and William Augustus Leggo in 1869
·
Heart
Pacemaker Invented by Dr. John A. Hopps in 1950
·
Hydrofoil
Boat Co-invented by Alexander Graham Bell and Casey Baldwin in
1908
·
IMax Movie System Co-invented in 1968 by Grahame
Ferguson, Roman Kroitor, and Robert Kerr
·
Instant Mashed Potatos Dehydrated
potato flakes were invented by Edward A. Asselbergs in 1962
·
Insulin
Process Fredrick Banting, J. J. Macleod, Charles Best and Collip
invented the process for insulin in 1922
·
JAVA
Software programming language invented by James Gosling in 1994
·
Jetliner The first commercial jetliner to fly in
North America was designed by James Floyd in 1949. The first test flight of the
Avro Jetliner was on August 10 1949.
·
Jolly Jumper Baby's delight invented by Olivia Poole
in 1959
·
Kerosene
Invented by Doctor Abraham Gesner in 1846
·
Marquis Wheat Invented by Sir Charles E. Saunders in
1908
·
McIntosh Apple Invented by John McIntosh in
1796
·
Music
Synthesizer Invented by Hugh Le Caine in 1945
·
Newsprint
Invented by Charles Fenerty in 1838
·
Odometer
Invented by Samuel McKeen in 1854
·
Paint Roller invented by Norman Breakey of Toronto
in 1940
·
Plexiglas Polymerized Methyl Methacrylate
invented by William Chalmers in 1931
·
Polypump Liquid Dispenser Harold Humphrey
made pumpable liquid hand soap possible in 1972
·
Portable Film Developing System Invented by
Arthur Williams McCurdy in 1890, but he foolishly sold the patent to George
Eastman in 1903
·
Potato Digger Invented by Alexander Anderson in 1856
·
Process to Extract Helium from Natural Gas Invented by Sir
John Cunningham McLennan in 1915
·
Prosthetic Hand An electric prosthetic invented
by Helmut Lucas in 1971
·
R-Theta Navigation System Invented by
J.E.G. Wright in 1958
·
Railway Car Brake Invented by George B. Dorey in
1913
·
Railway Sleeper Car Invented by
Samuel Sharp in 1857
·
Robertson
Screw Invented by Peter L. Robertson in 1908
·
Rotary Blow Molding Machine Plastic bottle
maker invented by Gustave Côté in 1966
·
Rotary Railroad Snowplow Invented by
J.E. Elliott in 1869
·
Safety Paint A high reflectivity paint invented by
Neil Harpham in 1974
·
Screw Propeller Ship's propeller invented by
John Patch in 1833
·
SlickLicker Made for cleaning oil spills and
patented by Richard Sewell in 1970
·
Snowblower
Invented by Arthur Sicard in 1925
·
Snowmobile
Invented by Joseph-Armand Bombardier in 1958
·
Stereo-orthography
Map Making System Invented by T.J. Blachut, Stanley Collins in 1965
·
Superphosphate Fertilizer Invented by
Thomas L. Wilson in 1896
·
Synthetic Sucrose Invented by Dr. Raymond Lemieux
in 1953
·
Television Camera Invented by F. C. P. Henroteau
in 1934
·
Telephone Handset Invented by Cyril Duquet in 1878
·
Tone-to-Pulse Converter Invented by Michael
Cowpland in 1974
·
Trivial
Pursuit Invented in 1979 by Chris Haney and Scott Abbott
·
Tuck-Away-Handle Beer Carton Invented by
Steve Pasjac in 1957
·
Undersea Telegraph Cable Invented by
Fredrick Newton Gisborne in 1857
·
UV-degradable Plastics Invented by Dr.
James Guillet in 1971
·
Variable Pitch Aircraft Propeller Invented by
Walter Rupert Turnbull in 1922
·
Walkie-Talkie
Invented by Donald L. Hings in 1942
·
Wirephoto Edward Samuels Rogers invented the
first in 1925
·
Zipper
Invented by Gideon Sundback in 1913
4 different lists.... each have Canadians the other has not.... so if you really want to know.... check them all out.. below... 2, 3 and 4...
Acrylics
(Plexiglas/Perspex/Lucite- William Chalmers
Actar 911 CPR Dummy - Dianne Croteau, Richard Brault and Jonathan Vinden
air-conditioned railway coach - Henry Ruttan (1858)
Antigravity suit - Wilbur R. Franks (1940)
Balderdash - Laura Robinson and Paul Toyne (1984)
Basketball- James Naismith was the Canadian physical education instructor who invented basketball in 1891 (1892)
batteryless radio (AC radio tube) - Edward Samuel Rogers Sr. (1925)
bovril
butter substitute
Canadarm - SPAR and the National Aeronautical Establishment (1981)
calcium carbide and acetylene gas (production of)- Thomas L. "Carbide" Wilson (1892)
carcino embryonic antigen (CEA) blood test - Dr. Phil Gold (1968)
cardiac intensive care unit (first)
cobalt bomb- University of Saskatchewan and Eldorado Mining and Refining (1951)
compound marine engine - Benjamin Franklin Tibbets compound revolving snow shovel (trains)
computerized braille
crash position indicator (C.P.I) - Harry T. Stevinson and David M. Makow (1959)
Actar 911 CPR Dummy - Dianne Croteau, Richard Brault and Jonathan Vinden
air-conditioned railway coach - Henry Ruttan (1858)
Antigravity suit - Wilbur R. Franks (1940)
Balderdash - Laura Robinson and Paul Toyne (1984)
Basketball- James Naismith was the Canadian physical education instructor who invented basketball in 1891 (1892)
batteryless radio (AC radio tube) - Edward Samuel Rogers Sr. (1925)
bovril
butter substitute
Canadarm - SPAR and the National Aeronautical Establishment (1981)
calcium carbide and acetylene gas (production of)- Thomas L. "Carbide" Wilson (1892)
carcino embryonic antigen (CEA) blood test - Dr. Phil Gold (1968)
cardiac intensive care unit (first)
cobalt bomb- University of Saskatchewan and Eldorado Mining and Refining (1951)
compound marine engine - Benjamin Franklin Tibbets compound revolving snow shovel (trains)
computerized braille
crash position indicator (C.P.I) - Harry T. Stevinson and David M. Makow (1959)
dental mirror
disintegrating plastic
ear piercer
electric cooking range - Thomas Ahearn (1882)
electric hand prosthesis for children - Helmut Lukas (1971)
electrical car (North America's first)
electric wheelchair - George J. Klein
elecron microscope- Prof. E. F. Burton and Cecil Hall, James Hillier and Albert Prebus (late 1930s)
electronic wave organ - Frank Morse Robb (1927)
explosives vapour detector - Dr Lorne Elias (1990)
fathometer- Reginald Fessenden
film developing tank
five pin bowling- Thomas E. Ryan (1909)
foghorn - Robert Foulis (1854)
frozen fish - Dr. Archibald G. Huntsman (1926)
disintegrating plastic
ear piercer
electric cooking range - Thomas Ahearn (1882)
electric hand prosthesis for children - Helmut Lukas (1971)
electrical car (North America's first)
electric wheelchair - George J. Klein
elecron microscope- Prof. E. F. Burton and Cecil Hall, James Hillier and Albert Prebus (late 1930s)
electronic wave organ - Frank Morse Robb (1927)
explosives vapour detector - Dr Lorne Elias (1990)
fathometer- Reginald Fessenden
film developing tank
five pin bowling- Thomas E. Ryan (1909)
foghorn - Robert Foulis (1854)
frozen fish - Dr. Archibald G. Huntsman (1926)
Garbage bag (green plastic) - Harry Wasyluk and
Larry Hanson (1950s)
Gestalt Photo Mapper - G. Hobrough (1975)
gingerale - John J. McLaughlin (1904)
Goalie mask - Jacques Plante (1959)
Green Ink - Thomas Sterry Hunt (1862)
hair tonic
heart valve operation (first)
helicopter trap (for landing on ships)
helium as a substitute for hydrogen in airships
hydrofoil boat - Alexander Graham Bell and Casey Baldwin (1908)
IMAX- Grahame Ferguson, Roman Kroitor, Robert Kerr (1968)
instant potato flakes - Dr. Edward Asselbegs and the Food Research Institute (1962)
insulation
Insulin (as diabetes treatment) - Dr. Frederick Banting (Canadian), Dr. Charles Best and Dr. Collip (1921)
Gestalt Photo Mapper - G. Hobrough (1975)
gingerale - John J. McLaughlin (1904)
Goalie mask - Jacques Plante (1959)
Green Ink - Thomas Sterry Hunt (1862)
hair tonic
heart valve operation (first)
helicopter trap (for landing on ships)
helium as a substitute for hydrogen in airships
hydrofoil boat - Alexander Graham Bell and Casey Baldwin (1908)
IMAX- Grahame Ferguson, Roman Kroitor, Robert Kerr (1968)
instant potato flakes - Dr. Edward Asselbegs and the Food Research Institute (1962)
insulation
Insulin (as diabetes treatment) - Dr. Frederick Banting (Canadian), Dr. Charles Best and Dr. Collip (1921)
Java-
James Gosling
Jetline
Jolly jumper - Olivia Poole
kerosene - Abraham Gesner (1840)
lacrosse - played since the 1600s; William George Beers set out standard rules (1860)
laser (sailboat) - Bruce Kirby, Ian Bruce and Hans Fogh (1969)
lightbulb (first patented) - Henry Woodward (1874)
liposomes
Jetline
Jolly jumper - Olivia Poole
kerosene - Abraham Gesner (1840)
lacrosse - played since the 1600s; William George Beers set out standard rules (1860)
laser (sailboat) - Bruce Kirby, Ian Bruce and Hans Fogh (1969)
lightbulb (first patented) - Henry Woodward (1874)
liposomes
machine gun tracer bullet
MacPherson gas mask
measure for footwear
Muskol
Newtsuit - Phil Nuytten
newsprint - Charles Fenerty (1838)
Nursing Mother Breast Pads- Marsha Skrypuch(1986)
MacPherson gas mask
measure for footwear
Muskol
Newtsuit - Phil Nuytten
newsprint - Charles Fenerty (1838)
Nursing Mother Breast Pads- Marsha Skrypuch(1986)
Pablum-
Drs. Alan Brown, Fred Tisdall, and Theo Drake (1930s)
pacemaker - Wilfred Bigelow
paint roller - Norman Breakey (1940)
panoramic camera - John Connon (1887)
Phi (position homing indicator for aircraft)
Pictionary - Rob Angel (1986)
pizza pizza telephone computer delivery services
portable high chair
Puzz-3D
(A) Question of Scruples - Robert Simpson (1984)
radar profile recorder - NRC (1947)
radio compass
retractable beer carton handle (Tuck-away-handle Beer Carton) - Steve Pasjac (1957)
rollerskate
pacemaker - Wilfred Bigelow
paint roller - Norman Breakey (1940)
panoramic camera - John Connon (1887)
Phi (position homing indicator for aircraft)
Pictionary - Rob Angel (1986)
pizza pizza telephone computer delivery services
portable high chair
Puzz-3D
(A) Question of Scruples - Robert Simpson (1984)
radar profile recorder - NRC (1947)
radio compass
retractable beer carton handle (Tuck-away-handle Beer Carton) - Steve Pasjac (1957)
rollerskate
screw
propeller
ski-binding
Snowblower - Arthur Sicard (1927)
Snowmobile- Joseph-Armand Bombardier(1937)
snowplow (rotary) - invented by J.W. Elliot (1869), first built by Leslie Brothers (1883)
steam foghorn
standard time - Sir Sanford Fleming (1879)
Stanley Cup - (Canada's Governor-General) Lord Stanley of Preston (1893)
Stol aircraft - de Havilland Canada (1948)
submarine telegraph cable
Superman - Joe Shuster and Jerome Siegel (1938)
Table Hockey- Donald Munro (1930s)
telephone - Alexander Graham Bell (1874)
Trivial Pursuit - Chris Haney, John Haney and Scott Abbott (1982)
ski-binding
Snowblower - Arthur Sicard (1927)
Snowmobile- Joseph-Armand Bombardier(1937)
snowplow (rotary) - invented by J.W. Elliot (1869), first built by Leslie Brothers (1883)
steam foghorn
standard time - Sir Sanford Fleming (1879)
Stanley Cup - (Canada's Governor-General) Lord Stanley of Preston (1893)
Stol aircraft - de Havilland Canada (1948)
submarine telegraph cable
Superman - Joe Shuster and Jerome Siegel (1938)
Table Hockey- Donald Munro (1930s)
telephone - Alexander Graham Bell (1874)
Trivial Pursuit - Chris Haney, John Haney and Scott Abbott (1982)
variable
Pitch Propeller - Wallace Rupert Turnbull (1918)
Walkie-Talkie - Donald L. Hings (1942)
washing machine
wirephoto - Sir William Stephenson (1921)
Yachtzee
Zipper- Gideon Sundback (1913)
Walkie-Talkie - Donald L. Hings (1942)
washing machine
wirephoto - Sir William Stephenson (1921)
Yachtzee
Zipper- Gideon Sundback (1913)
Thanks, in partto the the books Made In
Canada (Laubach Literacy of Canada) and
Canada Firsts (Ralph Nader, Nadia Milleron and Duff Conacher) for help with this page!
Canada Firsts (Ralph Nader, Nadia Milleron and Duff Conacher) for help with this page!
SNAPSHOT...
5 pin bowling ...invented by Thomas F.Ryan a Canadian in 1909.
Abdominizer ...the infomercial exerciser invented by Dennis Colonello
in 1984.
Able Walker ...the walker was patented by Norm Rolston in 1986
Air-Conditioned Railway Coach ...invented by Henry Ruttan in 1858
Analytical Plotter ...3D map-making system invented by Uno Vilho Helava in
1957.
Andromonon ...Three-wheeled vehicle invented in 1851 by Thomas Turnbull.
Anti-Gravity Suit.....invented by Wilbur Rounding Franks in 1941
Automatic Foghorn...The first steam foghorn was invented by Robert Foulis
in 1859.
Basketball......invented by James Naismith in 1891
Bone Marrow Compatibility Test ...invented by Barbara Bain in 1960
Canada Dry Ginger Ale.....invented in 1907 by John A. McLaughlin
Chocolate Nut Bar.....Arthur Ganong made the first nickel bar in 1910
Computerized Braille ...invented by Roland Galarneau in 1972
Electric Car Heater ...Thomas Ahearn invented the first electric car heater in
1890
Electric Cooking Range ...Thomas Ahearn invented the first in 1882
Electric Light Bulbs.....Henry Woodward invented the electric light bulb in 1874
and the patent was sold to Thomas Edison
Electric Organ.....Morse Robb of Belleville, Ontario, patented the
world's first electric organ in 1928
Explosives Vapour Detector - invented by Dr Lorne Elias in 1990
Gramophone......co-invented by Alexander Graham Bell & Emile
Berliner in 1889
Heart-Pacemaker.....invented by Dr. John A. Hopps in 1950
Helium Extraction from Natural Gas...invented by Sir John Cunningham McLennan in 1915
Instant Mashed Potatoes.....dehydrated potato flakes were invented by Edward A.
Asselbergs, in 1962
Insulin isolated ....by Dr. Frederick G. Banting and Dr. Charles H.
Best in 1921
JAVA Software programming language ...invented by James Gosling in 1994.
Jetliner ...the first jetliner was designed by James Floyd in 1949
Jolly Jumper ...a baby's delight invented by Olivia Poole in 1959.
Kerosene.....invented by Doctor Abraham Gesner in 1846
Paint Roller.....invented by Norman Breakey of Toronto in 1940
Plexiglas ...(Polymerized Methyl
Methacrylate).... invented by William Chalmers in
1931
Potato Digger.....invented by Alexander Anderson in 1856
Prosthetic Hand ...an electric prosthetic invented by Helmut Lucas in
1971
Railway Car Brake.....invented by George B. Dorey in 1913
Railway Sleeper Car ...invented by Samuel Sharp in 1857
Snowblower.......invented by Arthur Sicard in 1925
Snowmobile......invented by Joseph-Armand Bombardier in 1922
standard time - Sir Sanford Fleming (1879)
Stanley Cup - (Canada's Governor-General) Lord Stanley of Preston
(1893)
Television.....Reginald A. Fessenden patented a television system in 1927
Television Camera.....invented by F. C. P. Henroteau in 1934
Telephone....invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876
Undersea Telegraph Cable ...invented by Fredrick Newton Gisborne in 1857
Walkie-Talkie......invented by Donald L. Hings in 1942
Wireless Radio......invented by Reginald A. Fessenden in 1900
Zipper.....invented by Gideon Sundback in 1913
I
wonder ....
Who was the first person to look at a
cow and say, " I think I'll squeeze these dangly things here, and drink
what ever comes out."
Who was the first one to look at the
white thing that was coming out of a chickens butt and said, "looks good,
let's eat."
Is Disney Land the only people trap
operated by a mouse?
If flying so safe, why do they call the
airport the terminal?
What do people in China call their good
dishes?
What hair color do they put on a
drivers license of someone who's bald?
Why are there flotation devices in the
seats of airplanes instead of parachutes?
If con is the opposite of pro, is
Congress the opposite of progress?
A little boy wanted $100.00 very
badly and prayed for weeks, but
nothing happened. Then he decided to write God a letter requesting the $100.00. When Canada Post received the letter addressed to God, Canada, they decided to send it to the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister was so amused that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy a $5.00 bill.
The Prime Minister thought this would appear to be a lot of money to
a little boy. The little boy was delighted with the $5.00 bill and sat down to write a thank-you note to God, which read:
Dear God,
Thank you very much for sending the money.
However, I noticed that for some reason you sent it through Ottawa,
and, as usual, those *#%!* deducted $95.00 in taxes.
nothing happened. Then he decided to write God a letter requesting the $100.00. When Canada Post received the letter addressed to God, Canada, they decided to send it to the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister was so amused that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy a $5.00 bill.
The Prime Minister thought this would appear to be a lot of money to
a little boy. The little boy was delighted with the $5.00 bill and sat down to write a thank-you note to God, which read:
Dear God,
Thank you very much for sending the money.
However, I noticed that for some reason you sent it through Ottawa,
and, as usual, those *#%!* deducted $95.00 in taxes.
Fishing License
A couple of young boys were fishing at one of the ponds off the beaten track. All of a sudden, a Game Warden jumped out of the bushes. Immediately, one of the boys threw his rod down and started running through the woods as fast as his feet would take him. The Game Warden was hot on his heels. After about a mile through the the woods, brush and brooks,and 30 minutes later, the young man stopped and stooped over with his hands on his thighs to catch his breath, so the Game Warden finally catches up to him. "Let's see your fishin' license, Boy!" the Warden gasped out of breath. With that, the boy pulled out his wallet and gave the Game Warden a valid fishing license. "Well, son," said the Game Warden, "you must be about as dumb as a box of rocks! You don't have to run from me if you have a valid license!" "Yes, sir," replied the young guy, "but my friend back there, well you see, he doesn't have one."
A couple of young boys were fishing at one of the ponds off the beaten track. All of a sudden, a Game Warden jumped out of the bushes. Immediately, one of the boys threw his rod down and started running through the woods as fast as his feet would take him. The Game Warden was hot on his heels. After about a mile through the the woods, brush and brooks,and 30 minutes later, the young man stopped and stooped over with his hands on his thighs to catch his breath, so the Game Warden finally catches up to him. "Let's see your fishin' license, Boy!" the Warden gasped out of breath. With that, the boy pulled out his wallet and gave the Game Warden a valid fishing license. "Well, son," said the Game Warden, "you must be about as dumb as a box of rocks! You don't have to run from me if you have a valid license!" "Yes, sir," replied the young guy, "but my friend back there, well you see, he doesn't have one."
Herman, a senior citizen was driving
down the highway,when his cell phone rang. Answering, he heard his wife's voice
urgently warning him, "Herman, I just heard on the news that there's a car
going the wrong way on Highway 104. Please be careful!" "Heck,"
said Herman, "It's not just one car. It's hundreds of them!"
Anderson, Pamela - Actress (Baywatch)
Aykroyd, Dan - Actor, Comedian (SNL, Blues Brothers)
Atwood, Margaret - Author (The Handmaid's Tale, Bodily Harm)
Bailey, Donavan - Athlete (track and field)
Bain, Conrad - Actor (Postcards from the Edge, Diff'rent Strokes)
Bateman, Robert - Painter
Atwood, Margaret - Author (The Handmaid's Tale, Bodily Harm)
Bailey, Donavan - Athlete (track and field)
Bain, Conrad - Actor (Postcards from the Edge, Diff'rent Strokes)
Bateman, Robert - Painter
Beach, Adam- Actor
Bellows, Gil - Actor (Ally McBeal, The Assistant)
Black, Conrad - Publisher (owns papers world wide)
Blanchard, Rachel - Actress (Clueless TV series, Iron Eagle IV)
Browning, Kurt - Champion Figure Skater
Bujold, Genevieve - Actress (Dead Ringers, Coma)
Burr, Raymond - Actor (Perry Mason, Ironside)
Burroughs, Jackie - Actress (The Grey Fox, Anne of Green Gables)
Cameron, James - Director (Titanic, The Terminator)
Campbell, Neve - Actress (Party of Five)
Candy, John - Actor, Comedian (SNL, SCTV)
Cardinal, Tantoo - Actress (Dances with Wolves, Legends of the Fall)
Carr, Emily - Painter, Writer
Carrey, Jim - Actor, Comedian (Ace Ventura, Liar Liar)
Carrier, Roch - Author (La Guerre, Yes Sir)
Cattrall, Kim - Actress (Star Trek VI, Outer Limits)
Chong, Thomas - Actor, Comedian (Cheech and Chong, McHale's Navy)
Cohen, Leonard - Author, Musician (Suzanne, Beautiful Losers)
Cronenberg, David - Director, Writer (The Fly, Dead Ringers)
Cronyn, Hume - Actor (Shadow of a Doubt, Cocoon)
Bellows, Gil - Actor (Ally McBeal, The Assistant)
Black, Conrad - Publisher (owns papers world wide)
Blanchard, Rachel - Actress (Clueless TV series, Iron Eagle IV)
Browning, Kurt - Champion Figure Skater
Bujold, Genevieve - Actress (Dead Ringers, Coma)
Burr, Raymond - Actor (Perry Mason, Ironside)
Burroughs, Jackie - Actress (The Grey Fox, Anne of Green Gables)
Cameron, James - Director (Titanic, The Terminator)
Campbell, Neve - Actress (Party of Five)
Candy, John - Actor, Comedian (SNL, SCTV)
Cardinal, Tantoo - Actress (Dances with Wolves, Legends of the Fall)
Carr, Emily - Painter, Writer
Carrey, Jim - Actor, Comedian (Ace Ventura, Liar Liar)
Carrier, Roch - Author (La Guerre, Yes Sir)
Cattrall, Kim - Actress (Star Trek VI, Outer Limits)
Chong, Thomas - Actor, Comedian (Cheech and Chong, McHale's Navy)
Cohen, Leonard - Author, Musician (Suzanne, Beautiful Losers)
Cronenberg, David - Director, Writer (The Fly, Dead Ringers)
Cronyn, Hume - Actor (Shadow of a Doubt, Cocoon)
Doohan,
James - Actor (Star Trek, Loaded Weapon 1)
Dewhurst, Colleen - Actress (Anne of Green Gables, Murphy Brown)
Egoyan, Atom - Director (Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter)
Elliott, David James - Actor (JAG)
Evangelista, Linda - Super Model
Flatman, Barry - Actor (Open Season, The Cutting Edge)
Foley, David - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, Newsradio)
Follows, Megan - Actress (Anne of Green Gables, Reluctant Angel)
Fox, Michael J. - Actor (Spin City, Family Ties)
Francks, Don - Actor (Dinner at Fred's, Harriet the Spy)
Frewer, Matt - Actor (Max Headroom, Star Trek:NG)
Dewhurst, Colleen - Actress (Anne of Green Gables, Murphy Brown)
Egoyan, Atom - Director (Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter)
Elliott, David James - Actor (JAG)
Evangelista, Linda - Super Model
Flatman, Barry - Actor (Open Season, The Cutting Edge)
Foley, David - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, Newsradio)
Follows, Megan - Actress (Anne of Green Gables, Reluctant Angel)
Fox, Michael J. - Actor (Spin City, Family Ties)
Francks, Don - Actor (Dinner at Fred's, Harriet the Spy)
Frewer, Matt - Actor (Max Headroom, Star Trek:NG)
Garber,
Victor - Actor (Titanic, First Wives Club)
Garneau, Marc - Astronaut
Gerussi, Bruno - Actor (Beachcombers, The Hitman)
Goodyear, Scott - IndyCar driver
Gosling, James - Programmer (inventor of Java)
Greene, Graham - Actor (Maverick, Dances With Wolves)
Greene, Lorne - Actor (Bonanza)
Gross, Paul - Actor (Due South, Whale Music)
Hadfield, Chris - Astronaut
Haim, Corey - Actor (The Lost Boys, Snowboard Academy)
Hall, Monty - Game Show Host (Let's Make a Deal)
Hartman, Phil - Actor, Comedian (SNL, Newsradio)
Hennessy, Jillian - Actress (Law and Order, Dead Ringers)
Henstridge, Natasha - Actress (Species, Maximum Risk)
Henning, Doug - Magician
Ironside, Michael - Actor (Scanners, Total Recall)
Ito, Robert - Actor (Quincy, War Between Us)
Garneau, Marc - Astronaut
Gerussi, Bruno - Actor (Beachcombers, The Hitman)
Goodyear, Scott - IndyCar driver
Gosling, James - Programmer (inventor of Java)
Greene, Graham - Actor (Maverick, Dances With Wolves)
Greene, Lorne - Actor (Bonanza)
Gross, Paul - Actor (Due South, Whale Music)
Hadfield, Chris - Astronaut
Haim, Corey - Actor (The Lost Boys, Snowboard Academy)
Hall, Monty - Game Show Host (Let's Make a Deal)
Hartman, Phil - Actor, Comedian (SNL, Newsradio)
Hennessy, Jillian - Actress (Law and Order, Dead Ringers)
Henstridge, Natasha - Actress (Species, Maximum Risk)
Henning, Doug - Magician
Ironside, Michael - Actor (Scanners, Total Recall)
Ito, Robert - Actor (Quincy, War Between Us)
Jackson, Joshua - Actor (Dawson's Creek, Scream 2)
Jenkins, Ferguson - Baseball player (Hall of Fame pitcher)
Jennings, Peter - Journalist (ABC World News Tonight)
Jewison, Norman - Director (Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar)
Johnston, Lynn - Cartoonist (For Better of For Worse)
Kidder, Margot - Actress (Superman)
Kirshner, Mia - Actress (Mad City, Crow: City of Angels)
Kotcheff, Ted - Director (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Joshua Then and Now)
Kuzyk, Mimi - Actress (Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law)
Laure, Carole - Actress (Get Out Your Hankerchiefs, La tete de Normande St-Onge)
Laurence, Margaret - Author (The Diviners, The Stone Angel)
Levy, Eugene - Actor, Comedian (SNL, SCTV)
Lillie, Beatrice - Actress (Exit Smiling, On Approval)
Little, Rich - Impressionist
Jenkins, Ferguson - Baseball player (Hall of Fame pitcher)
Jennings, Peter - Journalist (ABC World News Tonight)
Jewison, Norman - Director (Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar)
Johnston, Lynn - Cartoonist (For Better of For Worse)
Kidder, Margot - Actress (Superman)
Kirshner, Mia - Actress (Mad City, Crow: City of Angels)
Kotcheff, Ted - Director (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Joshua Then and Now)
Kuzyk, Mimi - Actress (Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law)
Laure, Carole - Actress (Get Out Your Hankerchiefs, La tete de Normande St-Onge)
Laurence, Margaret - Author (The Diviners, The Stone Angel)
Levy, Eugene - Actor, Comedian (SNL, SCTV)
Lillie, Beatrice - Actress (Exit Smiling, On Approval)
Little, Rich - Impressionist
MacDonald, Norm - Actor, Comedian (SNL, Dirty
Work)
MacInnes, Angus - Actor (Judge Dredd, Witness)
Mandel, Howie - Actor, Comedian (St. Elsewhere, Bobby's World)
Maxwell, Lois - Actress (Dr. No, A View to a Kill)
McCarthy, Sheila - Actress (Die Hard 2, Beautiful Dreamers)
McCrae, John - Poet, Physician (In Flanders Fields)
McCulloch, Bruce - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, Dog Park)
McDonald, Kevin - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, The Wrong Guy)
McKinney, Mark - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, SNL)
Michaels, Lorne - Producer, Writer (Kids in the Hall, SNL)
Montgomery, Lucy Maude - Author (Anne of Green Gables)
Moranis, Rick - Actor, Comedian (SCTV, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids)
Mowat, Farley - Author (Never Cry Wolf)
Munro, Alice - Author
Myers, Mike - Actor, Comedian (SNL, Austin Powers)
Nelligan, Kate - Actress (The Prince of Tides, U.S. Marshals)
Nielsen, Leslie - Actor (The Naked Gun, Forbidden Planet)
O'Hara, Catherine - Actress, Comedienne (SCTV, Home Alone)
Ontkean, Michael - Actor (The Rookies, Twin Peaks)
Orser, Brian - figure skater
MacInnes, Angus - Actor (Judge Dredd, Witness)
Mandel, Howie - Actor, Comedian (St. Elsewhere, Bobby's World)
Maxwell, Lois - Actress (Dr. No, A View to a Kill)
McCarthy, Sheila - Actress (Die Hard 2, Beautiful Dreamers)
McCrae, John - Poet, Physician (In Flanders Fields)
McCulloch, Bruce - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, Dog Park)
McDonald, Kevin - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, The Wrong Guy)
McKinney, Mark - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall, SNL)
Michaels, Lorne - Producer, Writer (Kids in the Hall, SNL)
Montgomery, Lucy Maude - Author (Anne of Green Gables)
Moranis, Rick - Actor, Comedian (SCTV, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids)
Mowat, Farley - Author (Never Cry Wolf)
Munro, Alice - Author
Myers, Mike - Actor, Comedian (SNL, Austin Powers)
Nelligan, Kate - Actress (The Prince of Tides, U.S. Marshals)
Nielsen, Leslie - Actor (The Naked Gun, Forbidden Planet)
O'Hara, Catherine - Actress, Comedienne (SCTV, Home Alone)
Ontkean, Michael - Actor (The Rookies, Twin Peaks)
Orser, Brian - figure skater
Payette, Julie - Astronaut
Penfield, Wilder - Neurosurgeon (electrical stimulation of the brain)
Perry, Matthew - Actor (Friends)
Pickford, Mary - Actress (Little Lord Fauntleroy, Coquette)
Pinsent, Gordon - Actor, Writer (The Rowdy Man, Due South)
Plummer, Christopher - Actor (The Sound of Music, 12 Monkeys)
Polley, Sarah - Actress (Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter)
Priestley, Jason - Actor (Beverly Hills 90210, Eye of the Beholder)
Progosh, Tim - Actor (Back in Action, Adventures of Sinbad)
Qualen, John - Actor (Casablanca, Anatomy of a Murder)
Reeves, Keanu - Actor (Johnny Mnemonic, Speed)
Richler, Mordecai - Author (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Joshua Then and Now)
Penfield, Wilder - Neurosurgeon (electrical stimulation of the brain)
Perry, Matthew - Actor (Friends)
Pickford, Mary - Actress (Little Lord Fauntleroy, Coquette)
Pinsent, Gordon - Actor, Writer (The Rowdy Man, Due South)
Plummer, Christopher - Actor (The Sound of Music, 12 Monkeys)
Polley, Sarah - Actress (Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter)
Priestley, Jason - Actor (Beverly Hills 90210, Eye of the Beholder)
Progosh, Tim - Actor (Back in Action, Adventures of Sinbad)
Qualen, John - Actor (Casablanca, Anatomy of a Murder)
Reeves, Keanu - Actor (Johnny Mnemonic, Speed)
Richler, Mordecai - Author (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Joshua Then and Now)
Sawa, Devon - Actor (Cool Dry Place, Wild
America)
Schaffer, Paul - Musician (Late Night with David Letterman)
Schnarre, Monika - Actress, Model (The Bold and the Beautiful)
Shatner, William - Actor (Star Trek, TJ Hooker)
Shaver, Helen - Actress (The Craft, Desert Hearts)
Short, Martin - Actor, Comedian (SNL, SCTV)
Shuster, Frank - Comedian (Wayne and Shuster)
Singer, Marc - Actor (V, Guardian)
Smith, Steve - Actor, Comedian (The Red Green Show)
Steen, Jessica - Actress (Armageddon, Trial and Error)
Stoyko, Elvis - figure skater
Sutherland, Donald - Actor (M*A*S*H, Ordinary People)
Sutherland, Kiefer - Actor, Director (A Few Good Men, A Time to Kill)
Thicke, Alan - Actor (Hope and Gloria, Growing Pains)
Thomas, Dave - Actor, Comedian (SCTV, Grace Under Fire)
Thompson, Scott - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall)
Tilly, Jennifer - Actress (Liar Liar, Bound)
Tilly, Meg - Actress (The Big Chill, Body Snatchers)
Trebek, Alex - Actor, Game Show Host (Spy Hard, Jeopardy)
Tweed, Shannon - Actress (Falcon Crest, Singapore Sling)
Schaffer, Paul - Musician (Late Night with David Letterman)
Schnarre, Monika - Actress, Model (The Bold and the Beautiful)
Shatner, William - Actor (Star Trek, TJ Hooker)
Shaver, Helen - Actress (The Craft, Desert Hearts)
Short, Martin - Actor, Comedian (SNL, SCTV)
Shuster, Frank - Comedian (Wayne and Shuster)
Singer, Marc - Actor (V, Guardian)
Smith, Steve - Actor, Comedian (The Red Green Show)
Steen, Jessica - Actress (Armageddon, Trial and Error)
Stoyko, Elvis - figure skater
Sutherland, Donald - Actor (M*A*S*H, Ordinary People)
Sutherland, Kiefer - Actor, Director (A Few Good Men, A Time to Kill)
Thicke, Alan - Actor (Hope and Gloria, Growing Pains)
Thomas, Dave - Actor, Comedian (SCTV, Grace Under Fire)
Thompson, Scott - Actor, Comedian (Kids in the Hall)
Tilly, Jennifer - Actress (Liar Liar, Bound)
Tilly, Meg - Actress (The Big Chill, Body Snatchers)
Trebek, Alex - Actor, Game Show Host (Spy Hard, Jeopardy)
Tweed, Shannon - Actress (Falcon Crest, Singapore Sling)
Vernon, John - Actor (Animal House, Dirty Harry)
Villeneuve, Gilles - Formula One driver
Villeneuve, Jacques - IndyCar driver (1997 Formula One World Champion)
Wayne, Johnny - Comedian (Wayne and Shuster)
Waxman, Al - Actor (Cagney & Lacey, King of Kensington)
Wincott, Jeff - Actor (Profile for Murder, The Undertaker's Wedding)
Wincott, Michael - Actor (Alien: Resurrection, The Crow)
Wiseman, Joseph - Actor (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Dr. No)
Wray, Fay - Actress (King Kong, Summer Love)
Zegers, Kevin - Actor (Traders, Air Bud)
Villeneuve, Gilles - Formula One driver
Villeneuve, Jacques - IndyCar driver (1997 Formula One World Champion)
Wayne, Johnny - Comedian (Wayne and Shuster)
Waxman, Al - Actor (Cagney & Lacey, King of Kensington)
Wincott, Jeff - Actor (Profile for Murder, The Undertaker's Wedding)
Wincott, Michael - Actor (Alien: Resurrection, The Crow)
Wiseman, Joseph - Actor (The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, Dr. No)
Wray, Fay - Actress (King Kong, Summer Love)
Zegers, Kevin - Actor (Traders, Air Bud)
BACK
to Canada eh?
The website and its creator were proudly created
in Canada!
© Tania Hutchison
© Tania Hutchison
---------------
More to come soon!
The Rock : The Island of Newfoundland
Chinook: Winter storm system that causes warm weather
Two-Four : A case of real beer
Breath In, Breath Oat: What we do (And a cool song by Bush)
Deck Al: What Americans
call DEE Kal
The Basketweave: Highway 401 across Toronto
Monsoons : Vancouver weather from Oct to April
Hogtown : Toronto nickname
Cookie : Crazy
2,4 Uh Blue : A case of Labatts blue, please
The Peg : Winnipeg
Kay Beck : Quebec
Seein' the Governor : Drinking rum
Loonies & 2 Knees: Canadian dollar and 2 dollar pieces
Choad: So bad it's good
Zed : The letter after Y
5 point 0 : Minimum beer alcohol level
Skull Cramp: Headache
Sowester: Storm from a certain direction
Die Wrecked : Opposite of indirect
Oil Cloths: Raingear to Americans
Puck : Hockey players girlfriend
The Leafs: Our beloved hockey team
Tronno : Toronto
How Zit Goan, Eh? : How are
you?
With Oat a Doat : Without a doubt
Organ EYE Zay Shun : Organization
AWL: Absent without leave (comparable to AWOL in the States)
Caisse populaire: Type of bank (mostly in Quebec)
Click: kilometre
Forty: 40 ounce bottle of booze (also known as a 'forty pounder')
Hoser: an insult (was popular thanks to Bob and Doug!)
Humidex: result of humidity and temperature
Loony: Dollar (or loonie; plural = loonies)
Mickey: 13 ounce bottle of booze
Pogey: welfare or employment insurance
Poutine: fries, gravy and lots of cheese!
Toonie: 2 dollar coin
Twenty-sixer: 26 ounce bottle of booze (aka twixer)
Two-four: case of 24 beers (may also be pronounce 'two-fer')
Tuque: winter cap
Check out some more Canadian
slang
WHERE DO YOU WANT TO LIVE IN CANADA?
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN BRITISH
COLUMBIA
1. Weed
2. Vancouver: 1.5 million people and two bridges
3. The local hero is a pot-smoking snowboarder
4. The local wine doesn't taste like malt vinegar
5. Your $400,000 Vancouver home is 5 hours from downtown
6. A university with a nude beach
7. You can throw a rock and hit three Starbucks locations
8. If a cop pulls you over, just offer them some of your hash
9. There's always some sort of deforestation protest going on
10. Cannabis
1. Weed
2. Vancouver: 1.5 million people and two bridges
3. The local hero is a pot-smoking snowboarder
4. The local wine doesn't taste like malt vinegar
5. Your $400,000 Vancouver home is 5 hours from downtown
6. A university with a nude beach
7. You can throw a rock and hit three Starbucks locations
8. If a cop pulls you over, just offer them some of your hash
9. There's always some sort of deforestation protest going on
10. Cannabis
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN ALBERTA
1. Big Rock
2. Preston Manning
3. Tax is 7 percent instead of approx. 200 percent
4. The Premier is a fat, wife-beating alcoholic with a grade 4 education
5. Flames vs. Oilers
6. Stamps vs. Eskies
7. You can exploit almost any natural resource you can think of
8. Eventually, it will be your town's turn to ban VLT's
9. The Americans below you are all in anti-government militia groups
10. You can attempt to murder your rich oil tycoon husband and get away with it
1. Big Rock
2. Preston Manning
3. Tax is 7 percent instead of approx. 200 percent
4. The Premier is a fat, wife-beating alcoholic with a grade 4 education
5. Flames vs. Oilers
6. Stamps vs. Eskies
7. You can exploit almost any natural resource you can think of
8. Eventually, it will be your town's turn to ban VLT's
9. The Americans below you are all in anti-government militia groups
10. You can attempt to murder your rich oil tycoon husband and get away with it
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN
SASKATCHEWAN
1. You never run out of wheat
2. Those cool Saskatchewan Wheat Pool hats
3. Cruise control takes on a whole new meaning
4. Your province is really easy to draw
5. You never have to worry about roll-back if you have a standard
6. It takes you two weeks to walk to your neighbor's house
7. YOUR Roughriders survived
8. You can watch the dog run away from home for hours
9. People will assume you live on a farm
10. Buying a huge John Deere mower makes sense
1. You never run out of wheat
2. Those cool Saskatchewan Wheat Pool hats
3. Cruise control takes on a whole new meaning
4. Your province is really easy to draw
5. You never have to worry about roll-back if you have a standard
6. It takes you two weeks to walk to your neighbor's house
7. YOUR Roughriders survived
8. You can watch the dog run away from home for hours
9. People will assume you live on a farm
10. Buying a huge John Deere mower makes sense
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN MANITOBA
1. You wake up one morning to find you suddenly have beachfront property
2. Amusing town names like "Flin Flon" and "Winnipeg"
3. All your local bands make it big and move to Toronto
4. The only province to ever violently rebel against the federal government
5. Hundreds of huge, horribly frigid lakes
6. Nothing compares to a wicked Winnipeg winter
7. You don't need a car, just take the canoe to work
8. You can be an Easterner or a Westerner depending on your mood
9. Because of your license plate, you are still "friendly" even when you cut someone off
10. Pass the time watching trucks and barns float by
1. You wake up one morning to find you suddenly have beachfront property
2. Amusing town names like "Flin Flon" and "Winnipeg"
3. All your local bands make it big and move to Toronto
4. The only province to ever violently rebel against the federal government
5. Hundreds of huge, horribly frigid lakes
6. Nothing compares to a wicked Winnipeg winter
7. You don't need a car, just take the canoe to work
8. You can be an Easterner or a Westerner depending on your mood
9. Because of your license plate, you are still "friendly" even when you cut someone off
10. Pass the time watching trucks and barns float by
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN ONTARIO
1. You live in the center of the universe
2. Your $400,000 Toronto home is actually a dump
3. You and you alone decide who will win the federal election
4. There's no such thing as an Ontario Separatist
5. Your grandparents sold booze to the States during Prohibition
6. Lots of tourists come to Toronto because they mistakenly believe it's a cool city
7. The only province with hard-core American-style crime
8. MuchMusic's Speaker's Corner - rant and rave on national TV - for a looney
9. Baseball fans park on your front lawn and pee on the side of your house
10. Mike Harris: basically a sober Ralph Klein
1. You live in the center of the universe
2. Your $400,000 Toronto home is actually a dump
3. You and you alone decide who will win the federal election
4. There's no such thing as an Ontario Separatist
5. Your grandparents sold booze to the States during Prohibition
6. Lots of tourists come to Toronto because they mistakenly believe it's a cool city
7. The only province with hard-core American-style crime
8. MuchMusic's Speaker's Corner - rant and rave on national TV - for a looney
9. Baseball fans park on your front lawn and pee on the side of your house
10. Mike Harris: basically a sober Ralph Klein
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN QUEBEC
1. Everybody assumes you're an asshole
2. Racism is socially acceptable
3. The only province to ever kidnap federal politicians
4. You can take bets with your friends on which English neighbor will move out next
5. Other provinces basically bribe you to stay in Canada
6. The FLQ
7. Your hockey team is made up entirely of dirty French guys
8. The province with the oldest, nastiest hookers
9. NON-smokers are the outcasts
10. You can blame all your problems on the "Anglo bastards"
1. Everybody assumes you're an asshole
2. Racism is socially acceptable
3. The only province to ever kidnap federal politicians
4. You can take bets with your friends on which English neighbor will move out next
5. Other provinces basically bribe you to stay in Canada
6. The FLQ
7. Your hockey team is made up entirely of dirty French guys
8. The province with the oldest, nastiest hookers
9. NON-smokers are the outcasts
10. You can blame all your problems on the "Anglo bastards"
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN NEW
BRUNSWICK
1. You are sandwiched between French assholes and drunken Celtic fiddlers
2. One way or another, the government gets 98 percent of your income
3. You're poor, but not as poor as the Newfies
4. When listing the provinces, everyone forgets to mention yours
5. The economy is based on fish, cows, and ferrying Ontario motorists to Boston
6. No one ever blames anything on New Brunswick
7. You have French people, but they don't want to kill you
8. Everybody has a Grandfather who runs a lighthouse
9. Just as charming as Maine, but with more unemployed fishermen
10. You probably live in a small seaside cottage with no television
1. You are sandwiched between French assholes and drunken Celtic fiddlers
2. One way or another, the government gets 98 percent of your income
3. You're poor, but not as poor as the Newfies
4. When listing the provinces, everyone forgets to mention yours
5. The economy is based on fish, cows, and ferrying Ontario motorists to Boston
6. No one ever blames anything on New Brunswick
7. You have French people, but they don't want to kill you
8. Everybody has a Grandfather who runs a lighthouse
9. Just as charming as Maine, but with more unemployed fishermen
10. You probably live in a small seaside cottage with no television
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN NOVA SCOTIA
1. The only place in North America to get bombed in the war ... by a moron who set a munitions ship on fire
2. Your province is shaped like male genitalia
3. Everyone is a fiddle player
4. If someone asks if you're a Newfie, you are allowed to kick their ass
5. The local hero is an insane, fiddle playing, sexual pervert
6. The province that produced Rita MacNeil
7. You are the reason Anne Murray makes money
8. You can pretend you have Scottish heritage as an excuse to wear a kilt
9. The economy is based on fish, lobster, and fiddle music
10. Even though it smells like dead sea animals, Halifax is considered Canada's most beautiful city
1. The only place in North America to get bombed in the war ... by a moron who set a munitions ship on fire
2. Your province is shaped like male genitalia
3. Everyone is a fiddle player
4. If someone asks if you're a Newfie, you are allowed to kick their ass
5. The local hero is an insane, fiddle playing, sexual pervert
6. The province that produced Rita MacNeil
7. You are the reason Anne Murray makes money
8. You can pretend you have Scottish heritage as an excuse to wear a kilt
9. The economy is based on fish, lobster, and fiddle music
10. Even though it smells like dead sea animals, Halifax is considered Canada's most beautiful city
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE ON PRINCE
EDWARD ISLAND
1. Even though more people live on Vancouver Island, you still got the big-ass bridge
2. You can walk across the province in half an hour
3. You were probably once an extra on "Road to Avonlea"
4. This is where all those tiny red potatoes come from
5. The economy is based on fish, potatoes, and CBC TV shows
6. Tourists arrive, see the "Anne of Green Gables" house, then promptly leave
7. You can drive across the province in two minutes
8. It doesn't matter to you if Quebec separates
9. You don't share a border with the Americans, or with anyone for that matter
10. You can confuse ships by turning your porch lights on and off at night
1. Even though more people live on Vancouver Island, you still got the big-ass bridge
2. You can walk across the province in half an hour
3. You were probably once an extra on "Road to Avonlea"
4. This is where all those tiny red potatoes come from
5. The economy is based on fish, potatoes, and CBC TV shows
6. Tourists arrive, see the "Anne of Green Gables" house, then promptly leave
7. You can drive across the province in two minutes
8. It doesn't matter to you if Quebec separates
9. You don't share a border with the Americans, or with anyone for that matter
10. You can confuse ships by turning your porch lights on and off at night
TOP 10 REASONS TO LIVE IN
NEWFOUNDLAND
1. The poorest, stupidest, drunkest province in Confederation
2. If Quebec Separates, you will float off to sea
3. In the rare case when someone moves to the Rock, you can make them kiss a dead cod
4. The economy is based on fish, seafood, and fish-related products
5. If you do something stupid, you have a built-in excuse
6. You understand the meaning of Great Big Sea's lyrics
7. The work day is about two hours long
8. You are credited with many great inventions, like the solar-powered flashlight and the screen door for submarines
9. If someone asks if you're from Nova Scotia, you are allowed to kick their ass
10. It is socially acceptable to wear your hip waders on your wedding day
1. The poorest, stupidest, drunkest province in Confederation
2. If Quebec Separates, you will float off to sea
3. In the rare case when someone moves to the Rock, you can make them kiss a dead cod
4. The economy is based on fish, seafood, and fish-related products
5. If you do something stupid, you have a built-in excuse
6. You understand the meaning of Great Big Sea's lyrics
7. The work day is about two hours long
8. You are credited with many great inventions, like the solar-powered flashlight and the screen door for submarines
9. If someone asks if you're from Nova Scotia, you are allowed to kick their ass
10. It is socially acceptable to wear your hip waders on your wedding day
Someone sent that to me in email and
I loved it so much I had to put it on the page. If you know who wrote it,
please let me know
so I can give proper credit.
BACK
to Canada eh?
The website and its creator were
proudly created in Canada!
Tania Hutchison
Tania Hutchison
-----------------
War of 1812: Contribution of Black Soldiers in the Fight for
Canada
This 10 minute video is a monologue of Richard Pierpoint.
Pierpoint petitioned to form an all-black militia to fight alongside the
British during the war of 1812. His initiative eventually led to the formation
of what was known as the "Coloured Corps", which contained
approximately 30 men.
The objective of the video is to promote the historical contributions
of a community whose legacy stretches back to Canada's earliest days. This
year, the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 affords a chance to reflect on
the key role that black soldiers played in the fight for Canada.
Every year Canadians are invited to participate in Black History
Month festivities and events that honour the legacy of black Canadians, past
and present.
Black Canadians throughout history, have done so much to make
Canada the culturally diverse, compassionate and prosperous nation we are
today.
Closed captioning for this video, along with a transcript and
downloadable versions, are available at
u really think so? Have u
really fought alongside Canadian troops... ever? :-) - or hockey - or Canadian women? or
Canadian men? Come getcha Canada on
-------------------
Canadians Are
Polite ?! Molson Canadian Commercial
-----------
This
happened on October 14th 2006 outside of Edson Alberta. An employee from this
camp was relieved of his duties late Friday afternoon. He went a little
'postal' with the excavator on some of the equipment late Saturday night. What
you're about to see is the aftermath that was discovered on Sunday morning -
October 15th
TAKE
THIS JOB AND SHOVE IT / johnny paycheck - CANADA STYLE
------------------
War of 1812: Contribution of Black Soldiers in the Fight for
Canada
This 10 minute video is a monologue of Richard Pierpoint.
Pierpoint petitioned to form an all-black militia to fight alongside the
British during the war of 1812. His initiative eventually led to the formation
of what was known as the "Coloured Corps", which contained
approximately 30 men.
The objective of the video is to promote the historical
contributions of a community whose legacy stretches back to Canada's earliest
days. This year, the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812 affords a chance to
reflect on the key role that black soldiers played in the fight for Canada.
Every year Canadians are invited to participate in Black History
Month festivities and events that honour the legacy of black Canadians, past
and present.
Black Canadians throughout history, have done so much to make
Canada the culturally diverse, compassionate and prosperous nation we are
today.
Closed captioning for this video, along with a transcript and
downloadable versions, are available at
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