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History of Canada
(1991 pop. 27,296,859), 3,851,787 sq mi (9,976,128 sq km)
N North America
Canada occupies all of North America N of the United States (and E of Alaska) except for the French islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon. It is bounded on the E by the Atlantic Ocean, on the N by the Arctic Ocean, and on the W by the Pacific Ocean and Alaska. A transcontinental border, formed in part by the Great Lakes, divides Canada from the United States; Nares and Davis straits separate Canada from Greenland. The Arctic Archipelago extends far into the Arctic Ocean.
Canada is a federation of 10 provincesNewfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbiaand two territoriesthe Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories. A new Inuit-controlled territory, Nunavut, made up from the eastern portion of the Northwest Territories, is scheduled to come into effect by Apr. 1, 1999. Canada's capital is Ottawa and its largest city is Toronto. Other important cities include Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Hamilton, and Quebec. Arctic Archipelago
A group of more than 50 large islands, Northwest Territories, N Canada, in the Arctic Ocean. The southernmost members of the group include Baffin (the archipelago's largest island), Victoria, Banks, Prince of Wales, and Somerset islands; N of Viscount Melville and Lancaster sounds are the Queen Elizabeth Islands, of which Ellesmere is the largest. Tundra and permanent ice cover the islands, on which oil and coal have been discovered. After Greenland, the Archipelago is the world's largest high-arctic land area. Newfoundland
Province (1991 pop. 568,474), 156,185 sq mi (404,519 sq km), E Canada. It is sometimes called Newfoundland and Labrador . The province consists of the island of Newfoundland and adjacent islands (1991 pop. 538,099), 43,359 sq mi (112,300 sq km), and the mainland area of Labrador and adjacent islands (1991 pop. 30,375), 112,826 sq mi (292,219 sq km).
History and Politics
Vikings visited the area of Newfoundland c.1000 and briefly established a settlement (the sole confirmed Viking site in North America) on Newfoundland at L'Anse aux Meadows. After the two voyages of John Cabot at the end of the 15th cent., fishermen and explorers from several European countries came to the area. In 1535-36, Jacques Cartier sailed through the Cabot Strait and the Strait of Belle Isle. Sir Humphrey Gilbert claimed Newfoundland for England in 1583, and the first settlers arrived in 1610. France contested England's claims and Newfoundland changed hands several times.
The Treaty of Paris of 1763 definitively awarded Newfoundland and Labrador (where the French had established trading posts) to Great Britain. France retained the fishing rights on the northwest coast of Newfoundland that had been granted by the Peace of Utrecht in 1713 and was also awarded St. Pierre and Miquelon. In 1783 the French Shore was redefined to include the entire western coast.
In the early 19th cent. the Hudson's Bay Company developed the fur trade, and this, together with the expansion of the fishing industry, led to increased immigration from Europe, particularly Ireland. Representative government was introduced in 1832 and parliamentary government in 1855. The port of Heart's Content became the western terminus of the transatlantic cable in 1866. In 1869 the voters of Newfoundland rejected union with Canada; in 1895, after a disastrous fire in St. John's and the failure of local banks, negotiations to join Canada resumed but were unsuccessful.
Relatively little attention had been paid to Labrador, but in 1895 iron ore was discovered in the Grand Falls (now Churchill Falls) region. As part of the Anglo-French Entente Cordiale of 1904, France abandoned the French Shore. Possession of Labrador was disputed by Quebec and Newfoundland until 1927, when the British Privy Council demarcated the western boundary, enlarged Labrador's land area, and confirmed Newfoundland's title to it.
During the economic depression of the 1930s, Britain suspended Newfoundland's self-government and assumed administrative and financial control. Actual authority was exercised by a joint commission of Newfoundlanders and British. During World War II, U.S. and Canadian military bases were established in Labrador and on Newfoundland.
After the war Newfoundland voted to join Canada, and in 1949 it became Canada's tenth province. Joseph Smallwood, a Liberal who led the drive to join Canada, became premier and held office until 1972, when the Conservatives gained a majority under Frank Moores. A. Brian Peckford, a Conservative, replaced Moores in 1979, but was displaced 10 years later by a Liberal victory under Clyde K. Wells.
Newfoundland sends 6 senators (appointed) and 7 representatives (elected) to the national parliament.
Land and People
Newfoundland island lies at the mouth of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and is bounded on the north, east, and south by the Atlantic Ocean and separated on the northwest from Labrador by the Strait of Belle Isle. Labrador, part of the Labrador-Ungava peninsula, forms the northeastern tip of the Canadian mainland. It is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean down to the Strait of Belle Isle and on the south and west by Quebec. Cape Chidley, Labrador's northernmost point, is on the Hudson Strait.
Newfoundland has a rocky, irregular coast, indented with numerous inlets. The major portion of the island is a plateau, with many lakes and marshes; forests cover less than half the area. The inland wilderness has an abundance of fur-bearing animals, waterfowl, and fish, and caribou graze on the tundra of the north. The Grand Banks was formerly one of the best cod-fishing areas in the world, but overfishing has severely depleted the cod. The province has a generally cool and moist climate. In Labrador, the cold Labrador current brings below-freezing temperatures eight months of the year.
Most of Newfoundland's inhabitants are of English or Irish descent, but in Labrador there are small numbers of Inuit and Montagnais-Naskapi. The Beothuk, an indigenous people on the island of Newfoundland, died out in the 19th cent., presumably of European diseases. The population is centered on the Avalon Peninsula, which is the province's most important commercial and administrative region. The capital and largest city is St. John's. Corner Brook is the second largest city. Labrador-Ungava
Peninsular region of E Canada, c.550,000 sq mi (1,424,500 sq km), bounded on the W by Hudson Bay, on the N by Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay, on the E by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the S by the St. Lawrence River. It is almost completely unpopulated. The western four fifths of the peninsula belongs to Nouveau Qubec (Ungava) and Saguenay counties of Qubec prov. The eastern fifth, called simply Labrador, is part of Newfoundland. Inuit communities have lived along the coastline for centuries. The region south of Ungava Bay, originally a possession of the Hudson's Bay Company, was made a part of the Northwest Territories in 1869, and later (1895) became a separate district. In 1912 it was added to Qubec prov., but in 1927 the eastern coast was awarded to Newfoundland by the British Privy Council. The northern part of the region is a cold, barren tundra; the southern part is covered by coniferous forests. Geologically part of the Canadian Shield, the glaciated peninsula has many lakes and streams. There are vast and largely untapped mineral, hydroelectric, and timber resources on the peninsula. Since the mid-1950s the region's development has been aided by the construction of new ports and railheads at Sept-les and Port Cartier on the St. Lawrence River, which provide outlets for rich, new iron ore mines in the interior; asbestos, titanium, and copper are also mined. Saint John's
City (1991 pop. 95,770), provincial capital, SE N.F., Canada, on the northeast coast of the Avalon Peninsula. Built on hills overlooking a fine harbor, it is the commercial and industrial center of the province and the base of its great fishing fleet. The city's industries are chiefly related to fishing and include shipbuilding, the manufacturing of fishing equipment and marine engines, and the storing, preserving, and processing of fish. The city is mainly a service center, however, that relies heavily on civil service jobs for its stability. Although the exact date of its first settlement is not known, St. John's is one of the oldest settlements in North America. In 1583, Sir Humphrey Gilbert took possession of the region for England. Since that time fishing boats from many countries have based there. The settlement was captured and recaptured by France and England, becoming permanently British in 1762 and serving as a naval base during the American Revolution and in the War of 1812. It was at St. John's that Marconi heard (1901) the first transatlantic wireless message and from there that the first nonstop transatlantic flight was made in 1919. The city has been partially destroyed by fire several times. It is the site of the provincial government offices, of Roman Catholic and Anglican cathedrals, of the Newfoundland Mus., and of Memorial Univ. Corner Brook
City (1991 pop. 22,410), W central N.F., Canada, on the Humber River. It is Newfoundland's second largest city and has a large pulp and paper mill. Other industries include lumbering, salmon fishing, and quarrying. Nearby is Gros Morne National Park.
Economy and Higher Education
Labrador's cold climate and the lack of transportation facilities have combined to retard economic development. However, Labrador is rich in mineral resources (iron, zinc, copper, asbestos, gold, oil, natural gas), timber, and water power. Exploitation of the tremendous iron reserves in the southwest lake district, begun in the 1950s, and the growth of the logging industry have brought new towns and roads. There is a giant hydroelectric project at Churchill Falls.
Mining is the main industry, and Newfoundland provides about half of Canada's iron ore. Lobster, flounder, redfish, herring, and salmon are caught in the coastal waters. The processing of fish and the manufacture of wood products are also important. There are large pulp and paper mills at Grand Falls and Corner Brook, both on Newfoundland.
Agriculture in the province is limited by the unfavorable soil and climate, and much of the food supply must be imported. There have been significant discoveries of oil off the coast of Newfoundland in recent years, which is expected to have a favorable impact on the province's economy.
Memorial Univ. of Newfoundland is at St. John's. Grand Falls
City (1991 pop. 6,083), W N.B., Canada, on the St. John River. The nearby falls in the river and its 1-mi- (1.6-km) long gorge attract many visitors. The falls power a large hydroelectric development. Town (1991 pop. 14,693), central N.F., Canada, on the Exploits River. In the town are large pulp and paper mills that produce large amounts of newsprint.
Bibliography
See Dorothy Henderson, The Heart of Newfoundland (1965); G. W. S. J. Chadwick, Newfoundland: Island into Province (1967); R. South, Biogeography and Ecology of the Island of Newfoundland (1983); P. F. Neary, Newfoundland in the North Atlantic World, 1929-1949 (1988).
Nova Scotia
[Lat.,=new Scotland], Province (1991 pop. 899,942), 21,425 sq mi (55,491 sq km), E Canada.
One of the Maritime Provinces, Nova Scotia comprises a mainland peninsula and the adjacent Cape Breton Island. It is bounded on the N by the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Northumberland Strait, across which lies Prince Edward Island; on the E and S by the Atlantic Ocean; and on the W by New Brunswick, from which it is largely separated by the Bay of Fundy. The climate is moderate and the rainfall abundant. The east coast is rocky, with numerous bays and coves, and is dotted with many charming fishing villages. Off the beautiful south shore is Sable Island, called the graveyard of the Atlantic; on the west coast huge Fundy tides wash the shores.
Frequently visited historical spots include the Alexander Graham Bell Museum at Baddeck, the Shrine of Evangeline at Grand Pr, and the town of Annapolis Royal, site of the first permanent Canadian settlement (1610). Cape Breton Island (est. 1936) and Kejimkujik (est. 1968) national parks are in Nova Scotia. Sportsmen are attracted by abundant game and all types of fishing and by some of the best sailing on the continent. The capital is the port of Halifax; other important cities are Dartmouth, Sydney, Glace Bay, Truro, and New Glasgow.
History and Politics
Two Algonquian tribes, the Abnaki and the Micmac, inhabited the area before Europeans arrived. John Cabot may have landed (1497) on the tip of Cape Breton Island; European fishermen were already making regular stops during their yearly expeditions. An unsuccessful French settlement was made in 1605 at Port Royal (now Annapolis Royal). In 1610 the French succeeded at the same site. For the next century and a half France and England contested bitterly for colonial rights to Acadia, which included present-day Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. In 1621 Sir William Alexander obtained a patent from James I for the colonization of Acadia. Control alternated between France and England through several wars and treaties.
Under the Peace of Utrecht (1713-14), the Nova Scotia peninsula was awarded to England, although Cape Breton Island was retained by the French. Hostilities were renewed in 1744. During the French and Indian War (1755-63), a tragic incident was the expulsion of the French Acadiansdescribed by Longfellow in Evangeline. The Treaty of Paris (1763) gave nearly all of what remained of French North America to England. Prince Edward Island, joined to Nova Scotia in 1763, became separate in 1769. During this period Nova Scotia pioneered in Canadian history with the first newspaper (Halifax Gazette, 1752), the first printing press (1751), and the first university (King's College, Windsor, 1788-89).
With the influx (c.1784) of United Empire Loyalists, additional settlement occurred. In 1784 New Brunswick and Cape Breton also became separate colonies; Cape Breton rejoined Nova Scotia in 1820. During the early 19th cent. thousands of Scots and Irish emigrated to Nova Scotia. Under the leadership of Joseph Howe, Nova Scotia became the first colony to achieve (1848) responsible (or cabinet) government. It acceded to the Canadian confederation as one of the four original members in 1867 after considerable difficulty over economic arrangements. In recent years Nova Scotia has struggled to stabilize its economy. Federal government programs to develop secondary industries and to locate offshore oil or natural gas deposits have been largely unsuccessful.
Progressive Conservatives dominated Nova Scotia politics from 1978 to 1993, when Liberal John Savage led his party to victory, replacing Donald Cameron (1991-93) as premier.
The province sends 10 senators (appointed) and 11 representatives (elected) to the national parliament. Acadia
Region and former French colony, E Canada, centered on Nova Scotia but including also New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and the mainland coast from the Gulf of St. Lawrence S into Maine. The first and chief town, Port Royal (now Annapolis Royal, N.S.), was founded by the sieur de Monts in 1605 and was soon involved in the imperial struggle that was to end in America with the French and Indian Wars. Destroyed by English colonists under Samuel Argall in 1613, the town was later rebuilt, and as British claims temporarily lapsed (see Nova Scotia), the colony grew to be fairly prosperous with farmers on their dike-protected fields, fishermen on the shore, and fur traders in the forests. Later, attacks on Port Royal were resumed, and its capture by the British in 1710 was confirmed as permanent in the Peace of Utrecht (1713). The British feared and distrusted their French-speaking, Roman Catholic neighbors, who coexisted with the Native Americans and, wishing only to remain neutral, refused to swear allegiance to Great Britain. In 1755 the British took the Acadian farms and deported most of the Acadians to the more southerly British colonies, scattering them along the Atlantic coast from Maine to Georgia and sending some to the West Indies and Europe. A second expulsion took place in 1758. Later many exiles returned. Today in Canada, Acadian (French Acadien ) means a French-speaking inhabitant of the Maritime Provinces. Official language acts passed in 1969 and 1981 have given French and English equal status, which has weakened the Acadian community by integrating it more fully into the national culture. Many exiles who did not return found havens elsewhere, the most celebrated being the region around St. Martinville in S Louisiana, where the Cajunsas they are calledstill maintain a distinctive culture. The sufferings of the expulsion are pictured in Longfellow's Evangeline. See A. H. Clark, Acadia: The Geography of Early Nova Scotia to 1760 (1968); J. B. Jehn, Acadian Descendants (Vols. I-VII, 1972-87); Nanciellen Davis, Ethnicity and Ethnic Group Persistence in an Acadian Village in Maritime Canada (1985). United Empire Loyalists
In Canadian history, name applied to those settlers who, loyal to the British cause in the American Revolution, migrated from the Thirteen Colonies to Canada. Some emigrated during the Revolution, but the greatest number left the colonies in 1783-84, after the Treaty of Paris had failed to make adequate provision for the Loyalists. Numbers estimated at up to 50,000 went to British North Americaprincipally to Nova Scotia and Quebec. In Nova Scotia, so many settled north of the Bay of Fundy that this region was separated from Nova Scotia and organized as the province of New Brunswick in 1784. Others, flocking to the region north of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, were numerous enough to cause the creation (1791) of Upper Canada (Ontario). See studies by W. S. Wallace (1914, repr. 1972) and A. G. Bradley (1932, repr. 1972).
Economy and Higher Education
There is considerable mining activity in Nova Scotia. Coal is mined principally in the Sydney-Glace Bay area of Cape Breton Island. Gypsum, barite, and salt are also mined. However, fishing is more important than mining to Nova Scotia. Fleets operate on the continental shelf edging the coast or out on the Grand Banks. Lobster, scallops, and haddock are the biggest catches. Inland, the forests yield spruce lumber, and the province's industries produce much pulp and paper. In the northwest there is dairying, the most important sector of Nova Scotia's agricultural economy, and the region of Annapolis and Cornwallis supports valuable apple orchards. There are also significant hay, grain, fruit, and vegetable crops. The bay lowlands, reclaimed by dikes in the 17th cent., are very productive.
Manufacturing is the largest production sector of Nova Scotia's economy. In addition to the iron and steel produced at Sydney, the province's manufactures include processed food (especially fish), automobiles, tires, sugar, and construction materials. In addition to its all-year port facilities, Halifax is a railroad terminus. The rivers of Nova Scotia have a number of small hydroelectric stations that help support the economy. The charms of the rural and coastal countryside and the abundant historical sites attract over a million tourists each year.
Educational institutions include Dalhousie Univ., the University of King's College, Saint Mary's Univ., Mount Saint Vincent Univ., and the Technical Univ. of Nova Scotia, at Halifax; St. Francis Xavier Univ., at Antigonish; Univ. College of Cape Breton, at Sidney; Acadia Univ., at Wolfville; and Sainte-Anne Univ., at Church Point. Grand Banks
Submarine plateau rising from the continental shelf, c.36,000 sq mi (93,200 sq km), off SE N.F., Canada. It is c.300 mi (480 km) long and c.400 mi (640 km) wide; depths range from 20 to 100 fathoms. The cold Labrador Current flows over most of the banks; the warmer Gulf Stream sweeps along the eastern edge, sometimes crossing the southern part. The Grand Banks are noted for the persistent dense fog (formed as warm air passes over the cold water) that engulfs the area. The mingling of the two currents along with the shallowness of the water forms a favorable environment for plankton and other small sea life upon which cod, haddock, halibut, and other fish feed. Lobsters are also found there. The Grand Banks were probably the world's most important international fishing ground until 1977 when Canada extended its offshore jurisdiction to include most of the area. Fog, icebergs, and the nearby transatlantic shipping lanes make fishing hazardous. Oil drilling began on the banks in the late 1970s, but was slowed after the loss of the Ocean Ranger rig on Feb. 15, 1982. Maritime Provinces
Canada, term applied to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island, which before the formation of the Canadian confederation (1867) were politically distinct from Canada proper.
Bibliography
See T. B. Akins, comp., Acadia and Nova Scotia (1869, repr. 1972); Sherman Hines, Nova Scotia: The Lighthouse and Annapolis Valley (1980); P. B. Waite, The Man from Halifax: Sir John Thompson Prime Minister (1986); Neil MacKinnon, This Unfriendly Soil: The Loyalist Experience in Nova Scotia, 1783-91 (1989). Annapolis Royal
Town (1991 pop. 633), W N.S., Canada, on the Annapolis River. Founded as Port Royal by the sieur de Monts in 1605, the settlement was destroyed (1613) by English colonists under Samuel Argall but was rebuilt by the French. The fort changed hands between the French and the English five times from 1605 to 1710, when it capitulated to a force of New Englanders under Francis Nicholson. The name was then changed in honor of Queen Anne. Annapolis Royal was the capital of Nova Scotia from 1713 to 1749. Fort Anne Historic National Park includes the ruins of the fort. The officers' quarters (built 1797-98) have been restored as a museum. Cape Breton Island
Island (1986 pop. 166,116), 3,970 sq mi (10,282 sq km), forming the northeastern part of N.S., Canada, and separated from the mainland by the narrow Gut, or Strait, of Canso. The easternmost point is called Cape Breton. The center of the island is occupied by the Bras d'Or salt lakes. Gently sloping in the south, the island rises to rugged hills in the wilder northern part. The inhabitants are mainly of Scottish Highlander descent. There are many summer resorts on the lakes and fishing villages on the coast. In the northeast are steelworks dependent on the extensive Sydney coal fields. The Cabot Trail, a scenic road through Cape Breton Highlands National Park, commemorates the discovery of Cape Breton Island in 1497 by John Cabot. The island was a French possession from 1632 to 1763. After the Peace of Utrecht (1713) many Acadians migrated there from mainland Nova Scotia, which was ceded to the English. They renamed the island le Royale and established the fortress at Louisburg. With the final cession of Canada to the British (1763), Cape Breton was attached to Nova Scotia. It was made a separate colony in 1784, with Sydney as its capital, but was rejoined to Nova Scotia in 1820. Halifax
City (1991 pop. 114,455), provincial capital, S central N.S., Canada, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the largest city in the Maritime Provinces and is one of Canada's principal ice-free Atlantic ports. Halifax is the eastern terminus of Canada's two great railroad systems and of its transcontinental highway. Its many industries include commercial fishing, fish processing, shipbuilding, oil refining, and the manufacture of automobiles, electronics, clothing, and furniture. It is the home port of the Canadian Atlantic fleet and the headquarters of its eastern army. Halifax was founded in 1749 as Chebucto and was then renamed for the earl of Halifax, then president of the Board of Trade and Plantations. It was intended originally to be a British naval stronghold comparable to that of France at Louisburg. It served as a naval base for the expedition against Louisburg in 1758, against the American colonies in the American Revolution, and against the United States in the War of 1812. The first transatlantic steamship service, from Halifax to Great Britain, began in 1840. During both world wars the port was an important naval and air base, convoy terminal, and embarkation center. In 1917 a French munitions vessel carrying explosives was rammed in the harbor by a Belgian relief vessel, causing an explosion that killed about 1,800 people, injured about 9,000 more (one-fifth of the population), and destroyed the northern part of the city. Places of interest include the Citadel fortress (1856); Province House (1818); St. Paul's Church, the oldest (1750) Anglican church in Canada; and Point Pleasant Park. The Halifax Gazette, founded in 1752 and the first newspaper in Canada, is no longer published. Educational institutions include Dalhousie Univ. (1818), the Univ. of Kings College, Mount St. Vincent Univ., St. Mary's Univ., and technical and art schools. See S. H. Prince, Catastrophe and Social Change (1920, repr. 1968); T. H. Raddall, Halifax: Warden of the North (rev. ed. 1971); Joan Payzant, Halifax: Cornerstone of Canada (1985). Dartmouth
City (1991 pop. 67,798), S N.S., Canada, on Halifax harbor, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean. The city has large sugar and oil refineries, and it produces ships, iron, and aircraft parts. Dartmouth has expanded greatly in recent decades. Sydney
City (1991 pop. 26,063), Cape Breton Island, N.S., Canada, on the northeast coast at the head of the South Arm of Sydney Harbour. It is the port and the commercial, trade, and industrial center of an important coal-mining area. The city has steel mills and plants manufacturing wood, aluminum, food products, and chemicals. Sydney was founded (1783) by United Empire Loyalists and was the capital (1784-1820) of Cape Breton prov. St. George's Church (1786) is one of the oldest Anglican churches in Canada. Glace Bay
Town (1991 pop. 19,501), E Cape Breton Island, N.S., Canada. Exploitation of its coal mines began toward the end of the 19th cent., but declined in the 1960s. Its mines extended for several miles under the sea and were among the best equipped in the world. Glace Bay has a good harbor and relies heavily on its large deep-sea fishing fleet. The Marconi wireless tower at Table Head nearby was the transmitter in 1902 of the first transatlantic wireless message. Truro
Town (1991 pop. 11,683), central N.S., Canada, near the head of Cobequid Bay, an arm of the Bay of Fundy. It is a railroad and industrial center, with lumber mills, printing plants, and other factories. The Nova Scotia Agricultural College there is the headquarters of the provincial agricultural extension service. An early Acadian settlement called Cobequid, the town was destroyed (1755) when the Acadians were expelled. After 1759 it received settlers from New England and Northern Ireland, who named the town for Truro, England. New Glasgow
Town (1991 pop. 4,134), N N.S., Canada, on East River. It is an industrial town located in a coal region. Steel products and machinery are manufactured, and there is a large pulp mill nearby.
New Brunswick
Province (1991 pop. 723,900), 28,345 sq mi (73,433 sq km), including 519 sq mi (1,345 sq km) of water surface, E Canada.
One of the Maritime Provinces, New Brunswick is bounded on the N by Chaleur Bay and Quebec prov.; on the E by the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Northumberland Strait, and Nova Scotia; on the S by the Bay of Fundy; and on the W by Maine. Its irregular coastline provides excellent facilities for fishing and shipping enterprises. Rivers cross the rolling countryside; they were the first means of transportation and are still important arteries of travel and commerce. The largest river, the St. John, crosses the province from northwest to southeast, and the Miramichi River flows northeasterly and drains the central lowlands. Most of the roads follow the river banks.
New Brunswick's forests are still filled with bear, deer, and moose, and the rivers abound in trout and salmon, although acid wastes from paper mills have reduced the salmon population. Easy accessibility from the United States has made Woodstock the gateway to the province. Summer residences are concentrated around Passamaquoddy Bay. Natural attractions include the Grand Falls on the upper reaches of the St. John as well as the spectacular Fundy tidesthe highest in the world, sometimes surging to over 50 ft (15 m). The tides in turn cause the Reversing Falls at St. John and the Bore, a twice-daily tidal wave coming up the Petitcodiac River. They have also sculpted the famous Hopewell Rocks, another tourist attraction.
Fredericton is the capital and the third largest city. The largest city is Saint John and the second largest is Moncton. At present about half the population lives in urban areas
History and Politics
New Brunswick's first inhabitants were the Micmacs, an indigenous tribe whose settlements stretched along the coast from Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island to the S Gasp Peninsula. The first European said to have sailed along the New Brunswick coast was a Portuguese navigator, Estevo Gomes (1525), although there is evidence of Basque fishermen at an earlier date. Jacques Cartier landed at Point Escuminac in 1534 and skirted the shores of Miramichi Bay.
The first European settlement was made in 1604 at the mouth of the St. Croix River by Champlain and the sieur de Monts. During this period, while France and England made conflicting territorial claims, the present province of Nova Scotia and the coast of New Brunswick were considered one region, called Acadia by the French and Nova Scotia by the British. British control of this region was confirmed by the Peace of Utrecht (1713-14). Doubting the loyalty of the Acadians, the British expelled them in 1755, although many fled into the interior, which was still effectively controlled by the French. Others sought refuge in the Thirteen Colonies or returned to France. (Today about 35% of the people of New Brunswick are Acadians.) Great Britain gained possession of the rest of New Brunswick when it gained all of Canada after the French and Indian Wars.
When the population of New Brunswick was increased by many thousands of Loyalists who fled New England after the American Revolution, that area was organized (1784) into a separate colony. As trees were cut down for shipbuilding, the land was cleared for farming. By the middle of the 19th cent. lumbering and farming were extending into the interior, and St. John was a busy port and shipbuilding town. Dissatisfaction with the arbitrary rule of the provincial governor resulted in the achievement of responsible (or cabinet) government in 1849. In 1867, under the British North America Act, federation with the other provinces into the dominion of Canada was somewhat reluctantly accepted.
In 1960, Louis J. Robichaud, leader of the Liberal party, was the first Acadian to become premier of New Brunswick. He organized a program of equal opportunity, redistributing incomes to the poorer north, proposing new economic development, and instituting bilingual services to accommodate the province's steadily growing francophone population. The Progressive Conservative party came into power in 1970 under Richard Bennett Hatfield, who continued many of the programs begun by Robichaud. In 1987, in an unprecedented sweep, Liberals won all 58 House seats and named Frank McKenna premier. The Liberals retained power in the 1991 elections with a reduced majority.
New Brunswick sends 10 senators (appointed) and 10 representatives (elected) to the national parliament.
Economy and Higher Education
Dairying in New Brunswick thrives on fine pasturage, and the major crops are potatotes, hay, clover, oats, berries, and fruit. A careful conservation program maintains a supply of second-growth hardwoods and softwoods; forests cover about 90% of the total area, and lumbering is New Brunswick's most important industry. Great quantities of pulpwood and paper are produced.
Manufacturing has greatly expanded since World War II; in addition to wood items and pulp and paper, products include food and beverages, ships, chemicals, refined oil, and shoes. Industry is generally run by hydroelectric power, and fuel resources include coal and much untapped water power, which is being developed. There is a nuclear reactor at Point Lepreau. Mining is an important industry, with zinc, silver, and lead the most important minerals. Other minerals include copper, bismuth, cadmium, gold, antimony, potash, oil, and natural gas.
New Brunswick's fisheries are among the most valuable in Canada, with a variety of freshwater and saltwater fish (cod, salmon, herring, and sardines) as well as shellfish (lobsters, oysters, and clams). Trade flows in and out of the ports of St. John and Moncton, facilitated by railroad connections throughout the province, eastward to Nova Scotia and westward to Quebec. Tourism is one of New Brunswick's most important industries.
The province's four universities are the Univ. of New Brunswick, at Fredericton and Saint John; The Univ. of Moncton, at Moncton; Mount Allison Univ., at Sackville; and St. Thomas Univ., at Fredericton. Fredericton
City (1991 pop. 46,466), provincial capital, S central N.B., Canada, on the St. John River. It is a commercial and distribution center where wood products, shoes, and bricks are manufactured. The city was founded by United Empire Loyalists in 1783 and was made the provincial capital in 1785. Of interest are the government buildings, the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, and the Playhouse Theatre. The Univ. of New Brunswick (1785), Canada's first university, and St. Thomas Univ. (1910) are in the city. Nearby is a Forest Research Center for Atlantic Canada and a federal experimental farm. Saint John
City (1991 pop. 74,969), S N.B., Canada, at the mouth of the St. John River on the Bay of Fundy. A major year-round port, it has an excellent harbor, large dry docks, and terminal facilities and maintains extensive shipping connections with Europe, North and South America, and the West Indies. The city is the commercial, manufacturing, and transportation center of New Brunswick, though it is being challenged by Moncton. It has pulp and paper mills, oil and sugar refineries, and food-processing plants. Lumbering and fishing are important. The site was visited (1604) by Champlain, and a fort and trading post was built (1631-35) by Charles de la Tour. In the struggle between France and England for possession of Acadia, the fort was captured and recaptured several times, finally becoming British in 1758. Growth of the city dates from 1783, when a large party of Loyalists from the United States established themselves there on land grants. The settlement was called Parr Town and in 1785 was incorporated with Carleton and named St. John, becoming the first incorporated city in Canada. Benedict Arnold lived and conducted a business there from 1786 to 1791. Much of the old city was destroyed by fire in 1877. Among notable features in St. John are Market Slip (1783), the old Loyalist Burying Ground (1783), Martello Tower (fortification; built 1812), the old court house (1830), the Roman Catholic cathedral and bishop's residence (1853), the New Brunswick Mus., and the Reversing Falls rapids. The University of New Brunswick at St. John is there. Moncton
City (1991 pop. 57,010), SE N.B., Canada, on the Petitcodiac River. It is an air and rail transportation center. Textiles as well as wood, metal, meat, and petroleum products are manufactured, and wood and meat are processed. It was called The Bend until 1833, when it was renamed in honor of the British general Robert Monckton. Magnetic Hill, an optical illusion, and the Tidal Bore, a high tide occurring twice daily, are features of the city. The Universit de Moncton (1963) is there.
Bibliography
See W. S. MacNutt, New Brunswick: A History, 1784-1867 (1963) and New Brunswick and its People (1966); G. Wynn, Timber Colonies (1981); J. Daigle, ed., The Acadians of the Maritimes (1982).
Prince Edward Island
Province (1991 pop. 129,765), 2,184 sq mi (5,657 sq km), E Canada, off N.B. and N.S.
One of the Maritime Provinces, Prince Edward Island lies in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and is separated on the S from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick by the Northumberland Strait. It is Canada's smallest province, but also has Canada's highest population density. The generally low, level land is c.140 mi (225 km) long and 5 to 35 mi (8-56 km) wide. Sandy beaches line the deeply indented north shore, and much of this popular resort spot is now Prince Edward Island National Park (est. 1937). Low, red sandstone cliffs rim the south shores, and the tides reach to the headwaters of the island's short rivers.
With its fertile and distinctive red soil and its agreeable climate, the island has become known as the Garden of the Gulf. About 90% of the land is arable. The capital is Charlottetown. Gulf of Saint Lawrence
Arm of the Atlantic Ocean, c.100,000 sq mi (259,000 sq km), SE Canada, extending c.250 mi (400 km) from the mouth of the Saint Lawrence River to Newfoundland on the east. At its greatest width (northeast-southwest) it is c.500 mi (800 km). It is bounded by Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Quebec; in the Gulf are Prince Edward Island, Anticosti Island, the Magdalen Islands, and numerous small islands near its north shore. Chaleur Bay, a west inlet, lies between the Gasp Peninsula and New Brunswick. The Strait of Belle Isle, Cabot Strait, and the Strait of Canso lead to the Atlantic. The Gulf is subject to frequent fog and is closed to navigation by ice from early December to mid-April. It was visited by explorers before the 16th cent., and it has important fishing grounds, especially for cod. Charlottetown
City (1991 pop. 15,396), capital and chief port of Prince Edward Island, E Canada, on the southern coast. Food processing, tourism, fishing, and farming are the main industries. The French established (c.1720) a fort and settlement across the harbor, known as Port la Joie. Charlottetown was laid out by the British in 1768 and named for Queen Charlotte, consort of George III. Its growth was slow until the middle of the 19th cent., when it became noted for the sailing vessels it built for fishing and lumber transport. In the city is the Univ. of Prince Edward Island. The Charlottetown Conference of the Maritime Provs. (1864) was the first step toward Canadian confederation.
Economy and Higher Education
Agriculture and fishing dominate the economy. Since earliest settlement, fishing has been an important industry, yielding an abundance of lobsters, oysters, halibut, mackerel, and herring. Livestock, fruit, and vegetables are produced, and potatoes are exported. Islanders held a monopoly on the breeding of silver foxes from the beginning of the industry in 1887 until 1912.
Because of the lack of raw materials and cheap sources of power, manufacturing is largely limited to food processing, such as the making of butter and cheese and the canning of pork and lobsters. Government programs to improve and diversify the economy have had limited success. The tourist industry has experienced the most growth; a musical version of Anne of Green Gables, from a book by Prince Edward Island native Lucy Maud Montgomery, is performed every summer on the island.
The University of Prince Edward Island is at Charlottetown.
Bibliography
See A. H. Clark, Three Centuries and the Island (1957); D. C. Harvey, The French Regime in Prince Edward Island (1926, repr. 1970); J. M. Bumsted, Land, Settlement, and Politics on Eighteenth-Century Prince Edward Island (1987).
Quebec
Province (1991 pop. 6,895,963), 594,860 sq mi (1,553,637 sq km), E Canada.
Quebec is bounded on the N by Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay, on the E by the Labrador area of Newfoundland and the Gulf of St. Lawrence, on the S by New Brunswick and the United States, and on the W by Ontario, James Bay, and Hudson Bay. Quebec is Canada's largest province; it is three times the size of France and seven times the size of Great Britain. The Canadian (or Laurentian) Shield comprises the northern nine tenths of the province, which is relatively unexplored and uninhabited; the region has been planed by glacial action into a pattern of rounded hills, swiftly flowing rivers, and numerous lakes and bogs. Dense forests cover much of the land, and the region is rich in minerals.
South of the Canadian Shield lies the great St. Lawrence River. On both sides of the river S of Quebec city are the lowlands that are the centers of agriculture, commerce, and industry. Quebec city and Trois Rivires are on the north bank of the river and Montreal, the leading industrial center of Canada, is situated on an island where the Ottawa River joins the St. Lawrence. In the southeast section of the province are the Appalachian Highlands, which run parallel to the St. Lawrence. The Gasp Peninsula, on the south bank of the St. Lawrence, borders on the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Quebec's climate is generally temperate, with variations among the regions. Tourism is important throughout the province during the summer season, and in the winter the Laurentian Mts. are a skiing attraction. Quebec has vast resources of water powerHydro-Quebec is the largest producer of electricity in Canada. The massive James Bay Project, however, was dealt a severe blow in 1992 when the New York State Power Authority refused to sign a purchase contract. Quebec
Fr. Qubec, city (1991 pop. 167,517), provincial capital, S Que., Canada, at the confluence of the St. Lawrence and St. Charles rivers. The population is largely French speaking, and the town is at the ideological core of French Canada. Quebec is an important port and is an industrial, cultural, service, and tourist center. Part of the city is built on the waterfront and is called Lower Town; that part called Upper Town is on Cape Diamond, a bluff rising c.300 ft (91 m) above the St. Lawrence. Winding, narrow streets link the two sections of the city. The chief industries are shipbuilding and tourism, and the manufacture of pulp, paper, newsprint, leather products, textiles, clothing, machinery, and foods and beverages. The site of Quebec was visited by Cartier in 1535, and in 1608 Champlain established a French colony in the present Lower Town; this was captured (1629) by the English, who held it until 1632. In 1663, Quebec was made the capital of New France and became the center of the fur trade. The city was unsuccessfully attacked by the English in 1690 and 1711. Finally in 1759 English forces under Wolfe defeated the French under Montcalm on the Plains of Abraham (see Abraham, Plains of) and captured Quebec. During the American Revolution, Americans under Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold failed (1775-76) to capture the city, although Arnold briefly held the Lower Town. Quebec became the capital of Lower Canada in 1791. After the union (1841) of Upper and Lower Canada, it was twice the capital of the United Provinces of Canada (1851-55 and 1859-65). The Quebec Conference was held in the city in 1864. Historic old Quebec, much of which is preserved, was named a World Heritage Site by the United Nations. There are many notable old structures, including the Ursuline Convent (1639); the Basilica of Notre Dame (1647); Quebec Seminary (1663); and parts of the fortifications enclosing Old Quebec. The surrounding area also has many notable sights, such as Montmorency Falls, the le d'Orlans, and the shrine of Ste Anne de Beaupr. Laval Univ. is a center for the city's largely francophone culture. See Mazo de la Roche, Quebec, Historic Seaport (1944); W. P. Percival, The Lure of Quebec (rev. ed. 1965); Michel Gaumond, Place Royale: Its Houses and Their Occupants (tr. 1971); D. T. Ruddel, Quebec City, Seventeen Sixty-Five to Eighteen Thirty-Two (1988). Plains of Abraham
Fairly level field adjoining the upper part of the city of Quebec, Canada. There, in 1759, the English under Gen. James Wolfe defeated the French under Gen. Louis Montcalm. The battle decided the last of the French and Indian Wars and led to British supremacy in Canada. Part of the battle site is now built over, but a part is preserved as a national park.
The city of Quebec is the capital. Montreal is the largest city; other important centers are Verdun, Laval, Trois Rivires, Gatineau, Sherbrooke, and Hull. Quebec Conference
The name of two meetings held in Quebec, Canada, in World War II. The first meeting (Aug., 1943) was attended by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt of the United States, Prime Minister Winston Churchill of Great Britain, Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie King of Canada, and Foreign Minister T. V. Soong of China. An important step toward unified Allied command was taken when the China-Burma-India theater of operations was created under the command of Lord Mountbatten. The United States extended limited recognition to Charles De Gaulle's French Committee of National Liberation. Approval was accorded to the Allied military plans for a landing in France; these plans were communicated to Marshal Stalin later in the year at the Tehran Conference. The second Quebec Conference (Sept., 1944), attended by Roosevelt, Churchill, and their chief military advisers, was concerned with the broad strategy of the war and with the future of Germany. Verdun
City (1991 pop. 61,307), S Que., Canada, on the south shore of Montreal island, on the St. Lawrence River. It is a residential suburb of Montreal. Laval
City (1991 pop. 314,398), coextensive with le-Jsus (94 sq mi/243 sq km), S Que., Canada, between the Rivire des Mille les and the Rivire des Prairies, just NW of Montreal. The second largest city in Quebec, Laval was created in 1965, when 14 small communities on the island were amalgamated. It is a largely residential suburb of Montreal, with summer tourist facilities. The island was known as Montmagny Island until 1699, when it was granted to the Jesuits of Quebec and began to be settled. Gatineau
City (1991 pop. 92,284), SW Que, Canada, at the junction of the Gatineau and Ottawa rivers, adjoining Hull. The fifth-largest city in Quebec, it was created through the merger of 7 municipalities. Its diversified industrial base has led to rapid growth and extensive development since the mid-1970s. Sherbrooke
City (1991 pop. 76,429), S Que., Canada, at the confluence of the Magog and the St. Franois rivers, E of Montreal. It is the commercial and market center for the surrounding farm and mining region and is an industrial city, with textile mills and plants producing mining machinery, rubber products, and leather goods. The Univ. of Sherbrooke (1954) is in the city. Hull
City (1991 pop. 60,707), SW Que., Canada, at the confluence of the Ottawa and Gatineau rivers, opposite the city of Ottawa; inc. 1875. Hull has a hydroelectric power station. There are paper, pulp, textile, steel, and lumber mills, iron foundries, and cement and meatpacking plants. Hull is a center for service industries and for federal government offices. Civil servants form the largest bloc of workers in Hull. The Canadian Museum of Civilization is in the city. Nearby is Gatineau Park, a large recreation area. Trois Rivieres
City (1991 pop. 49,426), S Que., Canada, at the confluence of the St. Lawrence and St. Maurice rivers. It is a port and an industrial center. The city was founded (1634) by Champlain and took its name from the three channels through which the St. Maurice enters the St. Lawrence. It became a major French trading post and fortified port and was the starting point of many explorers and missionaries. In 1737 the first iron forges in Quebec were built in Trois Rivires. During the 19th cent. lumbering was the major industry, but with the utilization of water power after 1900 the pulp and paper industry became dominant. Textiles, foodstuffs, and electrical appliances are also manufactured. A branch of the Quebec Univ. is located there. Gaspe Peninsula
Tongue of land, E Que., Canada, between the estuary of the St. Lawrence River on the north and Chaleur Bay on the south, and extending eastward into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is c.150 mi (240 km) long and from 60 to 90 mi (97-145 km) broad. Its backbone is an extension of the Appalachian mountain system and is known in its highest part as the Shickshock Mts. Mt. Jacques Cartier, or Tabletop Mt. (4,160 ft/1,268 m), is the highest elevation in SE Canada. The interior of the peninsula is a mountain wilderness, completely forested, and with numerous mountain streams and lakes, offering excellent hunting and fishing. Copper is mined near Murdochville. Settlement is almost wholly confined to the coastal rim, where there is a succession of picturesque villages whose residents live by combining agriculture with fishing (chiefly cod) and lumbering. The inhabitants on the north and northeast are chiefly French Canadian, Acadian, Scottish, Irish, and English. The coast, with its combination of mountain and sea and its many bold headlands, is famed for its beauty. The chief towns are Gasp, Matane, Perc, Chandler, and New Carlisle. Gaspesian Provincial Park is in the Shickshock Mts., and there are bird sanctuaries off the east coast. Jacques Cartier landed on the peninsula in 1534.
History and Politics Early History
Since many continental explorations began in the region, Quebec has been called the cradle of Canada. In 1534, Jacques Cartier planted a cross on the Gasp and the following year he sailed up the St. Lawrence. In 1608, Samuel de Champlain built a trading post on the site of the present-day Quebec city, and from this and subsequent settlements Catholic missionaries, explorers, and fur traders penetrated the North American continent. The activities of private fur-trading companies ended, for a time, in 1663 when Louis XIV made the region, then known as New France, a royal colony and chose Jean Baptiste Talon to be intendant, or administrator.
The long struggle to protect the colony and the fur trade from the Iroquois (other tribes were allies of the French) and the British was effectively lost in 1759, when the British defeated the French on the Plains of Abraham (see Abraham, Plains of). By the Treaty of Paris of 1763, Great Britain acquired New France. In an attempt to conciliate the French inhabitants, the British passed the Quebec Act of 1774, under which the colony was allowed to continue its semifeudal system of land tenure and to retain its language, religion, legal system, and customs.
After the American Revolution, many British Loyalists came to settle in Quebec. By the Constitutional Act of 1791 the British separated the area west of the Ottawa River and created the colony of Upper Canada (now Ontario) there. Quebec became known as Lower Canada, and in 1791 the first elective assembly was introduced.
The resentment of leaders of the French community toward the British precipitated a revolt in 1837 led by Louis Papineau. Although the rebellion was crushed, the disturbances in Upper and Lower Canada caused the British to send the Earl of Durham (see Durham, John George Lambton) to study conditions in the British North American colonies. His report led ultimately to internal self-government and the creation of the Canadian confederation. Upper and Lower Canada were reunited in 1841, and Quebec became known as Canada East. Responsible (elected) government was granted in 1849. Confederation and the French-English Question
With the formation of the confederation of Canada in 1867, Canada East became the province of Quebec. Provisions for the preservation of its special, traditional institutions were specifically written into the Canadian constitution. English and French were made the official languages of both Quebec and the Canadian parliament, and a dual school system was established within Quebec. However, in 1974 French was made the sole official language of the province, and all non-English-speaking children were required to attend French-language schools. But the coexistence of majority-French and minority-English cultures within the province and the reverse situation within Canada as a whole have remained sources of tension. Attempts in Manitoba and Ontario at the beginning of the 20th cent. to curtail or abolish separate Catholic schools increased the French Canadians' feeling of isolation. In 1917 they vehemently opposed conscription for World War I. 20th Century Economic and Political Developments
During the 20th century great economic growth in Quebec was coupled with increased determination to maintain and broaden provincial rights. In the 1960s separatist groups, advocating an independent Quebec, gained attention. In 1970 separatist terrorists kidnapped a British diplomat, James R. Cross, and the Quebec Minister of Labour, Pierre Laporte. Cross was later released, but Laporte was found murdered. The incident led to the temporary curtailment by the federal government of certain civil rights guaranteed in the Canadian constitution. It was the first time such federal powers had been used during peacetime.
In 1976 the Parti Qubecois, a party of French-Canadian nationalists formed in 1970, won control of the provincial parliament under Ren Lvesque. The new government initiated a series of language and cultural reforms whereby the use of English was discouraged; this caused an outmigration of English-speaking people and their companies, mainly to Ontario. However, Montreal did manage to attract many high-technology and financial services companies during the 1980s.
In 1980 Lvesque's plan for an independent Quebec, called sovereignty-association, was rejected in a provincial referendum by 60% of the voters. The Parti Qubecois was reelected in 1981, however, and in 1982 the provincial government refused to accept the new Canadian constitution. Since 1985, the Liberal party, led by Robert Bourassa, has controlled the assembly. In 1987 there appeared to be progress on the issue of Quebec separatism, when the Meech Lake Accord was signed. The Accord was defeated on June 22, 1990, however, when Newfoundland and Manitoba failed to approve it. A package of constitutional reforms was subsequently drafted by the Canadian government and presented to voters in a national referendum in Oct., 1992. Its defeat in Quebec and several other provinces revived the separatist movement.
Quebec sends 24 senators (appointed) and 75 representatives (elected) to the national parliament.
Joseph Louis Papineau
1786-1871, French Canadian political leader and insurgent, b. Montreal. After serving as an officer in the War of 1812, he entered (1814) the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada (Quebec), of which he was (1815-37) speaker. Eloquent and able, he soon became leader of the French Canadian Reform party. His hostility to the British government in Canada, whose measures he considered unfair to the French Canadians, inflamed some of his followers, the Patriotes, to open rebellion in 1837; shortly afterward a rebellion incited by William Lyon Mackenzie broke out in Upper Canada (Ontario). Papineau took no active part in the uprisings but fled to the United States, where he sought assistance for the Canadian colonial cause. Failing in his effort, he went to France. He received full amnesty in 1844 and returned to Canada in 1845. He reentered politics and again sat (1848-54) in the Canadian legislative assembly, but he never regained his former influence. See biographies by A. D. De Celles (in Makers of Canada series, Vol. V, 1926) and Fernand Guellet (1961).
John George Lambton, 1st earl of Durham
1792-1840, British statesman. A stormy liberal career in Parliament (1813-32), which earned him the nickname Radical Jack, culminated in the important role he played in drafting the Reform Bill of 1832 and forcing it through the House of Lords. After the Canadian rebellion of 1837-38 he was appointed high commissioner and governor general of Canada, with the mission of winning back disaffected Canadian opinion by recommending political reforms. Durham submitted (1839) the Report on the Affairs of British North America, which has been called the Magna Carta of the British colonies. Its chief proposal was for the creation of an executive council responsible to the colonial assembly, which would allow Canada self government within the British empire. Other recommendations included reform of the land laws, railroad building to unify the country, and the union of Upper and Lower Canada to improve administration and finance and to extinguish the nationalism of the French Canadians.
Robert Bourassa
1933-, Canadian political leader. He received a law degree from the Univ. of Montreal (1957) and later studied at Oxford and Harvard. He was elected to the Quebec Legislative Assembly in 1966. In 1970 he became leader of the Quebec Liberal Party and then premier of the province. He was reelected in 1973, but in 1976 his party was defeated by the Parti Qubecois. He returned to politics in 1983 as leader of the Liberal party, subsequently serving again as premier (1986-). Bourassa is an advocate of Quebec autonomy within a sovereign Canada and was a strong supporter of the failed Meech Lake Accord (1990) and subsequent unsuccessful attempts to redefine provincial rights in the Canadian constitution.
Economy and Higher Education
The forests of the north yield wood for the province's pulp, paper, and lumber industries, and throughout the north country copper, iron, zinc, silver, and gold are mined. The iron ore deposits in the Ungava Bay region have been exploited in recent decades. Asbestos is found in the far north, but more importantly, in the Thetford Mines region of the Appalachian Highlands. At Jonquire, in the Saguenay valley, is one of the world's largest aluminum plants.
The small farms of the lowlands yield dairy products, sugar beets, and tobacco. Quebec is second to Ontario among the Canadian provinces in industrial production. Its main manufactures are refined petroleum, food products, beverages, motor vehicles, clothing, furniture, iron and steel, chemicals, and metal and paper products. The fur and fishing trades are still important in Quebec. The service sector has grown significantly since 1970 and now represents one of the largest sectors of Quebec's economy.
Quebec has many universities, including McGill Univ., the Univ. of Montreal, and Concordia Univ., at Montreal; the Univ. of Sherbrooke, at Sherbrooke; Laval Univ., at Quebec City; Bishop's Univ., at Lennoxville; and the University of Quebec, with an administrative center at Sainte-Foy and campuses at Montreal, Trois-Rivires, Chicoutimi, Rimouski, Hull, and Rouyn.
Bibliography
See C. C. Nish, ed., Quebec in the Duplessis Era, 1935-1959 (1970); Fernand Grenier, ed., Quebec (1972); W. D. Coleman, The Independence Movement in Quebec, 1945-80 (1984); Allan Greer, Peasant, Lord and Merchant: Rural Society in Three Quebec Parishes, 1740-1840 (1985); Richard Handler, Nationalism and the Politics of Culture in Quebec (1988); Hubert Guidon, Quebec Society (1988).
Ontario
Province (1991 pop. 10,084,885), 412,582 sq mi (1,068,587 sq km), E central Canada.
Ontario, the second-largest Canadian province, is the most populous and the most important in terms of mineral, industrial, and agricultural output and in terms of financial and other services. It is bounded on the N by Hudson Bay and James Bay; on the E by Quebec; on the S by the St. Lawrence River, lakes Ontario, Erie, Huron, and Superior, and by the United States; and on the W by Manitoba. The province has three main geographic regions. In the western and central portion is the Canadian Shield, a region of mineral-rich rock covered with forests and broken by a labyrinth of rivers and lakes. In the north the Hudson Bay Lowlands border on Hudson and James bays, an area consisting mainly of marshes, swampland, and forest. In the south and east are the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence lowlands, where nine tenths of the population lives and where industry and agriculture are concentrated. Ottawa
City (1991 pop. 313,987), capital of Canada, SE Ont., at the confluence of the Ottawa and Rideau rivers. Hull, Que., just across the Ottawa at the mouth of the Gatineau River, forms part of the metropolitan area. The Rideau Canal separates the city into upper and lower towns; along its banks and those of the rivers are many landscaped drives as well as much of the city's land area, which totals 1,500 acres (607 hectares). Ottawa is not primarily an industrial center; however, it has industries that produce, among other goods, paper and paper products, printed materials, telecommunications equipment, and electronics. The area's industries utilize the hydroelectric power of the Ottawa (Chaudire Falls) and Gatineau valleys. Since 1940, the largest employer in Ottawa has been the federal government. The National Capital Commission, a developer of public works, has done much to redevelop the core of the city, removing old rail lines and building new parks (Confederation Square) and national buildings (National Arts Center, National Defence Building, Bank of Canada Building). In part because of these development projects, tourism has become Ottawa's second-largest industry, attracting about 4 million people annually. Ottawa proper was founded in 1827 by Col. John By, an engineer in charge of construction of the Rideau Canal. At first called Bytown, it was named after the Ottawa, an Algonquian-speaking people, in 1854. In 1858, Ottawa was chosen by Queen Victoria to be the capital of the United Provinces of Canada, and in 1867 it became capital of the Dominion of Canada. The government buildings, built between 1859 and 1865, were burned in 1916 but were immediately rebuilt on an enlarged scale. Other notable buildings are Rideau Hall, the residence of the governor general, the Anglican and Roman Catholic cathedrals, the Bytown Museum, the Canadian Museum of Nature, the National Gallery, the National Arts Centre, the National Aviation Museum, the National Library and Public Archives Building, the National Museum of Science and Technology, the Dominion Observatory, the Royal Mint, and the Rideau Centre complex. Univ. of Ottawa, St. Paul Univ., and Carleton Univ. are in the city. Ottawa is largely a bilingual city because federal government employees are required to know both English and French. See R. B. Haig, Ottawa (1970); D. B. Knight, A Capital for Canada (1977); John Taylor, Ottawa: An Illustrated History (1986). Hamilton
City (1991 pop. 318,499), S Ont., Canada, at the western end of Lake Ontario. It is situated on a narrow plain between its harbor (connected by canal with the lake) and the Niagara escarpment. Hamilton is an important port, transportation center, and manufacturing city. It is Canada's leading producer of iron and steel; other manufactures include automobiles, heavy machinery, chemicals, and electrical, paper, and textile products. The site was settled by United Empire Loyalists in 1778. It became an important port city with the opening (1830) of the Burlington Canal, which linked Hamilton Harbor with Lake Ontario. Places of interest include the Royal Botanical Gardens, the open-air market, the historical museum in Dundern Park, and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. McMaster Univ. (1887) is in the city. Kitchener
City (1991 pop. 168,282), Regional Municipality of Waterloo, S Ont., Canada, in the Grand River valley. Settled largely by Mennonites from Pennsylvania in 1806, it was known as Berlin until 1916, when it was renamed in memory of Lord Kitchener. Its products include packaged meats, metal and leather goods, spirits, appliances, furniture, and rubber products. Because of the close socioeconomic ties between Kitchener and the city of Waterloo, the area is commonly known as Kitchener-Waterloo. Woodside National Historic Park commemorates the birthplace of W. L. MacKenzie King. Waterloo
City (1991 pop. 71,181), SE Ont., Canada. It is a suburb of Kitchener. Several large insurance companies have their main offices there. Its industries include distilleries and plants making furniture, farm machinery, and metal products. The district was settled (1800-1805) by Mennonites from Pennsylvania. The Univ. of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier Univ. are there. Town (1991 pop. 3,964), S Que., Canada, SE of Montreal. It is the center of a farming region known for its mushrooms. Manufactures include plastics, wire goods, and baby carriages. London
City (1991 pop. 303,165), SE Ont., Canada, on the Thames River. The site was chosen in 1792 by Governor Simcoe to be the capital of Upper Canada, but York was made capital instead. London was settled in 1826. Its streets and bridges are named for those of old London in England. Surrounded by one of Canada's richest agricultural districts, it has become a notable industrial, commercial, service, and financial center. Electrical goods and locomotive and automobile parts are among the products made. The Univ. of Western Ontario (coeducational; 1878) and the affiliated Ursuline and Huron colleges are in the city. Windsor
Town (1991 pop. 3,625), central N.S., Canada, at the mouth of the Avon River on an arm of Minas Basin. It is the center of a gypsum and limestone-quarrying area. Manufactures include fertilizers, building materials, and lumber products. Windsor was settled by Acadians (1703) and called Pisiquid. After their expulsion it was settled by New Englanders and renamed in 1764. It is the site of Fort Edward, built (1750) by the British. King's College, the first English university in Canada, was founded in Windsor in 1789 but moved in 1923 to Halifax as part of Dalhousie Univ. 2 City (1991 pop. 191,435), S Ont., Canada, on the Detroit River opposite Detroit, Mich. It is Canada's leading port of entry from the United States and is in a rich agricultural region. Its manufactures include automobiles, industrial machinery, food and beverages, salt, and chemicals. The city was settled by the French in 1749. After the American Revolution many Loyalists settled in the area. In the early 20th cent., when Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, and other automobile companies built plants in the area, Windsor was known as the Auto Capital of the British Empire.The former suburb of Sandwich was merged with Windsor in 1935. The city is the seat of Windsor Univ. Thunder Bay
City (1991 pop. 113,946), SW Ont., Canada, on Thunder Bay inlet of Lake Superior. The city was created in 1970 by the amalgamation of the twin cities of Fort William and Port Arthur and two adjoining townships. It is one of Canada's major ports, shipping wheat, lumber, coal, and iron ore. The city has shipyards, grain elevators, lumber and pulp and paper mills, breweries, and an oil refinery. Manufactures include structural steel, buses, trucks, aircraft, and chemical products. Port Arthur, originally a military post, was founded in the late 19th cent. Fort William was built by the North West Company in 1801 to serve as its western headquarters. It was the site of a fur-trading post built in 1679 and of Fort Kaministikwia, built by the French in 1717 and later abandoned. Kakabeka Falls, nearby, is a source of water power. Lakehead Univ. is located there. Saint Catharines
City (1991 pop. 129,300), S Ont., Canada, on the Welland Ship Canal. An industrial center in a rich fruit-growing region, it has canneries and wineries as well as textile and paper mills; motor vehicle parts, machinery, electrical products, and farm implements are manufactured. St. Catharines was founded in 1790. Brock Univ. (1964) is in the city. The Royal Henley Regatta is held annually in Port Dalhousie, part of St. Catharines since 1961.
History and Politics
Before the arrival of Europeans the Ontario region was inhabited by several Algonquian (Ojibwa, Cree, and Algonquin) and Iroquoian (Iroquois, Huron, Petun, Neutral, Erie, and Susquehannock) tribes. tienne Brul explored southern Ontario in 1610-12. Henry Hudson sailed into Hudson Bay in 1611 and claimed the region for England. A few years later Samuel de Champlain reached (1615) the eastern shores of Lake Huron, and French explorers, missionaries, and trappers had established posts at several points. However, settlement was long hindered by the presence of the Iroquois.
In the late 17th cent. the British established trading posts in the Hudson Bay area, and the Anglo-French struggle for control of Ontario began. The conflict was resolved by the Treaty of Paris of 1763, which gave Great Britain all of France's mainland North American territory. In 1774 the British merged Ontario with Quebec, which had a predominantly French culture. When many pro-British Loyalists migrated to Ontario after the American Revolution, the desire for institutions and a government separate from those of Quebec grew. The Constitutional Act of 1791 split Quebec into Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) and Upper Canada (present-day Ontario), with the Ottawa River as the dividing line.
During the War of 1812, Americans raided Upper Canada and burned Toronto (1813). After the war many English, Scottish, and Irish settlers came to the colony. Conflict developed between the conservative, aristocratic governing group (known as the Family Compact) and the reformers and radicals led by William Lyon Mackenzie. The radicals staged an armed uprising in 1837 but were easily suppressed. However, the rebellion occurred at the same time as a revolt in Lower Canada, and the British government dispatched Lord Durham (see Durham, John George Lambton) to study the situation in the North American colonies. He recommended the reunion of the two colonies (to place the French of Quebec in a minority) and the granting of self-government.
Accordingly, Upper and Lower Canada were joined in 1841 and became known, respectively, as Canada West and Canada East. Parliamentary self-government was not granted until 1849. However, conflict between French and English made the united province unworkable, and in 1867, when the confederation of Canada was formed, Ontario and Quebec became separate provinces. With the construction of the transcontinental railroad in the 1880s, settlement increased in western Canada, and Ontario's commerce and industry flourished. The exploitation of the minerals in the Canadian Shield region began in the early 20th cent.
The main political parties in Ontario are the Liberals, who held power during the late 19th cent., the Conservatives, who governed from 1905 to 1985 (with the exception of two interludes in 1919-23 and 1934-43), and the New Democrats, a democratic socialist party, which won a substantial majority in the 1990 elections and named Bob Rae as premier.
Ontario sends 24 senators (appointed) and 99 representatives (elected) to the national parliament.
Climate varies among the regions. The far north has sub-arctic conditions, while the west has a temperate climate. Around the Great Lakes the weather is moderate and summers are longer than in other parts of the province. The St. Lawrence River gives Ontario access to the Atlantic. Other important rivers are the Ottawa (which forms part of the boundary with Quebec), the St. Clair, the Detroit, and the St. Marys. Several of the province's rivers are used to generate hydroelectric power, among them the Niagara, with its famous falls. Besides the falls, Ontario has numerous other tourist attractions, among them the annual Shakespeare Festival at Stratford, the annual George Bernard Shaw Festival at Niagara-on-the-Lake, and four national parks.
With steady immigration from Italy, Germany, Portugal, the West Indies, India, and East Asia, Ontario's ethnic composition is rapidly diversifying. People of British ancestry make up about half the province's population, and one tenth are of French extraction. Over 80% of Ontario's residents live in urban centers. Toronto, the largest metropolitan area in Canada, is the capital; other important cities are Ottawa (the capital of Canada), Hamilton, Kitchener, London, Windsor, Thunder Bay, and St. Catharines.
Economy and Higher Education
The most important economic activity in Ontario is manufacturing, and the Toronto-Hamilton region is the most highly industrialized section of the country. The area from Oshawa around the west end of Lake Ontario to Niagara Falls is known as the Golden Horseshoe. Major industrial products include motor vehicles and parts, iron, steel, and other metal products, foods and beverages, electrical goods, machinery, chemicals, petroleum and coal products, and paper products. Ontario has attracted many high technology companies, especially around Ottawa, and its service industries are second in importance only to manufacturing.
Agriculture is also significant, with cattle, dairy products, and hogs producing the most income. Other major crops are corn, wheat, potatoes, and soybeans. On the shores of the eastern Great Lakes are orchards and tobacco plantations. In the Canadian Shield region iron ore, copper, zinc, gold, silver, and uranium are mined. The area around Sudbury is particularly rich in copper and nickel; Ontario produces half of the world's nickel. Ontario is also a major producer of lumber and pulp and paper.
Among the province's institutions of higher education are the Univ. of Toronto and Ryerson Polytechnical Inst., at Toronto; the Univ. of Ottawa and Carleton Univ., at Ottawa; McMaster Univ., at Hamilton; Queen's Univ., at Kingston; the Univ. of Western Ontario, at London; Brock Univ., at St. Catherines; Trent Univ., at Peterboro; Laurentian Univ., at Sudbury; the Univ. of Waterloo and Wilfred Laurier Univ., at Waterloo; and York Univ., at North York.
Bibliography
See Dean Fink, comp., Life in Upper Canada, 1781-1841 (1971); R. L. Gentilcore, ed., Ontario (1972); Jacob Spelt, Urban Development in South Central Ontario (1972); J. V. Wright, Ontario Prehistory (1972); Christopher Armstrong, The Politics of Federalism: Ontario's Relations with the Federal Government 1867-1942 (1981); K. J. Rea, The Prosperous Years: The Economic History of Ontario 1939-75 (1985); David Peterson, Ontario (1987).
Toronto
City (1991 pop. 635,395), provincial capital, S Ont., Canada, on Lake Ontario. Toronto is the largest metropolitan area in Canada and since the 1970s has been one of the fastest-changing cities in N America.
Landmarks and Institutions
Toronto has many buildings of historical interest and numerous parks. Exhibition Park is the site of the annual Canadian National Exhibition. The Toronto city hall is a modernistic structure completed in 1965. The 1,821-ft (554-m) CN Tower (1976), a telecommunications spire, is the tallest freestanding structure in the world. The Skydome, a baseball stadium that is the home field of the Toronto Blue Jays, was completed in 1989.
The Univ. of Toronto was chartered in 1827 and opened in 1843 as King's College. It was renamed in 1850 and is Canada's largest university and most important graduate research center. York Univ. and Ryerson Polytechnical Institute are also in Toronto. Other notable institutions are the Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies; the Osgoode Hall law school; the Ontario Science Centre; and the Royal Ontario Museum, housing an important collection of Chinese art. Toronto has Anglican and Roman Catholic bishoprics and is the headquarters of the United Church of Canada.
History
The site was an early fur-trading post. The French built (1749) Fort Rouille there to counteract British influence in the Niagara country, but the post was destroyed (1759) to prevent its occupation by the British. The British purchased the site from the Native Americans in 1787 and it became the home of many American Loyalists. It was chosen by Sir John Simcoe in 1793 to be the capital of Upper Canada (see Ontario) and was named York. In the War of 1812 the city was raided twice by the Americans, and many buildings were destroyed. In 1834 it was incorporated as Toronto. The city was the scene of the insurrection led by William Lyon Mackenzie in 1873.
Economy and People
The city is a port of entry and an important commercial, financial, and industrial hub as well as the banking and stock-exchange center of the country and its chief wholesale-distributing point. Its importance as a port and transshipment point has increased since the opening (1959) of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Ontario's wealth of raw materials and hydroelectric power make Toronto an industrial powerhouse. The city and its surrounding area produce more than half of Canada's manufactured goods.
Toronto's industries include slaughtering and meat packing, printing and publishing, and the manufacture of aircraft, farm implements, electrical machinery, and metal products. The city has the country's leading service sector and attracts a growing amount of high tech businesses. It is also a major tourist center. The influx of many European, Asian, and Indian migrants has dramatically diversified the city's ethnic composition. Rapid suburbanization and extensive redevelopment of the downtown and waterfront areas have changed the character of the city.
Bibliography
See V. L. Russell, ed., Forging a Consensus: Historical Essays on Toronto (1984); J. T. Lemon, Toronto (1984); E. R. Arthur, Toronto: No Mean City (1986); John De Visser, et al., Toronto: The Heart of the City (1988).
Manitoba
Province (1991 pop. 1,091,942), 250,934 sq mi (650,930 sq km), including 39,215 sq mi (101,580 sq km) of water surface, W central Canada.
Easternmost of the Prairie Provinces, Manitoba is bounded on the N by Keewatin Region of the Northwest Territories (with a northeast shoreline on Hudson Bay), on the E by Ontario, on the S by Minnesota and North Dakota, and on the W by Saskatchewan. Because of its central location it is a major national transportation center. The south and central part of Manitoba was covered by Lake Agassiz in prehistoric times. As its waters receded into Hudson Bay, it left behind numerous lakes (Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Winnipegosis) and rivers (Nelson, Churchill, and Hayes), which flow northeast into the bay. In some places the underlying rock formations were swept bare, and in others they were covered with rich deposits of black loam. Miles of almost uninhabited treeless tundra surround the port of Churchill.
Extending S from Churchill and E from Lake Winnipeg, the topography is that of the Canadian Shield; limited areas have been cleared for general farming and dairying, and the mineral and timber resources have been partly developed. The southern part of Manitoba is dominated by lakes, with Lake Winnipeg paralleled in the W by Winnipegosis and Manitoba. Most of the province's population is concentrated in the river valleys S of these lakes. To the W and N of the Red River valley, the land rises in an escarpment extending into the plateaus of the Pembina, Turtle, Riding, Duck, and Porcupine mountains. Much of this heavily forested area has been set off as reserves, and the Riding Mt. area is a national park.
Winnipeg is the capital and the largest city, accounting for over half of the province's population in its metropolitan area. Other important cities are Brandon, Thompson, Portage la Prairie, and Selkirk. Lake Agassiz
Glacial lake of the Pleistocene epoch, c.700 mi (1,130 km) long, 250 mi (400 km) wide, formed by the melting of the continental ice sheet some 10,000 years ago; covered much of present-day NW Minnesota, NE North Dakota, S Manitoba, and SW Ontario. The lake was named in 1879 in memory of Louis Agassiz for his contributions to the theory of the glacial epoch. Lake Traverse, Big Stone Lake, and the Minnesota River are in the channel of prehistoric River Warren, Lake Agassiz's original outlet to the south. As the ice melted, the water drained E into Lake Superior; after the ice disappeared, N into Hudson Bay, it left lakes Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Winnipegosis, Red Lake, Lake of the Woods, and other smaller lakes. The bed of the old lake, the Red River valley, has become an important crop-growing region due to its rich soil. Winnipeg
City (1991 pop. 616,790), provincial capital, SE Man., Canada, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers. It is the province's largest city and one of the world's largest wheat markets. A railroad, commercial, industrial, and distribution center, it has an international airport, railroad shops, grain elevators, stockyards, meatpacking and automobile plants, flour and textile mills, and breweries. The city's history reflects the history of early French and British explorers and fur traders. In 1738, the sieur de la Vrendrye built the first post on the site, Fort Rouge, but it was later abandoned. Other posts were built in the Red River region, which was fiercely contested by the North West Company and the Hudson's Bay Company. The conflict reached its height in the struggle over the Red River Settlement. The two companies were merged in 1821. Fort Gibraltar, a post of the North West Company on the site of present-day Winnipeg, was renamed Fort Garry and became the leading post in the region. In 1835 its name was changed to Winnipeg. Settlement was spurred by the construction of a rail line in 1881. Much of the city had to be rebuilt after the Red River Flood (1950). Throughout the 1970s and 80s many new developments (a new city hall, hotels, a convention center, office buildings) have been constructed. In the city are the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the Manitoba Theater Group, and a symphony orchestra. An annual festival, the Folklorama, is dedicated to celebrating the city's increasingly cosmopolitan character. The Univ. of Manitoba and the Univ. of Winnipeg are also there. Red River Settlement
Agricultural colony in present Manitoba, North Dakota, and Minnesota. It was the undertaking of Thomas Douglas, 5th earl of Selkirk. Wishing to relieve the dispossessed and impoverished in Scotland and Northern Ireland, he secured enough control of the Hudson's Bay Company to obtain from it a grant of land called Assiniboia. This project met opposition from the very start, principally from the North West Company, but also from the fur traders in the Hudson's Bay Company. Despite efforts to discourage the colony, Miles Macdonnell, a Selkirk man, brought a small group to the colony in 1812. The determined hostility of the North West Company mounted, especially after the company men had won the half-breeds, or mtis, entirely to their side. By cajolery and threat they persuaded settlers to desert, but a new group of settlers came, and the colony was restored in 1815. North West Company men and half-breeds now resorted to violence on a large scale, killing 22 in the massacre of Seven Oaks (June 19, 1816). On hearing the news of the massacre, Selkirk fell upon the North West Company post, Fort William, and seized it. Other attacks followed. The result of these moves was a series of court charges and countercharges that impoverished Selkirk and helped to bring about the union (1821) of the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company. Agriculture had by this time been firmly established on the Western plains, and the Red River settlements were to grow and flourish. See Riel, Louis. See J. P. Pritchett, The Red River Valley, 1811-1849 (1942); John M. Gray, Lord Selkirk of Red River (1964). Brandon
City (1991 pop. 38,567), SW Man., Canada, on the Assiniboine River. The business center of the wheat-raising area of SW Manitoba, Brandon has an extensive trade in farm products and machinery. It is the seat of the annual provincial exhibition and of the Manitoba Winter Fair. A dominion experimental farm adjoins the city. Brandon Univ. is in the city. Brandon is named for the old Hudson's Bay Company post, Brandon House, built in 1793. Thompson
City (1991 pop. 14,977), central Man., Canada, on the Burntwood River. A mining town, it developed after large nickel deposits were discovered in the area in 1956. Portage la Prairie
City (1991 pop. 13,186), S Man., Canada. It is the center of a mixed-farming region and has diversified industries. The city is near the site of Fort La Reine, an important fur-trading post built (1738) by Vrendrye as a carrying point between the Assiniboine River and Lake Manitoba. Selkirk
Town (1991 pop. 9,815), SE Man., Canada, on the Red River. Just S of Lake Winnipeg, it is a port for products from N Manitoba. There are steel mills, foundries, and shipyards in the town. It is named for the 5th earl of Selkirk, who established (1812) the Red River Settlement in the region.
History and Politics
The history of Manitoba began along Hudson Bay. The search for the elusive Northwest Passage to the Pacific drew such explorers as Henry Hudson, Thomas Button, Pierre Radisson, and Mdard Chouart des Groseilliers, some of whom returned to England laden with beaver furs. To exploit this fur wealth, King Charles II granted (1670) the Hudson's Bay Company propriety over all the lands draining into Hudson Bay. This vast area included the present-day province of Manitoba, then occupied by the Assiniboin, the Ojibwa, and the Cree. The company established a trading post at Port Nelson and soon extended its operations south to the strategic Red River valley. In 1717, Fort Prince of Wales was built at the mouth of the Churchill River (rebuilt in stone 1732-71, it is now in Fort Prince of Wales National Historic Park).
Manitoba was explored and posts were established by the French as well as by the British; their rival claims were resolved when England's conquest of Canada in the French and Indian Wars was confirmed by the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Scotsmen took over much of the French fur trade, organized the North West Company, and challenged the monopoly of the Hudson's Bay Company. A crisis came when the earl of Selkirk established the Red River Settlement at present-day Assiniboine in North West Company territory. The resulting violence deterred colonization until the merger of the two companies in 1821. From then until 1870, when the Hudson's Bay Company sold its vast domain to the newly created confederation of Canada, that company was in sole control, and settlement of the area increased.
Prearrangements for the transfer of the land to the new dominion government led to conflict between government representatives and Mtis (people of mixed European-indigenous Canadian ancestry), who had long enjoyed almost total autonomy under the Hudson's Bay Company's rule. Fearing political persecution and the loss of their land, they staged (1869) the Red River Rebellion under the leadership of Louis Riel. The rebellion was nominally successful and the Mtis were granted land and cultural rights, but after Manitoba was organized as a province in 1870, most of the Mtis were harassed into moving further west.
Agricultural settlement in Manitoba proceeded slowly, but when the railroads came (1870 and 1881), they provided access to and from the grain markets on the Great Lakes, and, during the 1880s, the population doubled. Manitoba's area was enlarged in 1881, and in 1912 it was given its present extension to Hudson Bay. The depression of 1913 and the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914 ended this period of prosperity, during which Winnipeg had served as a great transportation center. With the completion of the Hudson Bay Railway to Churchill in 1929, the province was in a position to use the shorter sea route eastward.
During the last part of the 19th cent. and the first part of the 20th, the Canadian government advertised for immigrants to settle the prairies, and huge numbers of Russians, Poles, Estonians, Scandinavians, and Hungarians came from Europe. Manitoba remains Canada's most ethnically diverse province. The largest single immigrant group was the Ukrainians, who now constitute over 11% of the population and are an important part of Manitoban culture. A national Ukrainian festival is held each year, and there is a Ukrainian culture museum in Winnipeg. The province provided a multilingual school system from 1897 to 1916, but abolished it when the number of ethnic groups requesting such facilities grew too large. Further immigration came with World War I when American pacifist sects (e.g., the Mennonites and Hutterites), seeking to avoid military service, set up colonies of their own in the province. Manitoba still has problems amalgamating its many ethnic groups, including the Mtis.
Manitoba has alternated politically between socialist (New Democratic party) and conservative (Progressive Conservative party) governments since the 1950s. In 1958 the Progressive Conservative party came into power, but it was displaced (1969) by the New Democrats under the leadership of Edward R. Schreyer. Conservative Sterling Lyon was elected in 1977 after promising to reduce the provincial debt, but he was defeated in 1981 by New Democrat Howard Pawley. Lyon's was the only one-term government in Manitoba history. Conservatives regained control of the government in 1989 under Gary Filmon.
Manitoba sends 6 senators (appointed) and 14 representatives (elected) to the national parliament. Hudson's Bay Company
Corporation chartered (1670) by Charles II of England for the purpose of trade and settlement in the Hudson Bay region of North America and for exploration toward the discovery of the Northwest Passage to Asia.
Economy and Higher Education
In southern Manitoba are fields of wheat, barley, oats, rye, and flax. The well-settled Souris plains in the southwest are especially famous for their wheat fields. Canada's wheat industry originated in Manitoba, and Manitoba's bread wheat has set the standards for the world. Grain is shipped in quantity from Churchill (the only port in the Prairie Provinces) during the three ice-free months of the year. Although agriculture has been continually extendedespecially in mixed farming, dairying, and poultry and stock raisingmanufacturing has nevertheless displaced it as the leading industry in the province. Foods, minerals, clothing, electrical items, chemicals, furniture, leather, fabricated metals, and transportation equipment are major products.
Continuing developments in mining, pulp and paper manufacturing, and extensive hydroelectric production promise to preserve Manitoba's industrial growth. In the southwest, near Brandon, are large oil reserves, and the municipal districts of Flin Flon and The Pas, on the Saskatchewan River, are gateways to the rich mineral deposits (chiefly nickel, copper, and zinc) and timberlands of the central west. Manitoba ranks second only to Ontario in the production of nickel; the mines at Thompson provide most of Manitoba's nickel. Beluga whales are still caught by native fishermen at Churchill, and fur farming in the north places Manitoba third of all the provinces in the production of fur.
The Univ. of Manitoba and the Univ. of Winnipeg are at Winnipeg; Brandon University is at Brandon.
Bibliography
See W. L. Morton, Manitoba: A History (2d ed. 1967); J. A. Jackson, The Centennial History of Manitoba (1970); Manitoba: Past and Present, ed. by Denise Dawes (tr. 1971); Fred McGuinness and K. S. Coates, Manitoba: The Province and the People (1987).
Saskatchewan
Province (1991 pop. 988,928), 251,700 sq mi (651,903 sq km), W Canada.
Saskatchewan is bounded on the N by the Northwest Territories, on the E by Manitoba, on the S by North Dakota and Montana, and on the W by Alberta. One of the Prairie Provinces, its northern third is part of the Laurentian Plateau. The principal rivers are the Churchill, the North and South Saskatchewan, and the Qu'Appelle. Between the Saskatchewan and Churchill rivers lies a mixed forest belt that provides much marketable timber; a section is reserved as Prince Albert National Park.
Only in S Saskatchewan has there been substantial settlement and development. Regina is the capital and largest city; other important cities are Prince Albert, Saskatoon, and Moose Jaw. Regina
City (1991 pop. 179,178), provincial capital, S Sask., Canada, on Wascana Creek. The city is the distribution and service center for one of the world's largest wheat-growing plains. Industries include agricultural processing, meatpacking, printing, oil refining, and the manufacture of communications equipment and building materials. Regina was founded in 1882 when a railroad line was constructed through the region. It was the capital of the Northwest Territories from 1883 to 1905, when it became the capital of the newly created Saskatchewan. From 1892 to 1920, Regina was the headquarters of the Northwest Mounted Police, and it is now western headquarters of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, which maintains its crime detection laboratory there. The Univ. of Regina is located there. Prince Albert
City (1991 pop. 34,181), central Sask., Canada, on the North Saskatchewan River. Prince Albert is a commercial and distribution center for a lumbering, gold- and uranium-mining, and mixed-farming area. There are wood-products and meatpacking industries. It was founded in 1866 as a Presbyterian mission to the Cree . It is the gateway to Prince Albert National Park, to the northwest. The city is the seat of Anglican and Roman Catholic cathedrals and headquarters of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for central and N Saskatchewan, as well as the site of the provincial penitentiary. Saskatoon
City (1991 pop. 186,058), S central Sask., Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. The largest city in the province, it is the chief manufacturing and distributing center for central and N Saskatchewan. There are grain elevators, grain and flour mills, stockyards, meatpacking plants, oil refineries, potash-processing plants, and various light manufacturing ventures in the city. Saskatoon was settled in 1883 and grew rapidly after the coming of the railroad (1890). The Univ. of Saskatchewan with its affiliated colleges is there, and a dominion forestry station is nearby. The name derives from a Cree word for a berry found in the area. Moose Jaw
City (1991 pop. 33,593), S central Sask., Canada. It is a railroad and distribution center, with oil refineries, meatpacking and dairy-processing plants, flour, lumber, and woolen mills, stockyards, and Canada's largest jet-training base.
History and Politics
Original inhabitants of Saskatchewan include tribes of three linguistic groups: the Athapaskan, Algonquian, and Siouan. Henry Kelsey of the Hudson's Bay Company was probably the first European to see (c.1690) the area that is now Saskatchewan. The earliest trading posts were established (c.1750) by the French, but the first permanent settlement was made at Cumberland House in 1774 by the Hudson's Bay Company. Subsequently many other posts were set up by British fur traders along the region's waterways.
In 1870 the Hudson's Bay Company, which had merged with the North West Company in 1821, ceded its rights to the Canadian government, and the area became part of the Northwest Territories. The construction of a rail line (1882) brought many settlers from E Canada (and later from Europe) and opened up trade through the Great Lakes ports. Most Canadians of indigenous descent in the Northwest Territories sold their lands to the government in the 1870s and were placed on reservations. Other Saskatchewan native peoples and Mtis, people of mixed French and indigenous Canadian ancestry, led by Louis Riel, rebelled in 1884-85 and were suppressed.
Saskatchewan became a province in 1905. In the early 20th cent. Saskatchewan farmers formed cooperative organizations to stabilize grain marketing. During the drought and depression of the 1930s the province's population declined as immigration almost stopped and many families left. Conservation programs and the increased demand for grain during World War II revived the economy.
Except for the period from 1964 to 1971, when the Liberals were in power, Saskatchewan was governed from 1944 to 1982 by the socialist New Democratic Party (until 1961 called the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation). Among the socialists' achievements was the enactment of compulsory hospital and medical insurance. The Progressive Conservative Party, with Grant Divine as premier, was in power from 1982 to 1992, when Roy Romanow led the New Democratic Party to victory at the provincial polls.
Saskatchewan sends 6 senators (appointed) and 14 representatives (elected) to the national parliament. Louis Riel
1844-85, Canadian insurgent, leader of two rebellions, b. Manitoba, of French and mtis parentage. In 1869-70 he led the rebels of the Red River settlements, mainly mtis and indigenous peoples, who felt that their rights were threatened by the transfer (1869) of the Hudson's Bay Company territory to Canada. When the government dispatched (1870) troops to face the rebels, the Red River Rebellion collapsed, and Riel fled the country. In that year, under the Manitoba Act, the Red River settlements were accorded a provincial government. Riel returned to Canada and was elected to the House of Commons, but was expelled (1874) and declared an outlaw (1875). In 1884 he returned to lead a group of indigenous people and mtis who were bent on securing titles to their lands in Saskatchewan. The uprising ended with an engagement (1885) at Batoche. He was captured, tried for treason, and hanged.
Economy and Higher Education
Except for a semiarid section in the southwest used for grazing and an area in the east and central portion given over to mixed farming and dairying, the land is devoted to the raising of hard wheat. Saskatchewan normally produces two-thirds of Canada's wheat. The vast expanses of unbroken plain are well-suited to large-scale mechanized farming. Oats, barley, rye, rapeseed, and flax are also grown throughout this region. The historic occupation of fur trapping is still practiced.
Saskatchewan is rich in minerals. Oil and natural gas, found in the prairie land, are by far the province's most important minerals. The region north of Lake Athabaska has been exploited for ores yielding uranium. The area around Flin Flon, in the northeast, is mined for copper, zinc, and gold. Coal is mined in the southwest. Potash mining began in the 1950s near Saskatoon and Esterhazy, and Canada is now a leading producer of this mineral. Most of the province's industries process raw materials.
Bibliography
See E. A. McCourt, Saskatchewan (1968); S. M. Lipset, Agrarian Socialism (new and enl. ed. 1972); D. E. Smith, Prairie Liberalism (1975); J. H. Archer, Saskatchewan: A History (1980).
Alberta
Province (1991 pop. 2,545,553), 255,285 sq mi (661,188 sq km), including 6,485 sq mi (16,796 sq km) of water surface, W Canada.
Alberta is bounded on the E by Saskatchewan, on the N by the Northwest Territories, on the W by British Columbia, and on the S by Montana. Westernmost of the Prairie Provinces, it lies on a high plateau that rises in the W to the Continental Divide at the British Columbia border. There lie the foothills of the Rocky Mts. and the spectacular mountains themselves, with three noted national parksJasper, Banff, and Waterton Lakes (the Canadian section of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park).
Although Alberta is known as a Prairie Province, only about one quarter of its area is actually treelesschiefly the undulating prairie of S Alberta. Central Alberta has parklike, partly wooded country, and in the northern stretches are thousands of acres of virgin timberland. Endowed with many lakes, streams, and rivers, the province is drained by the Peace, the Athabasca, the north and south branches of the Saskatchewan, the Red Deer, the St. Mary, the Milk, and many other rivers.
Many visitors are drawn by the grand scale of Alberta's landscapeits rolling wheat fields, huge granaries, sprawling cattle ranches, and vast oil refineries. Annual festivals include the Indian Days Celebration at Banff, which attracts thousands of native peoples from a wide area, and the famous Calgary Exhibition and Stampede. Other tourist attractions are Elk Island National Park and the extensive Wood Buffalo National Park, which shelters a bison herd.
The population is concentrated in S and central Alberta, and except for farm centers in the fertile valley of the Peace, the northern portion is sparsely settled. Edmonton is the capital and the largest city. The second largest city is Calgary; other important cities are Lethbridge, Red Deer, Medicine Hat, St. Albert, and Fort McMurray. Edmonton hosted the Comonwealth Games (1978) and the World University Games (1983), and Calgary hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics. Edmonton
City (1991 pop. 616,741), provincial capital, central Alta., on the North Saskatchewan River. The largest metropolitan area in Alberta, Edmonton, known as the Gateway to the North, is located in the center of the province between the fertile valleys of the south and the rich resources of the north. It is a major market center for farm and petrochemical products, and has an economy based on the production of oil, coal, and natural gas. Other industries include lumbering, meatpacking, flour milling, and dairying. The dominant center for the western fur trade during the 19th cent., Edmonton grew slowly in the 20th cent., relying on its agriculture-based economy. Before World War II it was only the ninth-largest city in Canada, but the discovery (1947) of petroleum at Leduc, Redwater, and Pembina transformed Edmonton into one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada. Its population increased more than sixfold from 1941 to 1987. The city is on the site of Edmonton House, an important 19th-century trading post, and is also the site of the West Edmonton Mall (1981), the world's largest. The Univ. of Alberta (1906) and Athabasca Univ. (1972) are in the city. Edmonton's professional hockey team, the Edmonton Oilers, was the dominant team of the National Hockey League in the 1980s, winning five championships (1984-85, 1987-88, 1990) under the leadership of Wayne Gretzky. Calgary
City (1991 pop. 710,677), S Alta., Canada, at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow rivers. The second-largest metropolitan area in Alberta after Edmonton, Calgary is a transportation and financial center for Canada's oil and natural gas industries. Other industries include flour milling, meatpacking, brewing, and lumbering. Calgary is a wholesale and processing center for a large agricultural and stock-raising area. The city began (1875) as the second post of the Northwest Mounted Police and expanded with the arrival (1883) of the Candadian Pacific Railway. Calgary's early economic growth was based on the burgeoning open-range cattle industry and the opening of S Alberta to cash-crop farming. The discovery (1914) of oil at Turner Valley began an expansion that has made Calgary one of Canada's fastest-growing cities. It is the site of the Univ. of Calgary, the Glenbow Museum, and the second-largest zoo in Canada. The Calgary Stampede, inaugurated (1912) by Guy Weadick, an American trick roper, is an annual rodeo and agricultural fair. Calgary hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics. Lethbridge
City (1991 pop. 60,974), S Alta., Canada, on the Oldman River. Formerly a coal-mining center, Lethbridge is now a commercial and service center for an irrigated farming and ranching district. Its diverse industries include sugar refining, food processing, brewing, steel fabricating, and the manufacture of electronic equipment. There are federal agricultural and veterinary research stations. The Univ. of Lethbridge was founded in 1967.
History and Politics
Alberta was originally part of the territory granted to the Hudson's Bay Company by King Charles II in 1670, and its early history was dominated by the fur trade. The first European known to have reached (1754) present-day Alberta was Anthony Hendon of the Hudson's Bay Company. There was also much exploration of the region by the Montreal-based North West Company, which merged with the Hudson's Bay Company in 1821. Traders arrived from the upper Great Lakes before Sir Alexander Mackenzie crossed (1793) the region on his way to the Pacific. In 1794 a Hudson's Bay Company fort was built at the site of present-day Edmonton. Destroyed by indigenous people in 1807, it was rebuilt 12 years later and for 50 years thereafter served traders and missionaries within a wide radius.
The area remained under the control of the Hudson's Bay Company until 1870 when it was sold, as part of the company's vast domain, to the newly created confederation of Canada. In 1874 the Northwest Mounted Police established Fort Macleod in S Alberta, and the following year they built a log fort on the site of present-day Calgary. An act of 1882 created four administrative divisions from the Northwest Territories, and one was named Alberta in honor of Queen Victoria's daughter, Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, whose husband was then governor general of Canada.
The railroad came through in the mid-1880s, opening up the area to ranchers and homesteaders, but settlement was slow. In 1891 there were only 14,500 non-native settlers in the present province. To settle the vast fertile land, the Canadian government advertised for immigrants, offering many free acres as inducements. Over the next five years immigrants poured in due to the federal government's vigorous immigration policy, the decrease of available arable land in the American West, the introduction of a new strain of fast-maturing hard spring wheat, and the easing of the 22-year-long depression endured by North America. Edmonton boomed during the 1898 Klondike gold rush, serving as a supply base, and its growth continued during the early 1900s as immigrants began settling the rich surrounding farmlands.
Alberta became a province in 1905. The discovery (1914) of oil in quantity at Turner Valley, near Calgary, presaged a new era for the mineral-rich province, but it was not until 1947, when oil was found in the Leduc fields near Edmonton, that the basic change in Alberta's economy began. By then agriculture had suffered extensively: the 1929 crashfollowed by droughts, early frosts, grasshopper plagues, and dust stormstriggered emigration from the area.
Politically, Albertans turned to the Social Credit party, a mixture of religious fundamentalism and radical monetary theory. In 1935 William Aberhart became premier of the first Social Credit government. Social Credit administrations were elected for many years after Aberhart's death in 1943, but most attempts to reform banking and money control were declared unconstitutional by the courts. The Progressive Conservatives gained control of the provincial government in 1971 with Peter Lougheed as premier (1971-85). In 1974, Ralph Steinhauer, a Cree, was appointed lieutenant governor of Alberta by Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau; Steinhauer, in office until 1979, was the first Canadian of indigenous descent to hold such a high executive post. The Progressive Conservatives continue to maintain a majority in the provincial government; Lougheed was succeeded as premier by Donald Getty (1985-92) and Ralph Klein (1992-).
Alberta sends 6 senators (appointed) and 26 representatives (elected) to the national parliament.
Economy and Higher Education
Agriculture remains an important part of Alberta's economy. Grain, especially wheat, is the dominant crop. In the south, large irrigation developments, such as those around Lethbridge, have placed thousands of additional acres under cultivation. A variety of crops, including sugar beets and potatoes, are grown in this area. The province is noted as well for the quality of its livestock. Meatpacking, flour milling, dairying, and food processing are important industries.
Since the early 1960s, however, Alberta's major industry has been the exploitation of its vast petroleum and other mineral resources. Alberta's coal beds contain about one half of Canada's reserves, while the province leads the country in the production of oil; it is believed to have potentially the richest oil deposits in the world, most notably in the famous tar beds of the Athabasca River. Alberta provided 82% of Canada's crude petroleum output in 1988. Its natural gas production and reserves are also among the world's greatest. Pipelines radiate from Alberta, carrying crude oil and natural gas to points in E and W Canada and in the United States. The production of crude oil decreased slightly in the 1980s, while the production of natural gas and coal increased.
Construction, traditionally a booming industry in Alberta, was severely weakened when a decline in oil production led to increased unemployment. Tourism is the third-largest segment of Alberta's nonagricultural economy. Other industries include food and beverage production, lumbering, printing and publishing, and the manufacture of iron, steel, and clay products.
Institutions of higher education include the University of Alberta, at Edmonton, the University of Calgary, the University of Lethbridge, and Athabasca University.
Bibliography
See C. B. Macpherson, Democracy in Alberta (2d ed. 1962); Robert Kroetsch, Alberta (1968); J. G. MacGregor, A History of Alberta (1981); B. M. Barr and P. J. Smith, eds., Geographical Dimensions of Settlement and Livelihood in Alberta (1983); William Pasnak, Alberta: Blue Skies and Golden Opportunities (1988).
British Columbia
Province (1991 pop. 3,282,061), 366,255 sq mi (948,600 sq km), including 6,976 sq mi (18,068 sq km) of water surface, W Canada.
British Columbia, the westernmost province of Canada, is bounded on the E by Alberta, on the S by Montana, Idaho, and Washington, on the W by the Pacific Ocean, on the NW by Alaska, and on the N by the Yukon and by the Fort Smtih Region of the Northwest Territories. Off its deeply indented Pacific coast lie many islands, notably Vancouver Island (c.280 mi/450 km long) and the sparsely inhabited Queen Charlotte Islands. The province is almost wholly mountainous, with the Rocky Mts. in the southeast, the Coast Mts. along the Pacific, and the Stikine Mts. in the northwest.
Chief of the many rivers is the Fraser, which, with its tributaries, drains much of central and S British Columbia as it flows to the Pacific. Other rivers in that region include the upper Columbia and the Kootenay. In the north are the Peace, the Stikine, the Nass, and the Skeena. Hydroelectric resources in British Columbia are highly developed; large plants along the rivers operate pulp and paper mills. The largest station, at Kemano on the Nechako River, serves one of the biggest aluminum plants in the world, at Kitimat. Innumerable long, narrow lakes are found throughout the interior, supplying vast backwaters for dams.
British Columbia attracts millions of visitors annually, and the land is a hunting and fishing paradise. There are four national parksGlacier, Mt. Revelstoke, Yoho, and Kootenayand hundreds of provincial parks and camping grounds. The climate along the west coast, tempered by the warm Japan Current, has made that area, especially Vancouver and Victoria, very attractive to tourists.
Large areas of central and N British Columbia are sparsely settled; almost three fourths of the population crowds the southwest coastal tip in the Georgia Strait region. Victoria is the capital and the second largest city. The largest city, and chief port, is Vancouver, which grew rapidly throughout the 1980s, experiencing a real estate boom and heavy immigration from China and Hong Kong. Other centers include New Westminster, North Vancouver, Nanaimo, Kamloops, and Prince George. Vancouver Island
(1986 est. pop. 485,000), 12,408 sq mi (32,137 sq km), SW British Columbia, Canada, in the Pacific Ocean; largest island off W North America. It is c.285 mi (460 km) long and c.30 to 80 mi (50-130 km) wide and is separated from the mainland by Queen Charlotte, Georgia, and Juan de Fuca straits. The rugged island, a partially submerged portion of the Coast Mts., rises to 7,219 ft (2,200 m) at Golden Hinde Mt. Level plains extend inland from the eastern coastline. The Pacific coastline is deeply indented by numerous fjords and inlets. The island has a mild humid climate; W Vancouver Island receives the greatest amount of precipitation in North America. There are many lakes and streams but no navigable rivers. The island is heavily forested, and lumbering and wood processing are major industries. Vancouver Island is underlaid by a mineral-rich batholith, from which iron, copper, and gold are mined. Coal is extracted from a depression at the edge of the batholith; the mines at Nanaimo provide most of the coal for British Columbia. Fishing, agriculture, and tourism are other important economic activities. Pacific Rim National Park, Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Park, and Strathcona Provincial Park are there. Population is concentrated along the east coast; Victoria (the provincial capital), Nanaimo, Port Alberni, and Esquimalt (site of a large naval base) are the largest cities. There are many small ports and fishing settlements. Both Spain and Britain claimed the island; it was sighted (1774) by Juan Prez, the Spanish explorer, and Capt. James Cook was the first (1778) to land there. In 1788, John Meares, an English trader, built a fort on Nootka Sound, which was later occupied by Spanish forces. In 1792 the island was circumnavigated and chartered by Capt. George Vancouver. British sovereignty over Vancouver was confirmed (1846) when the U.S.-Canada line was drawn through Juan de Fuca Strait by the Oregon Treaty. Vancouver Island was made a crown colony in 1849 and in 1866 became part of British Columbia. Victoria
City (1991 pop. 71,228), capital of British Columbia, SW Canada, on Vancouver Island and Juan de Fuca Strait. It is the largest city on the island and its major port and business center. In addition to its importance as the seat of provincial government, Victoria is noted as a residential city because of its mild climate, beautiful scenery, many parks (including Beacon Hill Park) and drives. It is also a popular center for American and Canadian tourists. It has sawmills and woodworking plants, fish-processing factories, grain elevators, and cold-storag | |
History
