Canadian History Quiz

Alaska Boundary Dispute

• The dispute involved the United States and Canada.
• The disagreement centered on the border between southeast Alaska and the western coast of British Columbia.
• Numerous small islands in the area complicated the border issue.
• The U.S. purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867, partly to preempt potential British conquest.
• The U.S. initially wanted to control British Columbia, but British Columbia joined the Canadian Confederation in 1871, ending U.S. ambitions.
• The Klondike Gold Rush led to border disputes.
• Canadians wanted a route from the Klondike River to the Pacific Ocean.
• Americans opposed this due to concerns about Canadian encroachment on their territory.
• This conflict escalated to an international tribunal in 1903.
• Canada believed the coast was located at the western boundary of the channel islands.
• Americans believed the coast was located where the mainland met the Pacific Ocean.
• The final decision favoured the Americans during arbitration.
• The Tlingit are an Indigenous group in the area, and their views were factored into the decision-making process to varying degrees.

Alberta and Saskatchewan

• In the 1850s and 1860s, the British government sought control of Alberta and Saskatchewan for agricultural purposes.
• After Canada's creation in 1867, concerns arose about an American takeover.
• Canada responded by purchasing Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory from the Hudson's Bay Company.
• The prairies held valuable land suitable for agriculture.

Alberta and Saskatchewan (continued)

• Alberta and Saskatchewan were initially planned as a single province but divided into separate provinces due to their vast size.
• Alberta and Saskatchewan became the 7th and 8th provinces of Canada in 1905 following Confederation.
• The provinces' joining Confederation in 1905 was marked by a lavish banquet.

Indigenous Canada

• During the early 1900s, the growth of Canadian cities replaced Indigenous land use.
• Europeans aggressively seized Indigenous lands, displacing and outnumbering Indigenous peoples over time.
• Colonialism is the policy of a country expanding its authority over other people.

Indigenous Canada (continued)

• Newspapers in the early 1900s featured stories about prominent Indigenous public figures like Tom Longboat and Dr. Oronhyatekha.
• Both of these figures faced racism and bias.
• Tom Longboat achieved a significant record in the Boston Marathon (2:24:24).
• This record was initially downplayed as an accident.

The Changing Role of Women

• In the early 1800s, women's roles were restricted to household management, marriage, and family.
• Business and politics were almost entirely closed off to women.
• Canadian women faced persistent systemic discrimination despite their contributions.

The Changing Role of Women(continued)

• In 1884 in Ontario and 1900 in Manitoba, the Married Women's Property Act granted women equal legal rights to men, including owning property independently, managing earnings, and profits.
• Traditionally, women were excluded from war efforts, although 12 women served as nurses during the Boer War.

Women's Suffrage

• Suffrage is the right to vote in political elections.
• Initially, women's voting rights were not equal to men's, and voting rights were granted to women in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta in 1916, followed by most provinces, except Québec, by 1922.
• Women in Quebec obtained this right in 1940.
• Dr. Emily Stowe founded the Canadian Women's Suffrage Association in 1883, advocating for women's rights and achieved local voting rights in Ontario in 1882.
• Bills for women's suffrage in provincial elections failed until 1916, and women gained the right to vote in federal elections in 1918, culminating in Emily Murphy becoming the first female judge in 1916.

Immigration Act of 1910

• Canada's government expanded control over immigration, establishing prohibited immigrant lists.
• The authority was granted to bar immigrants deemed ill-suited to Canada's climate or requirements.
• The government blocked immigrants arriving through charitable groups.

Immigration Act of 1910 (continued)

• Canada had a history of discriminatory immigration restrictions.
• A head tax was levied on Chinese immigrants in 1885.
• The head tax gradually increased to $100 in 1900 and $500 in 1903, limiting Chinese immigration.
• These measures significantly reduced Asian immigration.

Immigration Act of 1910 (continued)

• Despite restrictions, thousands of immigrants arrived in Canada during the 1900s.
• The government needed these immigrants for new job opportunities in new settlements and rising industrialization.

Famous Pioneers

• Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922), a Scottish immigrant, inventor, scientist, and engineer, invented the telephone.
• Bell was focused on speech due to his deaf mother and wife.
• He demonstrated the telephone on March 7, 1876.
• Martha Louise Black (1866–1957), born in Chicago, worked in the Yukon's gold industry.
• She ran a sawmill and gold ore-crushing plant, delivered lectures on the Yukon and Britain, became a member of the Royal Geographical Society, and was the second woman elected to the House of Commons.
• Elijah McCoy (1844–1929), a Canadian-born inventor, engineer, and African American, acquired 57 patents.
• Notable inventions included an automatic lubricator for steam engines.