It is #IrishHeritageMonth and this is the story of the Irish Famine Immigrants in Toronto!
In 1847, Toronto had a population of 20,000 people but between May and October of that year, it saw the influx of 38,560 Irish immigrants, fleeing the Irish Famine.
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The immigrants had travelled on overcrowded ships across the ocean, with the goal of settling on land in Canada West.
Unfortunately, many were sick with typhus.
Bishop Michael Power tended to the immigrants before he died of typhus on Oct. 1, 1847 at the age of 42.
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Knowing a huge influx of immigrants was arriving, Toronto created its first board of public health in February 1847.
The board built a dozen sheds for immigrants suffering from typhus, located on the corner of King and John Street.
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By the end of 1847, 1,186 of the immigrants had died, with 1,100 buried in a mass grave by St. Paul's Basilica at Queen St E. & Power Street.
Despite the influx of people, by 1848 most of the Irish immigrants had moved on beyond Toronto to find family, land & work.
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It is believed only 781 of the Irish Famine immigrants settled in Toronto.
They settled in what became known as Cabbagetown, located near Parliament and Gerrard St. E.
It received that name because the immigrants used their lawns to grow cabbage.
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Where did the word Canuck come from? Why is it associated with Canadians?
As it turned out, the true origin of the slang word for Canadians may have its origins in...Hawaii.
Let's learn more about the interesting origins of Canuck!
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As is common with so many words, the true origin of the word is up for debate.
The word Canuck can be an affectionate term used in Canada to describe our nationality, or as a derogatory term in some cases to describe Canadians.
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The first recorded use of Canuck dates back to 1835 when it was recorded as an Americanism for Dutch, German and French-Canadians. That first recorded use was spelled Kanuck. By the 1850s, the spelling Canuck was the most common.
There was a period of time when you couldn't buy any margarine in Canada.
During the Margarine Prohibition Years, bootleggers from Newfoundland kept Canadians supplied.
This is the story of Canada's Half-Century Margarine Ban!
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Margarine was first developed in 1869 when Emperor Napoleon III ordered a butter substitute to be created from beef tallow for use by the armed forces and lower classes.
It didn't take long before diary producers in the Western World got worried about this new invention.
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Due to pressure from the diary industry and farmers, the Canadian government instituted a ban on margarine in 1886 through an Act of Parliament.
For the next half century, with a couple breaks, margarine was a no-go product in The Great White North.
Zenora Rose Hendrix was a pillar of the area known as Hogan's Alley in Vancouver.
She helped build the community, and did her best to save it from demolition.
She was also grandmother to a rock icon.
This is the story Jimi Hendrix's grandmother, Zenora Hendrix.
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Zenora Rose Hendrix was born in Georgia in 1883. In her early-20s, she began touring with a vaudeville troupe as a singer and dancer and made her way to Seattle. It was with that troupe she met Ross Hendrix, a stagehand.
In 1912, the two married and moved to Vancouver.
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All four of their children were born in Canada, one of whom was James "Al" Hendrix. James married Lucille Jeter on March 31, 1942. They had a son on Nov. 27, 1942 named Johnny Allan Hendrix.
The world knows him much better as Jimi Hendrix.
At 5 a.m. on Nov. 9, 1942, German submarine U-518 dropped off Werner von Janowski at Chaleur Bay, Quebec.
His orders were to go to Montreal to conduct espionage.
It didn't take long to raise the suspicions of locals.
This is the story of a pretty terrible spy.
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Werner von Janowski was born around 1904 in Allenstein, East Prussia.
In 1942, he was given orders to go to Montreal where he would conduct espionage activities.
Upon being dropped off in Chaleur Bay, he was to go to nearby New Carlisle to take a train to Montreal.
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At 6:30 a.m., under the alias of William Brenton, he checked into a hotel in New Carlisle, asking for a room and a bath.
Earl Annett Jr., the son of the hotel owner, immediately grew suspicious of Janowski.
There were several things that didn't add up.
In the 1970s, Canada made the move towards the Metric System.
It was a process that took years, and a lot of work at all levels of government.
It also faced a lot of resistance.
This is the story of Canada's Metric Conversion!
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In 1871, Sir John A. Macdonald made the Imperial System the official system of measurement in Canada.
It remained so for the next century, but as many other countries went metric in the 20th century, Canada decided to follow suit believing the USA would do the same.
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In 1970, the Liberal government of Pierre Trudeau introduced Bill C-163 to begin the Metric Conversion of Canada.
In January 1971, the White Paper on Metric Conversion was released, which led to the creation of the Metric Commission (logo pictured).
I'm currently rewatching Deadwood, and in that show Timothy Olyphant portrays Seth Bullock, a prominent citizen of Deadwood.
As it turns out, Seth Bullock was a real person and he was Canadian!
So, let's learn about this Canadian who became a legend of the West!
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In the show, Bullock says he is from Etobicoke but the real Seth Bullock was born in Amherstburg, Canada West (now Ontario) on July 23, 1849.
His father was a British Army Sergeant Major who was active in politics in Sandwich, Canada West (now part of Windsor).
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In 1860, when Bullock was 11, his father resigned as County Treasurer because of missing funds.
Wanting to avoid jailtime, Bullock's father fled to Detroit, leaving behind his wife and eight children.
Soon after, Bullock's mother died.