In honour of #FathersDay, here is a thread about the fathers of our Canadian Prime Ministers!
23. Pierre Trudeau (Justin Trudeau)
Pierre was Canada's 13th prime minister from 1968-1979 & 1980-1984.
Pierre & Justin are the only father and son to serve as PM of Canada.
22. Joseph Harris Harper (Stephen Harper)
Joseph Harper was an accountant for Imperial Oil. He had an avid interest in military history & meticulously researched military insignia for his 1992 book Old Colours Never Die.
21. Paul Martin Sr (Paul Martin Jr.)
One of Canada's most influential politicians, Paul Martin Sr. was a member of Parliament from 1935 to 1968. He served as a cabinet minister for three prime ministers & was heavily influential in the creation of Universal Healthcare.
20. Wellie Chretien (Jean Chretien)
Jean's father was a major influence on him. While the family grew up poor, he wanted his children to escape the working-class life. He made Jean read the dictionary as a young boy. He was also a lifelong Liberal.
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19. George Thomas Campbell (Kim Campbell)
Kim's father was born in Scotland and worked as a barrister. He had served with the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada during the Second World War.
After Kim's mother left when Kim was 12, George raised Kim & her sister.
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18. Benedict Martin Mulroney (Brian Mulroney)
Benedict Mulroney worked as a paper mill electrician in Baie-Comeau, Quebec. He often worked overtime & also ran a repair business to earn extra money for his children to attend university.
17. Leonard Hugh Turner (John Turner)
Leonard, an English journalist, unfortunately died of a botched operation when John was still a toddler. Frank Ross, the future Lt. Governor of British Columbia, became John's stepfather in 1945 when John was 16.
16. Charles Clark (Joe Clark)
Charles was a newspaper publisher in High River, Alberta, where he established the High River Times. The newspaper still exists. Joe (pictured here as a baby) worked at his dad's newspaper in several capacities.
15. Charles-Emile Trudeau (Pierre Trudeau)
Charles-Emile worked as a lawyer and then grew a fortune by building gas stations around the Montreal area & starting the Automobile Owners' Association.
He died suddenly of pneumonia in 1935 when he was 47.
14. Edwin Pearson (Lester B. Pearson)
Edwin was a Methodist, and later United Church, minister. He later became the minister at the Aurora Methodist Church. Edwin is standing to the right. Lester's grandfather Marmaduke, also a minister, is seated.
13. William Thomas Diefenbaker (John Diefenbaker)
The son of German immigrants, William Diefenbaker worked as a teacher and had a deep interest in history and politics. Out of the 28 students in his 1903 class, four, including his son, served in Parliament.
12. Jean-Baptiste-Moise Saint-Laurent (Louis St. Laurent)
Jean was a prominent person in the village of Compton, Quebec and his home was a social centre. He owned a store in the community, ran for the Quebec Legislature in 1894 & was a staunch Liberal.
11. Henry John Bennett (R.B. Bennett)
Henry was a shipbuilder in New Brunswick, but his business did not do well and the family was often short on money. He also attempted to work as a blacksmith, merchant and farmer. He also tried to develop a gypsum mine.
10. John King (William Lyon Mackenzie King)
John was a lawyer who had a struggling practice in Berlin (now Kitchener), Ontario. Despite barely making ends meet, he employed servants and tutors in the home. King described his father as providing a happy home.
9. Joseph Meighen (Arthur Meighen)
Joseph owned a dairy farm near St. Mary's, Ontario and Arthur said his father instilled in him the value of an education & the importance of habits of industry and thrift.
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8. Andrew Borden (Sir Robert Borden)
Andrew was a farmer. He was called by his son, a man of good ability and excellent judgement, who was calm and philosophical. He added he lacked energy & had no aptitude for affairs.
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7. Carolus Laurier (Sir Wilfrid Laurier)
Carolus was bilingual and dynamic. He instilled in Wilfrid an interest in politics from an early age. He had several hobbies including astronomy & mathematics. He also served as mayor of the community and a local inventor.
6. Charles Tupper Sr. (Sir Charles Tupper)
Charles was the co-pastor of a Baptist Church in Amherst, Nova Scotia. He was also an accomplished Biblical scholar and wrote two books on Biblical Scriptures.
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5. John Bowell (Sir Mackenzie Bowell)
John emigrated to Canada with his family when Mackenzie was 10. He worked as a cabinet maker and taught that trade to his son.
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4. John Sparrow Thompson (Sir John Sparrow David Thompson)
John made his son recite poetry at school ceremonies and meetings of the Halifax Mechanics' Institute in order to overcome his shyness. He also taught his son shorthand.
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3. Joseph Abbott (Sir John Abbott)
Joseph was a prominent Anglican missionary and he wrote two books, one about emigrating to Canada and another that was his memoirs.
His great-great grandson was Christopher Plummer.
2. Alexander Mackenzie Sr. (Alexander Mackenzie)
Alexander was a carpenter and ship's joiner who moved frequently for work during the Napoleonic Wars. He died suddenly when his son was only 13, forcing Alexander to end his education to support the family.
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1. Hugh Macdonald (Sir John A. Macdonald)
Hugh was an unsuccessful merchant in Glasgow, forcing a move to Upper Canada when John was a child. Hugh then operated a series of businesses in Upper Canada & became the magistrate for Midland District.
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I have covered many aspects of Canada's border history in the past week.
Today, I am exploring why the Canadian border with Alaska extends so far south along the Pacific Coast and how the decision led to a desire for greater Canadian independence from Britain.
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The issue of the border dates back to 1825 when Russia (who owned Alaska at the time) signed the Treaty of Saint Petersburg with Britain. The treaty only focused on the coastal area as the interior was mountainous and of little interest to either country.
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On March 30, 1867, the United States bought the entire Alaska region from Russia. With the purchase, the United States hoped to claim territory from Alaska down to Mexico and control the entire Pacific Coast.
That hope ended when British Columbia joined Canada in 1871.
We have looked at the USA-Canada border through the Great Lakes and along the 49th Parallel.
Today, it is time to find out why there is an odd blip west of Lake Superior and east of Manitoba.
This is the story of the Northwest Angle.
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The Northwest Angle is farther north than any part of the Contiguous United States.
The area covers 197 square kilometres, and it all comes down to treaties negotiated between the United Kingdom and the United States centuries ago.
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In 1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed by the UK and USA. This treaty recognized American independence and created an agreement on the border between the USA and British North America from the Atlantic to the Mississippi.
On this day in 1985, hockey great Eddie Shore died of liver cancer.
He was such a legend that he was name-dropped in Slap Shot. Shore was one of the greatest NHL players ever...and one of the meanest on the ice.
Let's learn more about the Edmonton Express!
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Shore was born in Fort Qu'Appelle and grew up in Cupar, SK. Shore played his first organized hockey with the Cupar Canucks and then the Melville Millionaires.
In 1926, he started his professional career with the Regina Capitals, before playing for the Edmonton Eskimos.
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In 1926-27, he debuted with the Boston Bruins, leading the league in penalty minutes (136 in 41 games) in his first season.
From his very first game, Shore became known for his toughness on the ice and his refusal to back down from anyone, including teammates.
Before the dynasties, Richard, Beliveau, Lafleur and Roy, the Montreal Canadiens were in trouble.
The team nearly moved to Cleveland, and then nearly folded. But one man helped save them...Conn Smythe.
Let's learn how Montreal almost lost the Canadiens!
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In the early-1930s, the Canadiens were riding high. From 1927-28 to 1931-32, the team finished first four times and won two Stanley Cups.
At the time, the team was stacked with Hall of Famers such as Howie Morenz, Aurèle Joliat, Sylvio Mantha and George Hainsworth.
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But even The Great Depression could bring down greatness.
It was going to bring an end to several franchises such as the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Maroons, and it nearly did the same to the Montreal Canadiens.
Despite the team doing well, crowd sizes were small.
A few days ago, I looked at how the international border through The Great Lakes was determined.
But what about the border west of Lake Superior?
It took decades to determine and wasn't just "drawn with a ruler by some guy".
Let's learn more!
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The 49th parallel border begins west of the Northwest Angle, a blip on the border that gives Minnesota part of the Lake of the Woods.
That 197 sq-km area came about due to treaties and a limited understanding of the geography west of Lake Superior.
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The 49th parallel border runs from the Strait of Georgia in the west to the Lake of the Woods.
It extends for 2,030 kilometres.
Having this as a border was first proposed before the United States even existed, back in 1714 by the Hudson's Bay Company.
From 1973 to 2022, Canada and Denmark were at war.
Over the course of the war, several soldiers on both sides were wounded....by hangovers. And it was all fought over a tiny island the size of a city block.
Let's learn about The Whisky War!
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Hans Island is a tiny island, 1.3 square kilometres in size, located between Ellesmere Island and Greenland.
It has no trees, no grass and is not inhabited.
The island is in the territory of the Inuit, who have visited it periodically over the centuries.
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The first-known Europeans reached the island in 1853 when a Danish expedition arrived. The island was named for an Inuk man on the expedition Hans Hendrik. He saved several men on the expedition when they journeyed too far from the ship on the ice.