In 1890, the Tariff Act came into place in the United States. It placed tariffs on imports of up to 50%.
While touted as a way to build American industry, there was also the hope it would force an annexation of Canada. It backfired.
Let's learn more.
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Put forward by William McKinley, who was a Congressman at that point, the Tariff Act put duties across imports ranging from 38% to 49.5%.
McKinley was called the Napoleon of Protection. While some items had tariffs eliminated, most had tariffs increased.
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One reason for the tariffs was to force the annexation of Canada. The McKinley Tariff declined to make an exception for Canadian products.
It was hoped this would make Canada more reliant on the US market, and push Canadians to become the 45th state.
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Secretary of State James G. Blaine believed that annexation would eliminate competition with Canada over fishing and timber rights. Blane co-authored the Tariff Act.
He stated of annexation: "a grander and nobler brotherly love, that may unite in the end”
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British politician Lyon Playfair saw the Tariff Act for what it was. He called it a covert attack on Canada,
Both Britain and the United States believed the Tariff Act would drive Canada to join the United States.
In reality, it had the complete opposite result.
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The Tariff Act instead pushed Canada to align itself more with Britain. People began to rally behind their "love for Queen, flag, and country".
Sir John A. Macdonald used the tariffs as a rallying cry in the 1891 election and was able to win another majority government.
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Within two years of the Tariff Act being passed, agricultural exports to Britain from Canada went from $3.5 million to $15 million.
Produce and animal exports to Britain grew from $16 million to $24 million during that same period.
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Minister of Trade and Commerce Mackenzie Bowell said:
“The McKinley Bill, instead of destroying the trade of this country, has only diverted it from the United States to England."
American consumers dealt with a sharp increase in prices.
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The Republicans lost the 1890 Congressional elections, losing 93 seats while the Democrats gained 86.
In 1892, the Democrats gained control of the Senate, House and Presidency.
They then replaced the Tariff Act with a new act that lowered tariffs.
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I hope you enjoyed that look at the McKinley Tariffs and the impact on Canada.
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On Oct. 4, 1957, the Avro Arrow was unveiled with the intention of it being the RCAF's primary interceptor in the 1960s.
Less than two years later, the program was abruptly cancelled and 14,528 Avro employees were put out of work.
This is the story of the Arrow.
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In the 1950s, with the dawn of the nuclear era, there was a concern that the Soviet Union would attack North America with bombers over the Canadian Arctic.
To deal with this possibility, the RCAF commissioned Avro Canada to build an all-weather nuclear interceptor.
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It needed to fly higher and faster than any aircraft of its class. With the Arrow contract, Avro quickly expanded and had 20,000 people working for it by 1957. Nine models, one-eighth the size of the finished plane, were tested in rockets over Lake Ontario.
In 1885, Montreal was ravaged by smallpox.
To stem the spread of the disease that had killed thousands so far, public health officials enforced vaccinations. Those that mistrusted the vaccine rioted in the streets.
This is the story of the Montreal Smallpox Riots.
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On Feb. 28, 1885, George Longley, a conductor with the Grand Trunk Railway, arrived in Montreal feeling sick. After visiting a doctor, he was diagnosed with smallpox. While he survived, the disease quickly began to spread throughout the city, infecting thousands.
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At first, the City of Montreal did not pay to provide vaccinations to fight the epidemic. In response, Sir William Macdonald donated $25,000 to pay for the vaccines.
Through the spring and summer, the disease killed upwards of 100 people per week in the city.
Today is British Home Child Day.
This is the annual day that Canada acknowledges and honours the over 100,000 children who were sent from the UK to Canada to work on farms and in homes.
They were separated from siblings and many were abused.
This is their story.
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The Children's Friend Society was founded in London in 1830 to suppress "juvenile vagrancy" through "reformation and emigration". In 1833, 230 children were sent to Toronto and New Brunswick.
It was a few decades before more children were sent to Canada.
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In the 1860s, philanthropist Annie MacPherson was appalled at the conditions children were forced to work in at factories in London. She decided to help them and believed sending them away from the cities and even Britain was the best option for a better life.
On Sept. 22, 1994, a show debuted on CTV featuring a street-wise Chicago cop and a Mountie on the trail of the man who killed his father.
The critically-acclaimed hit reshaped Canadian television and made a star out of Paul Gross.
This is the story of Due South.
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The idea for Due South came from one of the biggest movies of the 1980s. In 1986, Crocodile Dundee debuted and was a massive hit. Robert Lantos, chair of Alliance Communications, saw that success and spoke with CBS President Jeff Sagansky about creating a similar show.
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Lantos wanted something involving a stereotypical Canadian working with Chicago Police. Sagansky liked the idea and took it to Paul Haggis and told him to make a series about a Mountie or trapper, or something Canadian like that. From there, Due South was born.
It was one of the most psychedelic, bizarre and beloved Canadian children's shows ever made.
Structured like a sketch comedy show around the comedic genius of Billy Van, it is well remembered even to this day.
This is the story of The Hilarious House of Frightenstein!
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The story begins with Riff Markowitz, who was working for CHCH-TV in Hamilton in the late-1960s. He wanted to produce new shows for the station.
To come up with ideas, he held a brainstorming and spaghetti party at the Windsor Arms Hotel in Toronto.
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From that session, the idea of a children's show set in a vampire's castle emerged. The show would blend surreal humour and psychedelics.
The main character would be Count Frightenstein, the 13th son of Count Dracula who preferred pizza to blood.
Lorne Greene was many things through his life. He was an inventor, an acting teacher, a celebrated broadcaster, a singer and, of course, a great actor.
He may have been most famous as Ben Cartwright on Bonanza, but he was so much more than that.
This is his story.
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Lorne Greene was born Lyon Himan Green to Jewish immigrants from the Russian Empire. His mother called him Chaim. It is unknown when he added the 'e' to his last name.
It was as a drama instructor at Camp Arowhon in Algonquin Park that he developed his love of acting.
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After attending Queen's University, Greene looked to become a radio broadcaster. He was hired by the CBC and became the principal newsreader for CBC National News. This earned him the nickname of The Voice of Canada and made him known across the country.