Amazing people, events and places which infuse the country with life
An American citizen, Dr. Penfield came to Canada to delve into research on the brain. Specializing in epilepsy and brain disorders, he founded the world-renowned Montreal Neurological Institute in 1934. Wilder Graves Penfield was a destined to be a man of substance. Born in Spokane, Washington on January 25, 1891, his mother moved the family […]
Haligonians watched with curiosity as Mont Blanc drifted to Halifax, the ship ablaze from an accident. Minutes later, the ship exploded, with many injured and killed Dateline: December 6, 1917 Halifax, Nova Scotia World War One Cast: The French ship Mont Blanc Fully laden with explosives, the Mont Blanc was slowly sailing toward the […]
Written in May 1915 on the battlefield in Ypres, Belgium, the day after a friend’s death, In Flanders Fields describes the anguish and faith of soldiers mired in war During the First World War, Lieutenant Colonel John Alexander McCrae found himself tending to the wounded, the dying and the dead in the midst of the […]
Harriet Brooks was the first graduate student of Ernest Rutherford, earning an MA, and one of Canada’s great scientists in nuclear physics. Physicists were a rare breed at the turn of the 20th century and women in the nuclear science fields were even more sparse. Harriet Brooks “was the most outstanding woman in the field […]
Frustrated by the inaccuracies of schedules on the train lines, Sir Sandford Fleming devised a system of Standard Time. His method was adopted in Canada and world-wide. Sir Sandford Fleming was a multifaceted man of brilliance and led a life of influence and success. A professional in many aspects, as noted on biographi.ca, he wore […]
First Drama Series on CNR Radio in 1931 CNRV Players, Vancouver 1929 – Vancouver Radio Museum The Canadian National Railways Radio station in Montreal, Quebec produced Canada’s first series of national radio dramas for avid listeners across the country. As the strains of orchestral music drew silent, the radio speaker crackled. “And now it’s […]
Designed by Sandford Fleming, the Three Pence Beaver was considered the first stamp of Canada, years before Confederation. Unique in its design, it set several firsts. Before a Dominion, Canada was a province, combining Upper Canada and Lower Canada into one entity, called the United Province of Canada. Other provinces of the time were Nova […]
First Commercial Trucks in Canada were Electric-Powered Carriages Simpson’s store and Parker’s Dye Works boldly used the new horseless vehicles to enhance their delivery services to customers. They were pioneers of the trucking industry There weren’t many roads, just dusty, dirt paths, mostly. There were a few paved city streets, but no such things as […]
An open runabout style, the innovative first electric car manufactured in Canada raced around the roads of Toronto, Ontario 130 years ago. Frederick Bernard Fetherstonhaugh was a man of the future. A well-heeled lawyer in Toronto, Ontario, his home was one of the first to have electricity and the conveniences that brought with it. Fetherstonhaugh […]
New Year’s Day a Good Time for Canadian Announcements, Policies Prohibition and bootleggers, health care, citizenship and standard time were a few of the announcements made on the first day of the new year over the decades. January 1st is a day with special meaning, the start of the new year, a sign of new […]
Ten Canadians were recipients of the silver “George Cross” for uncommon bravery, the medal intended to honour exceptional gallantry unrelated to battle. Wielding his sword, St. George slays the large and intimidating dragon. Radiating strength and courage, the image in silver is a fitting symbol for the Commonwealth’s civilian award equivalent to the military’s Victoria […]
The Canadian Division of the Campbell Soup Company Organized in 1931 Since the 1800s, soup has been good business for the American food company, Campbell’s Soup. Opening a division in Canada was a natural step forward. Part of a small canning factory that opened in New Jersey in the 1860s, chemist Dr. John Dorrance of […]