Mar 23, 1996
Booo! The Vancouver Grizzlies become the first team in the NBA to lose 18 or more games in a row for two straight seasons.
Feb 18, 1996
Can you bear it? The Royal Canadian Mint reveals the design of the new two dollar coin, soon called the toonie.
May 08, 1992
A terrible methane gas explosion at the Westray coal mine in Plymouth, N.S., kills 26 miners
Apr 09, 1990
The House of Commons passes the Goods and Services Tax, which adds 7 per cent to the price of a whole bunch of stuff
May 19, 1980
C’est Non: By a tiny bit, Quebec voters turn down a plan that could see the province separate from Canada
Apr 21, 1980
The federal government decides not to take part in the Olympics to protest the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan
Apr 12, 1980
The amazing Terry Fox starts his Marathon of Hope by dipping his artificial leg in the Atlantic Ocean at St. John’s, N.L.
Apr 01, 1980
The Great One makes his mark: Wayne Gretzky becomes the first teenager in the NHL to score 50 goals in a season
Feb 28, 1980
Hear, hear! Jeanne Sauvé is named the first female Speaker of the House of Commons.
May 17, 1970
Rock on! Winnipeg group The Guess Who’s “American Woman” is the #1 song on Billboard’s chart for the third straight week
Mar 19, 1970
Bienvenue! Canada signs an agreement with 19 other nations to create La Francophonie, an organization of French-speaking countries.
Apr 07, 1969
The Montreal Expos play their first game, which is also the first major league baseball game played outside the U.S.
Apr 05, 1968
Pierre Elliott Trudeau takes over from Lester Pearson as leader of the Liberal Party; he becomes Prime Minister on April 22
Apr 27, 1967
Canada’s spectacular World’s Fair, Expo 67, opens to celebrate our country’s 100th birthday
Feb 10, 1967
On your mark, get set…brrr! The first Canada Winter Games open today in Quebec City.
Feb 24, 1966
Underground operation: Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson opens the new Toronto subway system. It stretches 13 km and costs $200-million.
Feb 14, 1965
Wave! Today marks the first time our new Maple Leaf flag is flown in Canada during a ceremony on Parliament Hill.
May 01, 1964
You can bet on this — Northern Dancer becomes the first Canadian horse to win the famous Kentucky Derby
Mar 06, 1963
Fire! The terrorist group le Front de liberation du Québec shows what’s ahead when it fire-bombs three Canadian Army halls.
Apr 24, 1959
The first ship sails into the brand new St. Lawrence Seaway, which stretches from Montreal to Lake Erie
May 03, 1958
Funny thing…Canadian comedy team Johnny Wayne and Frank Shuster make the first of 67 appearances on the Ed Sullivan Show
Apr 30, 1956
Solidarity! The Canadian Labour Congress was formed today to protect workers’ rights
Feb 27, 1956
Serves you right! A restaurant in Chatham, Ont., has to pay a $50 fine for refusing to serve two young black customers.
Feb 23, 1956
Shield yourself: On this day, Queen Elizabeth approves the coats of arms for the Yukon and Northwest Territories.
Mar 15, 1955
Street fights: NHL president Clarence Campbell bans Maurice Richard from playing for the Montreal Canadiens for the rest of the season; riots follow.
May 04, 1950
Crazy winds drive waves through Winnipeg’s dikes, flooding the city and forcing one-third of its people from their homes
May 26, 1949
In its first election since becoming a province, Newfoundland elects Joey Smallwood premier. He continues for nearly 25 years
Mar 30, 1949
I’se the bye: Newfoundland joins Confederation as Canada’s tenth province.
Feb 20, 1949
Be glad things have changed. An 18-year-old boy in Saint John, N.B., is hanged today for stealing 25 cents.
Feb 11, 1949
What’s Danish for “blowout”? Canada’s national men’s team beats Denmark 47-0 in the first round of the World Ice Hockey Championship.
May 03, 1945
Peace comes in sight as German forces in Denmark, the Netherlands and northern Germany surrender to the Canadians
Apr 08, 1945
The Canadian army surrounds German troops in the Netherlands, preventing them from escape
Apr 23, 1942
Lucy Maud Montgomery, the author of Anne of Green Gables, Emily of New Moon and 20 other books dies
Apr 10, 1940
Women are allowed into the Quebec government building for the first time to hear the premier talk about giving them the vote
May 11, 1937
Canadians gather round to listen as King George VI is crowned in England in the first radio broadcast heard around the world
May 27, 1934
The first quintuplets ever to survive (Annette, Emilie, Yvonne, Cecile and Marie Dionne) are born near North Bay, Ontario
Feb 08, 1931
Best Governor General’s name ever: Vere Brabazan Ponsonby, Earl of Bessborough, is appointed today and takes office on Apr. 4.
Apr 26, 1928
Prince Edward Island gives in and requires motorists to drive on the right-hand side of the road
May 24, 1927
Nyet, comrade: The Canadian government announces it will stop trading with the newly created Soviet Union
Mar 13, 1923
On ice: The first ever play-by-play of a professional hockey game is broadcast on CKCK Radio in Regina.
Mar 25, 1921
Speedy schooner: Canada's most famous sailing ship, the Bluenose, is launched today.
Mar 02, 1921
Sweet news: Doctors Frederick Banting and Charles Best announce they’ve discovered insulin, a treatment for diabetes.
May 06, 1920
There’s a new art of seeing nature as the Group of Seven opens its first exhibition at the Art Gallery of Toronto.
May 14, 1919
More than 30,000 workers walk off the job, starting the Winnipeg General Strike to secure better working conditions
Apr 20, 1918
The Red Baron, who had downed 80 Allied pilots is shot down and killed during a dogfight with Canadian Roy Brown
Feb 26, 1917
Good decision: Ontario women are finally given the right to vote in provincial elections.
Apr 18, 1916
Women in Alberta women gain the right to vote today
Mar 12, 1916
I’ll drink to that! Manitoba becomes the first province to ban alcoholic beverages.
May 02, 1915
Think of poppies to remember Canadian doctor, John McCrae, writing the First World War poem “In Flanders Fields” today
May 28, 1914
More than 1,000 people lose their lives as the Empress of Ireland sinks in the St. Lawrence after being hit by a coal ship
Apr 14, 1912
RMS Titanic sinks off the southeast coast of Newfoundland taking more than 700 lives
Feb 22, 1909
Take off, eh? The first powered flight in the British Empire takes place today near Baddeck, N.S. thanks to John Alexander Douglas McCurdy.
May 07, 1906
Stick ‘em up! Bill Miner and his gang pull the first train robbery in Canada near Kamloops, B.C.
May 13, 1904
Quebec’s Étienne Desmarteau wins Canada’s first-ever Olympic gold medal in the fifty-six-pound hammer throw
Apr 28, 1903
Seventy-four million tonnes of rock from Turtle Mountain collapses on the town of Frank, Alberta. The Frank Slide kills 80
May 30, 1902
The South African War (also known as the Boer War) ends after costing the lives of 267 of more than 7,000 Canadians involved
May 12, 1898
Happy Birthday, Yukon! The territory is created today with its capital at Dawson City
Apr 03, 1898
Eighty-eight men die at the height of the Klondike gold rush when an avalanche hits Chilkoot Pass in the Yukon
May 21, 1893
The first Stanley Cup is awarded. It goes to the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association, which beat the Ottawa Generals
Mar 24, 1893
Expensive ride: A Toronto cab driver caught driving on a Sunday must pay two dollars or spend 10 days in jail.
Feb 19, 1893
Time to relax! The federal government says employees only have to work an eight-hour day.
Mar 04, 1891
Catch! Sir John A. Macdonald’s Conservative party wins the federal election with the slogan “The old man, the old flag, the old policy.”
May 23, 1888
Have a picnic! Canada’s first provincial park, Queen Victoria Niagara Falls Park, opens in Ontario
May 23, 1888
Have a picnic! Canada’s first provincial park, Queen Victoria Niagara Falls Park, opens in Ontario
Feb 29, 1888
Signed, sealed and delivered: today is the first day that parcels can be mailed between Canada and the united States.
Mar 27, 1885
Riding the rails: Troops head west on the not-yet-complete CPR to put down the North West Rebellion.
Apr 12, 1884
The slogan for the RCMP, “They always get their man” is used for the first time . . . by an American newspaper
Feb 17, 1884
Pay attention! Today marks the opening of the first school in Calgary.
Mar 26, 1883
Nice name: Pile O' Bones, later renamed Regina, is named capital of the North-West Territories, which then includes Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Feb 15, 1881
Get rolling! The Canadian Pacific Railway comes into being on this day.
Feb 08, 1879
Watch out! Our very own Sir Sandford Fleming suggests the world be divided into 24 time zones. The time would be the same throughout each zone.
May 05, 1877
After defeating General Custer, Sioux Chief Sitting Bull leads 1,500 people to Saskatchewan hoping for protection from the Queen
Mar 09, 1876
Hello? Alexander Graham Bell makes the first successful call on his new invention, the telephone.
May 25, 1874
Psst — the Canadian Parliament agrees to bring in the votes done by secret ballot
Apr 15, 1874
Louis Riel is kicked out the House of Commons because he’s wanted for the shooting of Thomas Scott in Manitoba
Mar 29, 1874
Louis Riel arrives to take his seat in Parliament, but decides to stay in Quebec for fear of being arrested if he crosses the river into Ottawa.
May 22, 1873
The North-West Mounted Police is created to keep peace in western Canada and patrol the border. It becomes the RCMP in 1920
Feb 16, 1869
“Meow!” (That’s kitty for “Thanks!”) The Canadian Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, now the Humane Society, is founded today.
Apr 06, 1868
In Canada’s first political assassination, an Irish-American shoots and kills Thomas D’Arcy McGee in Ottawa
Apr 13, 1861
Eight people die in an explosion on the B.C. steamship Fort Yale after the captain demands more pressure in the boiler
Feb 25, 1857
Make up your mind! The Province of Canada asks Queen Victoria to choose our capital, since we can’t decide on Kingston, Quebec, Toronto or Montreal.
Mar 17, 1855
Don’t look down! The world’s first working railway suspension bridge near Niagara Falls, Ont., opens today.
Apr 22, 1851
Canada’s first postage stamp, the Three Penny Beaver, appears today. It would be worth more than $1000 now
Apr 17, 1851
The Marco Polo is launched at Saint John, N.B. It is the fastest ship in the world for several years
May 09, 1844
The back-and-forth continues as Canada’s capital moves from Kingston to Montréal ... for five years
May 10, 1839
Doctor, doctor! The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Upper Canada comes into being today
Mar 05, 1834
Centre of the universe: Upper Canada’s first city, York (now Toronto) is incorporated.
May 23, 1833
William Loggie, who studied at McGill University, becomes the first medical student to graduate in Canada
Feb 13, 1826
All locked up: Lt. Col. John By of the Royal Engineers arrives in the Ottawa area to plan how to build the Rideau Canal all the way to Lake Ontario
Mar 11, 1821
Read all about it! The first issue of the Voice of the Fugitive, Canada’s first black newspaper, appears, published by former slave Henry Walton Bibb
Mar 08, 1815
Hands off! A Canadian fisheries patrol ship fires warning shots at a Spanish ship illegally catching under-sized turbot off Newfoundland.
Feb 21, 1813
Icy victory: Lt. Col. “Red George” Macdonnell marches 400 men across the frozen St. Lawrence river for an early-morning attack on Fort Ogdensburg.
May 15, 1806
Timber! Philemon Wright sends pine and oak lumber down the Ottawa River, starting a valuable Ottawa Valley industry
May 20, 1803
Freedom at last: Chief Justice of Lower Canada William Osgoode declares slavery to be against British law
Mar 03, 1791
Creating Canada: The British House of Commons begins discussing the act that will divide Québec into Upper and Lower Canada.
Apr 03, 1784
The first wedding ever recorded in New Brunswick takes place as a man named Andrew Stockton marries a Loyalist girl
Mar 28, 1778
Land ho! After an eight-month voyage from England, James Cook sets food on what is now Vancouver Island
May 18, 1776
Take that, America! With just 240 men, Capt. George Forster and Thayendenega beat 400 invaders at the Battle of the Cedars
May 29, 1769
St. John Island — now P.E.I. — separates from Nova Scotia and gets its own government
Mar 21, 1765
Read on! Canada’s first hardcover book, a religious text, is printed today.
Mar 16, 1765
Dance a jig! For the first time ever, St. Patrick's Day is celebrated in Canada.
Mar 07, 1765
Au secours! Fire sweeps through Montreal, burning one-quarter of the settlement.
Apr 17, 1763
The first edition of The Upper Canada Gazette, the first newspaper published in what is now Ontario, appears today
Feb 09, 1763
Peace, man. The Seven Years’ War between France and England to see who will control North America ends today with the signing of the Treaty of Paris.
Feb 12, 1759
Shh—don’t tell! This is the day when secret ballots are used for the first time in any British territory, by the Nova Scotia government.
May 16, 1756
England declares war on France, starting the Seven Years’ War that will see crucial battles fought in Canada
Mar 10, 1756
Never cry Wolfe: France appoints the Marquis de Montcalm commander of its forces in New France.