Events Celebrating the 2017 Governor General's History Awards

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The 22nd presentation of the Governor General's History Awards was held on November 22, 2017
MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall © OSGG, 2017.
Julie George (left), recipient of Indigenous Arts & Stories with Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Julie Payette
MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall © OSGG, 2017
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Julie Payette, Governor General of Canada (centre) with teaching recipients, Leia Laing (left) and Naomi Fortier-Fréçon (right)
MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall © OSGG, 2017.
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Julie Payette (centre) and Dr. Maureen Matthews (left) and David Swanson (right), recipients of the Governor General's History Award for Excellence in Museums: History Alive!
MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall © OSGG, 2017.
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Julie Payette, shakes hands with Rob Flosman, recipient of the Governor General's History Award for Excellence in Teaching
MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall © OSGG, 2017.
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Julie Payette presents the Governor General's History Award for Community Programming to Michel Harnois and Marie-Ève Gingras, from the Sherbrooke Historical Society
MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall © OSGG, 2017.
Author and historian Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail was the Master of Ceremonies for the Canada's History Forum and the History Makers Gala
Brittany Gawley
Tim Grove, Chief of Museum Learning at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, speaks at the Canada's History Forum about the History Relevance Campaign formed in 2012 to raise the profile of history.
Brittany Gawley
Session 1 of the Canada's History Forum was entitled, "Making the Case for History."
Brittany Gawley
Tracy Calogheros presents the award-winning project Hoduleh'a - A Place of Learning at the Canada's History Forum
Brittany Gawley
Life Speaker Noel Starblanket participates in the panel discussion at the Canada's History Forum
Brittany Gawley
Calvin Racette presents on the Treaty4Project at the Canada's History Forum
Brittany Gawley
Naomi Fortier-Fréçon presents on Treaty4Project at the Canada's History Forum
Brittany Gawley
This History Makers Gala is sponsored by TD Bank Group
Brittany Gawley
Robert Ghiz, former Premier of PEI, and Don Newman, former broadcast journalist with CBC, were guests at the History Makers Gala
Brittany Gawley
The Honourable Diane Lebouthillier and Kayak Kids' Illustrated History Challenge winner, Isaac Landry
Brittany Gawley
Sean Casey, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage, (fifth from right) with David Ross, Chair of the Board for Canada's History Society (forth from left) and Janet Walker, President and CEO of Canada's History (second from right) and the recipients of the Governor General's History Award for Excellence in Teaching
Brittany Gawley
Member of Parliament Robert Falcon Ouellette (fourth from right) poses with youth recipients Elly Hooker (fifth from right) and Mackenzie Anderson (second from right) and their guests
Brittany Gawley
Mackenzie Anderson (middle), Indigenous Arts & Stories winner, with her guests at the History Makers Gala
Brittany Gawley
Elder Claudette Commanda welcomes guests to the traditional, unceded territories of the Algonquin nation.
Brittany Gawley
Janet Walker, President & CEO of Canada's History, welcomes guests to the History Makers Gala at the Canadian Museum of History
Brittany Gawley
Andrea Barrack, VP, Community Relations and Corporate Citizenship at TD Bank, speaks at the History Makers Dinner
Brittany Gawley
Mark O'Neill, President and CEO of the Canadian Museum of History brings greetings at the History Makers Dinner
Brittany Gawley
The theme of the 2017 History Makers Dinner was "the Visionaries"
Brittany Gawley
Avah Solomon, 2017 Young Citizens recipient, gives a toast to the Visionaries at the History Makers Gala
Brittany Gawley

On November 22, 2017, a group of passionate history teachers, heritage professionals, students, writers, and historians packed the ballroom of Rideau Hall for the 22^nd presentation of the Governor General’s History Awards.

First created in 1996 with the Governor General’s Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History, the awards have since expanded to include honours in scholarly research, museums, community programming and popular media.

While the awards are a chance to celebrate the work of the recipients, it’s also a chance to the history community to come together to meet new people, connect with old friends, plan new projects and strengthen our national network.

The day prior, Canada’s History also hosted the 10^th Canada’s History Forum, a half-day discussion around issues and opportunities facing the history community. This year’s Forum was titled, “Making History Relevant” and examined the many ways that history is vital to our communities, identities, and economies. You can view the recordings here.

Following the Forum, we payed tribute to our recipients at the annual History Makers Gala, held at the Canadian Museum of History. In the stunning setting of the museum’s Grand Hall, we were joined by a number of program partners, sponsors, donors, Members of Parliament and other honoured guests to celebrate the past and future of history.

The Governor General’s History Awards and related events are a highlight for the history community, and a way to celebrate, inspire, and reenergize those who do the important work of researching, teaching, and sharing the stories of our past. Canada’s History is grateful for the support of the Government of Canada and TD Bank in the realization of the awards.

This article is also available in French