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Spanish Flu
The Spanish flu was a disease that weakened your immune system. The Spanish flu was discovered a few months before the end of WW1. The flu was spread through bodily fluids and moved quickly through the population. Since there was no known cure, about 50,000 Canadians were killed. Canada had already lost 60,000 from war. The combined death toll significantly reduced the workforce. It left thousands of families without a primary wage earner and orphaned thousands of children. -
Winnipeg General Strike
Members of Winnipeg’s building trade unions went on strike when their employers refused to negotiate a wage increase. When the strikes were not settled by 11 a.m. on May 15, the Winnipeg Trades and Labour Council called for a citywide strike to support the striking workers. Business owners, politicians, and bankers, opposed the strike.The law soon required employers to recognise the right of workers to bargain collectively. It became the platform for future labour reforms. -
Indian Act
By 1920, Aboriginal people were still not classified as "persons" under the law. This meant that they could not vote in provincial or federal elections. The government continued to use residential schools as a way to assimilate Aboriginal children. In 1920, the Indian Act was changed to allow the government to give up the Aboriginal people's status without their consent. The Indian Act caused a major division in Canada. Self-determination for Aboriginal people is still a problem to this day. -
Prohibition
Prohibition was a period of nearly 14 years were manufacturing, selling, and transporting alcohol was made illegal. Prohibition was passed because people believed that alcohol was the cause of violence, crime and other negative aspects of society. As a result, this presented profitable opportunities for organized crime to take over the importing (bootlegging) manufacturing, and distributing of alcoholic drinks. Smuggling from Canada to the US, became a very prominent part of their society. -
William Lyon Mackenzie King
Mackenzie King (1921-1948) led the Liberal Party for 29 eventful years. For 21 of these years he was Canada’s prime minister. He created the Industrial Disputes Investigation Act in 1907. King helped create Canada's first old age pension in 1927. He also fought for Canada's autonomy during the King-Byng Crisis (1926) and in signing the Halibut Treaty with the United States (1923). -
The Halibut Treaty
This was a treaty between the US and Canada that stated that they would protect halibut along the coasts of British Columbia and Alaska. Britain wanted to sign the treaty in behalf of Canada, however Canada didn't want Britain to sign it. Canada threatened to send a representative to Washington. This was important to Canada and their autonomy because it was the first treaty that Canada negotiated and signed independently by the Canadian government. -
Relief Camps
Conclusion: This document contributes to our understanding of history because it tells us how cruel the relief camps actually were. It's an actual story from a man who actually lived through the Great Depression and the relief camps. It helps us understand a bit more because we're actually ready about how life was like relief camps from a person who lived through it and not jst from a textbook. -
Relief Camps
Citation: This interview was created in 1929-1939. It was created by Barry Broadfoot who actually interviewed a young man who was working in a relief camp. -
Relief Camps
Connection: The great depression was a terrible time for everyone in Canada. There weren't enough jobs for everyone, so many people were left unemployed. Bennett created relief camps, however these relief camps didn't improve the issue. These men that worked in relief camps were made to do lots of hard labour, however they were only paid 20 cents a day, which barely helped them survive. This created anger and tension in Canada. -
Relief Camps
Content: The main idea from this interview is that even though Bennett created these relief camps to help improve unemployment issues, it actually made the issues worse. These men that were working and living there were being treated as if they were slaves, which in fact they pretty much were. They were only paid 20 cents a day which is barely enough to live on and they were ding all the hard labour. They were also being isolated from " communist troublemakers" in fear of them being dangerous. -
Relief Camp
Context: When this document was created, Canada was going through the Great Depression. Men all around the country were unemployed, no one had any money to spend. There was nothing left for people. They didn't have anything. Some men worked in relief camps, were they were treated so poorly. They were slaves. Others rode the rails, looking for jobs and a place to escape to. There was nothing that kept them in place, nothing worth staying for. -
Relief Camps
Communication: Yes this source is reliable, because this document is an interview from a young man who actually worked at the relief camps and survived through these horrible times. -
The Stock Market Crash
On Tuesday, October 29, 1929, the New York Stock Exchange collapsed. On that day, prices of all stocks came crashing down. Traders were ordered to sell everything, but prices continued to fall. This was one of the major causes of the great depression. Canada relied to heavily on the US and we were very tied with them. When their economy came crashing down so did ours. -
5 Cent Speech
The financial strain of the Great depression had bankrupt many municipals. Conservative Opposition asked why provincial governments weren't being helped by federal governments and as a response Mackenzie King said he would not give " a five cent piece" to any conservative provincial government. The speech made King seem out of touch with the hardships of ordinary people and helped the Conservative opposition gain support. They easily won the election of 1930. -
Richard Bedford Bennett
R.B Bennett (1870-1947) was a leader of the Conservative party of Canada and prime minister during the Great Depression in the 1930's. He set up unemployment camps for single, unemployed men. At these camps they got paid 20 cents day. He created the Canadian Wheat Board, which works to control the prices and marketing of Canadian wheat. In 1932, he called the Imperial Economic Conference in Ottawa, when the British preferential system of tariffs was adopted. -
Keynesian Economics
John Keynes was a British economist who proposed that the government of Canada should "spend their way" out of the great depression. He strongly believed they should borrow money to spend on huge employement projects and repay the money in the future when the economy recovers. These actions have an inherent inflationary bias which has created severe long-term economic problems both in Canada and in other countries.
