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first important event
The Treaty of Ghent is signed, ending the War of 1812 and restoring Canada-U.S. borders. -
second important event
Lord Durham, former governor-in-chief of British North America, recommends in a report to the British Parliament the systematic anglicization of French Canadians to make them a minority. -
third important event
John A. Macdonald is elected to represent Kingston, Ont., in the Legislative Assembly of Canada. -
fourth important event
Maritime delegates at the Charlottetown Conference offer unanimous support for the idea of Confederation. The conference was supposed to focus on uniting the Maritime provinces, but an unofficial delegation from the province of Canada derailed the agenda and delegates agreed to the broad outline of a federal union that would eventually include Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in 1867. -
fifth important event
The Dominion of Canada, uniting Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, comes into existence, with John A. Macdonald as first prime minister. -
sixth important event
Manitoba becomes Canada’s fifth province. -
seventh important event
British Columbia enters Confederation as the nation’s sixth province. -
eighth important event
Prince Edward Island enters Confederation -
ninth important event
Sir Sandford Fleming presents a paper to the Royal Canadian Institute proposing that the world be divided into 24 time zones. -
tenth important event
Rail director Donald Smith drives the ceremonial last spike home for the Canadian Pacific Railway, linking Montreal to Port Moody, B.C. -
eleventh important event
Metis leader Louis Riel is hanged for high treason as a result of the North West Rebellion. -
twelfth important event
Liberal Wilfrid Laurier becomes prime minister after defeating Charles Tupper’s Conservatives. Laurier goes on to be one of Canada’s most lauded prime ministers. -
thirteenth important event
Canadian representatives on the Alaska Boundary Commission refuse to sign the commission’s decision setting the boundary between Alaska and Canada, saying virtually all American positions had been accepted. -
fourteenth important event
The first coin is struck at the new Royal Mint building in Ottawa, ending years of importing Canadian currency from England. -
fifteenth important event
Ottawa divests itself of responsibility for vast tracts of northern land, granting boundary extensions to Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. -
last important event
Following Germany’s invasion of Belgium, Britain declares war on Germany. Canada, as part of the British Empire, is engaged in the war as well.
