Growing Cities in the Province of Canada

Chapter 1 – Setting the Stage for Confederation, 1850-1860

- Confederation – the political union of parties took place on July 1, 1867 - prior to Confederation, Canada meant Province of Canada (created through the Union Act of 1841) - the union brought together Upper Canada (Canada West, now Ontario) and Lower Canada (Canada East, now Quebec) - other colonies at this time included Vancouver Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, and Newfoundland – each colony was politically independent - Rupert’s Land (now Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and NWT) was mainly Inuit, First Nations and Metis people – first inhabitants of the land - the land supported these communities - these communities were pressured in the 1850’s

Challenges Facing the Province of Canada

- Britain hoped that the Act of Union would fix any problems that existed between Upper and Lower Canada - the reformers wanted a responsible government (a government responsible to voters), something they received from Britain in 1848

Political Challenges

- both Upper Canada and Lower Canada had different cultures and different points of views about government priorities - where to locate the capital could not be agreed upon (the capital moved between Kingston, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec for a period of 20 years) - Queen Victoria resolved this situation in 1857 by making Ottawa the capital

Social Challenges

- in Canada West, population was British and Protestant, but in Toronto, the population was almost 25% Roman Catholic – did not have much influence on the direction of the government - many Black people also populated Toronto – did not own property, couldn’t vote or be elected – therefore, no influence on the government either - most voters were white, English or French-speaking men that were wealthy (only a small portion of the population made governmental decisions) - women, renters, recent immigrants and First Nations did not influence governmental decisions - in Canada East was primarily French and Roman Catholic - Canada West’s elite were Anglophone and Protestant belonging to the Anglican Church – England’s official religion - The Anglican Church in Canada West had privileges other churches did not – this did not make sense since Canada West was becoming more diverse with immigration - Canada East’s population was francophone and Roman Catholic (the elite in this area were anglophone and Protestant) - middle class of francophone professionals were often elected to government but they seldom had the same priorities as the anglophone business elites - Anglophone businessmen wanted to promote business - Francophone middle class wanted to preserve their language and culture

Economic Challenges

- machines replaced people - goods were produced in factories and not in small shops or homes - factory workers were paid low wages and had to work long hours - new technology meant that fewer skilled labourers (carpenters, printers, shoemakers) were needed - many deaths and injuries took place in factories – there were few laws governing working conditions - factories hired women and children and paid them even lower wages than men - in response to these poor working conditions, some workers began to organize unions – tried to force employers to provide better wages and working conditions - strikes began occurring in the 1830’s and the 1840’s – violent but rarely successful - factories could produce a lot of goods but the Province of Canada did not have a large enough population to buy all the goods - exporting to other countries was required – this involved more expenses (transportation and taxes)

Physical Challenges

- due to size and geography - no reliable overland transportation - waterways were main routes but not accessible in the winter months (economy slowed during winter months) - most travellers (other than fur traders) went south to the States and then west (the U.S. had expanded farther west than British North America) - railroads promised to be a year-round means of transportation (but they were costly)

Growing Cities in the Province of Canada

- increase in pop. In mid-1800’s in Province of Canada - Toronto became largest city in Canada West (Hamilton was second largest) - Ottawa and Kingston were also important cities - Most important commercial city was Montreal (because of fur trade, banking and insurance)

Life in the Cities

- most cities did not have a laid out development plan or a plan for expansion - no zoning laws (homes built close to factories) - rich/poor, churches/stores/factories coexisted in the same area - lumber was main building material (fires destroyed entire city sections) - plumbing and sewers were rare until the 1840’s in Toronto - when plumbing arrived, the working class was last to receive sewers (waste would go into the street gutters – led to disease like cholera) - major fire in Montreal in 1852 – destroyed about 20% of housing

The Railway Boom in the Province of Canada - railway building boomed in the 1850’s (Hamilton, Toronto, Montreal) - St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad were very significant - Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) purchased the railroad in 1853 - GTR was largest in world by 1867 - allowed new settlements to open across Can. - railway caused industries to develop (steel, lumber, coal) - began the Industrial Age – a time when the Industrial Revolution spread from Britain to the rest of the western world - transportation growth helped cities grow, created jobs and attracted immigrants - connections between businessmen and government affected railway financing - idea of connecting the colonies through Confederation began

The Atlantic Provinces

- New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI and Newfoundland were independent colonies before Confederation – fishing, farming, timber and shipbuilding

Newfoundland

- closely tied to Britain - economy was based on fishing industry - not granted responsible government until 1855 – they were slow to develop politically - small in population – many didn’t feel they needed responsible government since they relied heavily on Britain

Prince Edward Island

- smallest of the colonies - strong shipbuilding industry (others worked in agriculture and timber industries) - main political issue related to absentee landlords – in 1767, the British Crown granted much of the island to a number of prominent British families – they owned the land but lived elsewhere – they had little interest for the island other than the income from the land - habitants of the island wanted more control over their island’s future

Nova Scotia

- strong attachment to Britain - traded a lot with the U.S. - had a major naval base in Halifax - people felt attached more with the States than the Province of Canada - main industries were fishing, agriculture, and shipbuilding - became involved in manufacturing and railway building in the 1850’s – finally some common interests with the Province of Canada

New Brunswick

- created after the American Revolution - strongly pro-British - economy was based on timber industry (shipbuilding was big in Saint John, the largest city in the Atlantic colonies) - did not feel secure with sharing its border with the state of Maine – there was a lot of tension with the border

Rupert’s Land

- the British Crown granted the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) a large area of Rupert’s Land in 1670 - the HBC still ran the territory in the mid-1800’s - included the prairies, the Rocky Mountains and the region to the north - home to many First Nations, Metis people and a few non-Aboriginal fur traders (most people supported themselves by fur trade) - fur trade was dominated by two competitors – HBC and the North West Company (NWC)

The Buffalo Economy

- First Nations and Metis people had little interest in political connections with the British North American colonies - First Nations and Metis people were concerned with the life that was dictated by the buffalo - buffalo once numbered in the millions – was a major food source (dried or ground meat called pemmican was nutritious and it travelled well) - buffalo hides were used for clothing and shelter, while bones were used for tools - buffalo once hunted only enough to satisfy the needs of the people were now being hunted for their hides – hides were becoming popular to wear - First Nations drove herds over cliffs or drove them into enclosures where they were then butchered - Metis people would ride along the buffalo and shoot them with their rifles - both styles of hunts were organized events – strict political and social rules of behaviour were followed

Decline of a Way of Life

- early 1830’s the life of the First Nations and the Metis people began to change because there were an increasing number of non-Aboriginal traders and hunters coming to the West - many non-Aboriginals slaughtered buffalo for sport - buffalo were on the decline - by the 1850’s, their main economic livelihood was quickly disappearing - many communities were dying due to the disease brought by these outsiders - First Nations and Metis people were at a weakened state when they were faced with settlers and politicians from the east who were interested in the land

Conflict at Red River

- a formal immigration program took place in the area known today as Manitoba - in 1811, a Scottish nobleman, Thomas Douglas, the Earl of Selkirk, purchased land in southern Manitoba from the HBC - Selkirk wanted to create a new colony - in 1812, he brought his first group of Scottish settlers to North America - this new colony was called the Red River colony or Red River settlement - the new settlers found that the area was inhabited by some Metis families – they had lived there for generations - Selkirk’s settlers immediately found conflict with the NWC traders and the Metis people - the NWC traders feared the settlers would help their rival, the HBC, dominate the fur trade – the Red River was a critical point in the NWC’s supply route to the West - the NWC traders told the Metis people that the new settlers would be given Metis land – land the Metis people had been farming for years but didn’t own it (Metis people became very concerned – some tried to drive the settlers away) - in 1814, the colony’s governor banned the export of pemmican because he wanted to make sure his settlers would have enough to eat – the Metis depended on the pemmican trade – this angered the Metis people – conflicts occurred between Metis and the settlers - in 1816, on June 19, some Metis people led by Cuthbert Grant, encountered the colony’s new governor, Robert Semple, and his men – the result is known as the Battle of Seven Oaks - in 1817, Selkirk arrived with more settlers - these settlers faced other battles which included frost, grasshoppers and a major flood that wiped out many crops and settlements - in 1821, the HBC and NWC merged – the conflict that once existed was now over - in the years of peace, the Metis population grew rapidly - in 1856, Red River was completely isolated form other settlements on the continent - in 1858, the U.S. railway system reached St. Paul, Minnesota – this increased trade between the U.S. and the communities of the Red River - in 1859, a steamboat began travelling from St. Paul to Red River – this further increased visitors, mail and trade along the north-south corridor – this meant that politicians in Canada West became increasingly anxious to claim Red River as their own

British Columbia

- Vancouver Island became a British colony in 1849 - an HBC representative, James Douglas, was made governor - at this time, the colony depended on the fur trade for its livelihood - Vancouver Island had a small non-First Nations population – mostly HBC employees and their families

The Douglas Treaties

- negotiated treaties to acquire First Nations land for settlement and mining (a treaty is a formal agreement between independent nations) - between 1850-1854, Douglas negotiated 14 treaties with First Nations – known as the Douglas Treaties - Douglas never called these agreements as treaties, he called them sales – he felt the First Nations were selling their land, not forming an agreement to share the land - the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the transactions were treaties since Douglas was negotiating on behalf of the British Crown - in the treaties, First Nations gave up 570 square kilometres of land in exchange for cash, clothing and blankets - First Nations kept their villages and farmland and were promised the right to hunt and fish on any ceded lands – those specified in treaty documents - Treaty-making on Vancouver Island ended in 1854 Gold!

- in 1851, New Caledonia (B.C.) was occupied by many First Nations and a few non- Aboriginal fur traders - in 1858, gold was discovered on the lower Fraser River - in 1862, another major discovery was found upriver

First Nations

- affected greatly by the discovery of gold - one First Nation group (the Salish) felt that the gold was a part of their land and not “free for the taking” - they felt that the miners should pay a fee to the Salish in return for mining on their land - the miners ignored the First Nations land rights and on August 14, 1858, the Salish people protested – the miners opened fire and killed 7 Salish people - the miners feared retaliation and asked the American government for protection (many miners were from the U.S.) - the HBC was the only governmental authority in the region and they felt they were losing control so the British Crown stepped in

Colonial Status

- in 1858, Britain ended HBC control in the area and established British Columbia as a colony - things did not really change – miners continued their quest for gold and the murders of the Salish First Nation protestors was never resolved - in 1866, British Columbia was merged with Vancouver Island into one colony

Immigration

- Victoria’s population soared from 500 people to between 10,000 and 20,000 people during the gold rush - people lived in tents until they could get their mining permit and move to the mainland - miners came from England, Scotland, Ireland, U.S., Australia and China - some miners found several hundred dollars worth of gold – the average daily wage at the time was about $2.00/day

The Goldfields

- immediate demand for infrastructure (roads and housing) was created with the gold rush - British Columbia borrowed money to build better roads to the goldfields – even with roads, the journey north was risky - In 1858, work began to upgrade the trails to the goldfields – mainly Chinese and First Nations workers took on this dangerous work

Effects of the Gold Rush

- the gold rush only lasted 7 years - First Nations had their claims to the land challenged - population increased with many diverse cultures - infrastructure was built Setting the Stage for Confederation, 1850-1860

Challenges Facing the Province of Canada

Challenges Facing the Province of Canada – Political Challenges

Challenges Facing the Province of Canada – Social Challenges

Challenges Facing the Province of Canada – Economic Challenges

Challenges Facing the Province of Canada – Physical Challenges

Growing Cities in the Province of Canada

Growing Cities in the Province of Canada – Life in the Cities

The Railway Boom in the Province of Canada

The Atlantic Provinces

The Atlantic Provinces – Newfoundland

The Atlantic Provinces – Prince Edward Island

The Atlantic Provinces – Nova Scotia

The Atlantic Provinces – New Brunswick

Rupert’s Land

Rupert’s Land – The Buffalo Economy

Rupert’s Land – Decline of a Way of Life

Conflict at Red River

British Columbia

British Columbia – The Douglas Treaties Gold!

Gold! – First Nations

Gold! – Colonial Status

Gold! – Immigration

Gold! – The Goldfields

Gold! – Effects of the Gold Rush