19th Century Canadian History

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Spain cedes Louisiana back to France

1804
1,400 American ships are fishing off Labrador and in the Gulf of St. Lawrence

1809
Napoleon’s continental blockade cuts British access to Scandinavian timber

1812
War of 1812 declared, allowing Maritime colonies to profit from illegal trade

1812
Red River settlement founded by Hudson’s Bay Company

1813
Amerindian chief Tecumseh is killed at the Battle of Moraviantown

1814
Treaty of Ghent ends War of 1812; no territorial gains on either side

1817
Famine in Newfoundland due to poor postwar economy

1817
Nova Scotia population estimated at 78,345

1818
49th parallel becomes British North America/U.S. border from Lake of the Woods to Rocky Mountains

1821
Hudson’s Bay Company merges with arch rivals, the Montréal-based North West Company

1825
Opening of Erie Canal gives New York competitive edge over Montréal

1829
Opening of Lachine Canal restores level playing field for Montréal

1833
Royal William, formerly operating between Québec & Halifax, becomes first steamship to cross Atlantic

1837
Two separate rebellions, one in Upper and one in Lower Canada, fail to dislodge entrenched elites

1839
Lord Durham’s Report recommends union of Upper and Lower Canada, and responsible government

1841
Act of Union unites Upper and Lower Canada

1842
New Brunswick/Maine boundary settled by Webster-Ashburton Treaty

1843
Fort Victoria built by British to strengthen their claim to Vancouver Island

1845
Halifax native Samuel Cunard chooses Boston as the western terminus for his steamships

1846
British Prime Minister Robert Peel announces Free Trade, ending old Colonial mercantile trade system

1848
Responsible government established in Nova Scotia and Canada

1849
The boundary at the 49th parallel is extended to the Pacific Ocean (bisecting Point Roberts!)

1854
Reciprocity (free trade) begins between British North America and the United States

1857
Queen Victoria names Ottawa as Canada’s capital

1861
American Civil War begins

1864
Québec Conference sets out the terms of union for British North American colonies

1866
Fenians launch first raids into British territory (June 2)

1867
Confederation of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Québec and Ontario forms the Dominion of Canada

1867
Sir John A. Macdonald becomes Canada’s first prime minister

1869
Hudson’s Bay Company surrenders territorial rights to Rupert’s Land to the Crown

1869
Newfoundlanders reject Confederation in general election

1870
Louis Riel leads Metis resistance to Canadian authority; province of Manitoba created

1871
Treaty of Washington grants fishing rights on Grand Banks to United States

1871
British Columbia joins Confederation

1873
Global economic depression begins

1876
Intercolonial Railway linking central Canada and the Maritime provinces is completed

1879
National Policy imposes tariff on manufactured goods being imported into Canada

1885
Transcontinental railway is completed in Eagle Pass, B.C.; 9 days later, Louis Riel is hanged in Regina

1890
Manitoba stops public funding of Catholic schools; causes uproar in Québec

1891
Nearly one-quarter of Nova Scotian women are working for wages outside the home

1897
Klondike gold rush begins

1898
Canada issues Christmas postage stamp showing British Empire in “flaming red”

1899
Boer War begins; the first Canadian troops to serve overseas are sent to South Africa