Canadas Pirate Legends: The Rise of Piracy in Canada Canadiana 2022-06-28 | When we think of swashbuckling tales of pirates and plunder, we think of Blackbeard, palm trees, and the sun-scorched shores of the Caribbean. Yet, some of the most ruthless men and women of the seven seas razed hell up North, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and along the jagged coasts of the Maritimes. Take to the lawless seas in search of treasure and tall tales in a veritable “who’s who” of pirates and privateers on Canada’s East Coast.#pirates #canadianhistory #history #documentary #newfoundland SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnIsle Haute is a protected conservation area with unique species of plants and animals. You cannot go there without permission, which we received from the Canadian Wildlife Service, Atlantic Region. There is absolutely zero chance there is treasure there. Pirates did not bury treasure; there was no justification for doing such a thing. Crews would never have allowed it. Pirates collected their booty and they used it. Robert Louis Stevenson’s massive hit, Treasure Island (1883), singlehandedly generated the concept. We're also sorry to say that Oak Island has no treasure either--though a fun myth.Like every episode, we pour over dozens of resources during our research phase. For this episode, there were contradicting accounts and myths from Philip Gosse's famous 1925 anthology that we needed to sort through. We relied on reported accounts from the time periods, as well as contemporary historians like the great Dan Conlin. We suggest that you look to discovering these sources yourselves--treat our videos as stepping stones. Our number one recommendation would be to start with Dan Conlin's Pirates of the Atlantic, a thrilling read that delves far deeper into the history of piracy on the East Coast than we could ever hope to. Extra tidbits:The most significant myth surrounding Peter Easton is that of the Irish Princess Sheillagh NeGeira (or Shelia O’Connor). According to legend, Peter Easton took a Dutch pirate ship in 1603 (which had taken Shelia on her way to a French convent). Shelia fell in love with one of Easton’s lieutenants, Gilbert Pike. They were married by Easton and he allowed them to stay in Bristol’s Hope NFLD when Pike didn’t want to take the pirate oath. Sheila supposedly gave birth to the first English child born in NFLD (maybe NA) which started the prominent Pike family tree in the Maritimes. Historians think the story might have been invented in the early 1900s--but Sheila remains on the city crest of Carbonear, a town not far from Harbour Grace.In reality though, Easton’s operation truly dwarfed the nearby colony of Cupids with its 40 settlers. He didn’t attack the people of Cupids, because he wanted to stay in good-standing with British Crown, the governor there confirmed as much. But, Easton was smart. At one point he captured the world's most unlucky man, Richard Whitbourne (who would be captured by pirates on 3 separate occasions). Easton convinced him to sail to England to get him a pardon from the Crown. While he waited, Easton set up to attack the annual convoy of Spanish ships bringing treasure back to Spain--he picked off four of them. Whitbourne collected his pardon, but when he returned, he'd come to realize that, in the end, Easton thought it silly to ask for a British pardon, since he was basically a king of the seas himself.The Tordesillas Line:Portugal and Spain, rulers of the world in late 1400s, early 1500s, set the stage for piracy to run rampant in the North Atlantic.Spain got the Pope to divide the entire globe, including the areas not yet found, between Spain and Portugal. The Tordesillas Line was the result. “No peace over the line,” was the phrase. It was a north-south line that gave Spain almost all of North and South America, in 1494. Spain immediately became the richest empire in the world and dubloons became the global currency for a while. Pirates loved the chaos the Line brought.When we refer to "Canada," long before it was officially recognized as such, it is a narrative device to help tell the story in an engaging way. While Canada wasn't a country, or even a colony, for a long time, (and Newfoundland didn't join until 1949) the place we now call Canada remains significantly affected by the events that predate Confederation.Described Video version: vimeo.com/725047623/f61b54e51600:00 Introduction - Pirate Legends02:39 Dawn of the Pirate Age - Cod04:15 Peter Easton07:28 Thomas How07:58 Black Bart Arrives08:38 The Golden Age of Piracy09:24 The Pirate Code10:10 Adventure!11:04 Death at Sea12:15 Sneak Peek at Season 314:08 Bonus Story
La merveille dingénierie construite pour se défendre contre les Américains Canadiana 2024-05-15 | Canadiana explore l'histoire macabre du canal Rideau, une attraction touristique populaire à Ottawa et une merveille de l'ingénierie humaine du début des années 1800.Looking for the English version? Find it here:"The Engineering Marvel Built to Defend Against Americans — The Grisly History of the Rideau Canal"youtu.be/UtcM4ippsI0?feature=sharedSUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM:instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn#canadianhistory #rideaucanal #québecois
The Engineering Marvel Built to Defend Against Americans — The Grisly History of the Rideau Canal Canadiana 2024-05-01 | Canadiana explores the grisly history of the Rideau Canal, a popular tourist attraction in Ottawa and marvel of human engineering from the early 1800s. Support Canadiana on Patreon: goo.gl/2tGNNp Donate once w/ PayPal: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana Website: thisiscanadiana.com Instagram: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana Facebook: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana X: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaMerch Store: goo.gl/SPwzqnClarifications:*While by today’s standards the working conditions during the construction of the Rideau Canal seem especially horrific, it was generally on par with engineering projects of a similar scale during the time period. Care was taken to prevent accidents, and any that did occur were subject to inquiry and documented to avoid repeat. Still, it was hard, dangerous work in an era before many of the fail safes we have today, and every life lost is a tragedy that might have been prevented.*There is no definitive number of worker deaths due to lack of complete records, particularly lack of records for the vast majority of deaths due to disease, but the best estimate is that at least 1000 workers were killed during the construction.Rideau Canal History:For more incredible history of the Rideau Canal, we strongly encourage you to check out this excellent website by Ken Watson: rideau-info.com/canal/history/index.html The “Tales of the Rideau” page is particularly interesting, with a mix of factual and ghost tales! (Direct link to the tales page: rideau-info.com/canal/tales/index.html) Colonel John By: Col. John By, who led the construction, is recognized as one of the greatest engineers of early Canada. But in his lifetime, he was never properly recognized for the incredible feat that was the Rideau Canal. The 200km canal was built in just 5 working summers, without the aid of modern construction equipment, yet despite this achievement Colonel By returned to England only to be criticized by the Treasury Board. He died just three years later. Today, there are several monuments to Colonel By, including the statue we see in the episode and the ByWard Market area of Ottawa. Alternate theory for the Duke of Richmond’s death (bonus story at the end of the episode): For nearly 200 years, there were only whispers about the controversy surrounding the Duke of Richmond’s death by rabies. That is, until Dr. Hugh Whitney, a veterinarian, medical historian, and leading Canadian expert on rabies stepped forward to contest the long-standing theory. While it’s no longer possible to know for certain what killed Charles Lennox, the 4th Duke of Richmond, you can read more about the debate here: historicalsocietyottawa.ca/publications/ottawa-stories/personalities-from-the-very-famous-to-the-lesser-known/rabies-or-booze Ottawa Tourism:The Rideau Canal is a beautiful place to visit! History, nature, physical activity, pleasure boating—there’s something for everyone! We encourage you all to visit this spectacular National Historic Site meticulously maintained by Parks Canada. parks.canada.ca/lhn-nhs/on/rideauMalaria:Malaria has been an infectious disease, spread by a parasite carried by mosquitoes, for over 50, 000 yrs all over the globe. It’s been humanity’s greatest enemy from Ancient Egypt to the Roman Empire to now—killing hundreds of thousands each year.Not all mosquitoes can carry malaria, but the one that does—the Anopheles species—lives in both tropical areas known for malaria, and in colder latitudes. They inhabit regions as varied as the Philippines, Southern Ontario, Madagascar, Russia, and Brazil—they are everywhere. But the parasite is not…anymore.Peruvians had been using the bark of a tree to treat malaria for thousands of years, and when the Spanish invaded in the 1600s they brought the remedy back to Europe. Today, we call it Quinine--which doesn't just treat malaria, it prevents it. Soon, British soldiers in India were mixing drinks with it (it had a bitter taste). In fact, Quinine, mixed with water, sugar, lime, and gin was their go-to—and that’s how the gin and tonic was born. Today, we don’t typically prevent malaria with quinine, due to its side-effects, but we do have vaccines.Malaria was eventually eradicated from the United States in 1951 after a massive campaign over multiple years—similarly it was eradicated in Canada and most of Europe in the same era. Before then, it was a killer like any other disease, but it peaked in its spread and lethality in the 1800s. DESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/950608809/c6968bd38f?share=copy#ottawa #canadianhistory #documentary #rideaucanal 00:00 Intro: Death on the Rideau Canal01:44 War of 181202:26 The Idea03:17 Duke of Richmond05:04 Colonel John By05:52 Death and Malaria07:18 Bytown to Ottawa08:44 Bonus Story
Lextraordinaire vol de baleine du Labrador Canadiana 2024-03-24 | Nous voici à Red Bay, au Labrador. Aujourd’hui, c’est un petit village de moins de 200 personnes, situé dans un port naturel entouré de falaises de granit rouge qui lui ont donné son nom.À première vue, c’est un village comme tous les autres petits villages de pêche du Nord. Mais si vous savez où regarder, vous trouverez des indices de son passé : des indices que ce hameau bien tranquille a déjà été tout autre.Au milieu du XVIe siècle, la prolifération de baleines franches et de baleines boréales a attiré les baleiniers de la région basque d’Espagne et de la France dans le détroit de Belle-Isle à Red Bay, où ils ont établi un important poste de chasse.Voici l’histoire du vol de la baleine de Red Bay.Looking for the English version? Find it here: youtu.be/RBE9qsRvsOA?feature=sharedSUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM:instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn
The Great Whale Robbery of Labrador Canadiana 2024-02-28 | Basque whalers in the 1500s travelled to the very edge of their known universe in search of their gargantuan prey, and landed on the shores of a fog-shrouded bay in Labrador. In this unlikely setting, Canadiana revels in one of Canada's most absurd true crime stories: the tale of a Basque who stole from their rival, sparking a Spanish Supreme Court case that wouldn't be settled for nearly 20 years.Canadian & Spanish history collides in a tale that was forgotten for centuries…Support Canadiana on Patreon: goo.gl/2tGNNp Donate once w/ PayPal: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana Website: thisiscanadiana.com Instagram: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana Facebook: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana X: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaMerch Store: goo.gl/SPwzqnCorrections/clarifications:*There is a glaring mispronunciation in the episode that somehow slipped through months and months of pre and post-production. "Thule" is pronounced "Too-lee" or "Too-lay." We apologize profusely for this embarrassing error, and have no excuse for it. *In the sequence of whale oil products, we listed candles, soap and paint. Sorry! This was an ERROR — one that we had actually corrected in the episode script, but on site we mistakenly recorded off the WRONG printed version! Whale oil was primarily used for machine lubrication. We didn't notice while editing, until we recently went to edit the French version of this episode (coming soon), which had been recorded on-site with the CORRECTED version: “manufacturing cloth and soap.” *In the episode, we acknowledge that the Thule ancestors of the Inuit had been hunting sustainably for thousands of years before the Basques arrived. To say thousands is incorrect, as the ancestors of the present-day Inuit arrived in the Arctic roughly 500 years before, around 1050 CE. Newfoundland & Labrador were home to the Inuit, Innu, Mi’kmaq and Beothuk people long before the Basques arrived to hunt whales, but the Basques would have had minimal interaction with those inland and on the island of what is now known as Newfoundland. *The demand for baleen/whalebone really only took off from the late 1500s; before then, the Basques were primarily returning to Europe with whale oil.*Please note that “Torre” may be mispronounced (should be “t-OH-r-eh”)16th Century Whaling: Whaling in the 1500s was not for the faint of heart. As you see in this episode’s miniature recreations, whale hunters went out in crews of 7-8 men in mere row boats, called chalupas, which were only about 28 feet long. Once they managed to harpoon a whale, they would be dragged behind it with the rope attached, until the whale tired itself out. When it eventually succumbed to its injuries, the crew needed to row and tow an enormous whale back to their base (sometimes this required two chalupas in a train). It’s worth mentioning the captains may not have been on board the chalupas (though we’ve put them there for storytelling purposes). Bowhead Whale Facts:Bowhead whales have the largest mouth of any animal!Were once considered the same as a Right Whale, but are now a distinct speciesWere one of the earliest whaling targets, but a moratorium was passed to protect bowhead whales in 1996Miniatures:A SPECIAL THANKS to Ashley’s father, Mark Brook, who volunteered to design and build the miniature sets used to recreate the tale of the stolen whale!Dr. Selma Barkham:We mention this in the episode, but would like to reiterate: this story exists thanks to the intrepid Dr. Selma Barkham, a Canadian historian who unravelled the history of whaling in 16th century Labrador during the 1970s. Dr. Barkham was a widowed mother of four who taught herself Spanish before combing through Spanish archives for documents, including court records, in order to piece together this little-known part of Canadian history. Thanks to Barkham’s research, archeologists began to uncover artefacts in Red Bay in the 70s and 80s, and it is now a National Historic Site administered by Parks Canada! Research Consultant: A huge thank you to the incredibly helpful Dr. Michael Barkham, son of the late Dr. Selma Barkham, whom we interviewed for the hard-to-find details of this story! We could use your help:If you’re able, please consider contributing to the future of Canadiana by becoming a Patron — for as little as $1 per month, members receive special updates + behind the scenes. We’re a small team, and each story can take months of work— we rely on supporters like you to make more videos like this one. Thank you!DESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/950814260/cd128ce844?share=copy00:00 Intro01:32 History of Basques & Labrador03:57 Whaling History 05:58 Bowhead Whales + The Hunt07:26 The Robbery08:07 The Court Case09:21 The End of Whaling10:19 Dr. Selma Barkham11:05 Bonus Story#history #canadianhistory #miniatures #whaling
How The American Civil War Made Canada Canadiana 2023-09-20 | The Canadian story of the American Civil War, told in two parts. Through the eyes of the Canadians who helped start the war, to those who fought it, to the leaders influenced by it, we unravel one of the most pivotal events in the continent's history. From the pubs of Saint John to the docks of Halifax, from Southern Ontario battlefields to the battlements of Quebec City, find out which Canadians were on the right and wrong sides of history. This is the story of two nations facing each other down over a tenuous border for a century, and the war that changed everything.SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana X: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana IG: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FB: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnPart Two:Clearly, there is an enormous amount missing from Part 1—a whole episode-worth! Expect Part 2 to dive into the figures who represented the darker side of Canada's Civil War story: Confederate sympathizers, spies, and soldiers.However, this two-parter is the most ambitious project we've worked on so far, and we can't afford to have another delayed release. So there are shorter episodes before we get to Part 2. It's unfortunate, and we apologize, but it was either 'edit Part 1 or don't make these episodes at all.' It's the reality of having such a small team in post with episodes that are packed with animations.In the meantime, stay tuned for some incredible 'shorter' stories from some of the most unique locations we've been for Season 3!The first-known photograph of Niagara Falls:The daguerreotype that Hugh Lee Pattinson took of the falls is actually also the oldest-surviving photograph of what is now Canada! The invention of photography crossed the Atlantic in the spring of 1839, and it was popularized in Canada before the USA. The first known photo taken in N.A. was a calotype of a sample of flora in Halifax. Once news of the technology made it into the local newspaper, a reader tried it for himself. Less than a year later, in April 1840, Pattinson took a handful of daguerreotypes of Niagara Falls—the photo we highlighted is labeled by archives as the first of the batch. The silhouette of a man in the image is probably Pattinson himself, since it took a while to expose. The photos were found relatively recently, too. By late 1840, full-fledged portrait studios began opening in Montreal and Quebec City.‘Chatham’ Anderson:Thousands of Black Americans immigrated to Canada prior to the Civil War. It’s a rich history we would like to return to in the future, specifically in regards to the Maritimes. Osborne Perry Anderson did so at the age of 20. So it may seem a little strange for us to call him a ‘Canadian.’ But the fact is that he spent the vast majority of his remaining 21 years in Canada, much of it in Chatham. He’s often referred to as both American and Canadian. He did eventually go back to the U.S. when Black supporters in Philadelphia took up a collection for him, but he died weeks later of tuberculosis. At times, he’s been somewhat forgotten, he doesn’t even have a gravesite. Here's his own description of the raid on Harpers Ferry: en.wikisource.org/wiki/A_voice_from_Harper%27s_FerryThe Great Eastern:Some of the images we show of the ship aren’t from the QC voyage. Those that are happen to be the lowest quality. We wanted to show-off the ship, so we pulled engravings and photos from other travels. Some depict the ship leaving Liverpool, some are from its earlier voyage to New York, and others come from the ship’s time as a cable-laying vessel—when the first Transatlantic cables were laid from the UK to Newfoundland. The American Revolution:A topic we'd like to come back to. The Revolution began due to the Quebec Act, which angered Americans for giving rights to the Canadien. Americans burned Montreal first and then laid siege on Quebec City from the Plains of Abraham, barely 20 years after the British did the same thing. They attacked during a blizzard on New Years Eve, which didn't go so well.Research:We combed over countless books, maps, and newspapers to put this episode together, including Robin W. Winks': ‘The Civil War Years.’The Assassination of D’Arcy McGee:Less than a year after Confederation, one of the country's founding fathers was shot dead on Sparks Street in Ottawa, and to this day the question remains: who killed D'Arcy McGee?youtu.be/ueTqBHfngPYDESCRIBED VIDEO: vimeo.com/944086036/e4ecc90269?share=copy#canadianhistory #canadausa #civilwar #blackhistory 00:00 Intro02:10 Chatham03:52 John Brown05:14 Harpers Ferry07:52 Civil War Begins08:53 Sarah Emma Edmonds12:07 US vs CAN14:28 Manifest Destiny16:31 Great Eastern18:03 Prepare for Invasion19:14 Preview Part 219:44 Bonus Story
Pirate Black Bart Roberts recruits a Canadian fisherman | Canadiana Channel #shorts Canadiana 2023-07-04 | Crazy stories about piracy in the North Atlantic. Did you know pirates loved to recruit Canadian fishermen? Some of them were so unhappy with their day job that they jumped at the chance! If you enjoyed this clip, you can find the full episode of "The Rise of Piracy in Canada" here: youtu.be/XnnObrS05jc — there's even a connection (in part 2) between piracy and the foundation of two big banks in Canada: CIBC and Scotiabank. The 1600s had been a time of war but when those wars ended, it left sailors unemployed or facing gruelling, low-paying work. The swashbuckling life of a pirate was much more alluring. The seas were flooded with them. Legendary names like Black Beard, William Kid, Anne Bonnie and Captain Morgan. They all needed crews and Peter Easton had proven that Canada's east coast was the perfect place to get them, with an endless supply of experienced sailors who really hated their day jobs.@Canadiana is an award-winning YouTube docuseries in search of forgotten and unusual tales from history. New episodes coming this summer! We cover all sorts of history focusing on Canada's incredible past — the good and the bad. #history #pirates #documentary #Canada #Canadian #series
Camels Come From Canada | Canadiana Channel #history #shorts #documentary Canadiana 2023-06-30 | For this and more unusual history, follow @Canadiana on YouTube!Before camels were masters of the desert, they were masters of the snow. Canadiana's full episode on how camels came from Canada can be found here: youtu.be/rMRGw_hkvEwNew episodes coming soon!
Aventures extraordinaires du chien de Terre-Neuve - Canadiana S3 Épisode 7 - Lhistoire du Canada Canadiana 2023-05-03 | Partez d'un océan à l'autre pour découvrir l'histoire de l'une des races de chiens les plus célèbres du Canada : le chien de Terre-Neuve!Looking for the English version? Watch it here: youtu.be/Y5NnTtQ27wsSUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNpDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thisiscanad... FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com CANADIANA MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnScript translated from English by the marvellous Hélène Caron.Video edited in French by Ashley Brook.#newfoundlanddog #histoire #terreneuve
The story of Newfoundland dogs in Canada (episode teaser) | Canadiana S3 #history #dogs Canadiana 2023-03-31 | Watch the full episode here: youtu.be/Y5NnTtQ27wsIn this episode of Canadiana, we travel coast to coast on the trail of some of the most heroic dogs in history.#dog #newfoundlanddog #hero #animals #canadian
Extraordinary Adventures of the Newfoundland Dog Canadiana 2023-03-26 | Newfoundland dogs! Go coast-to-coast to uncover the history and lore behind one of Canada's most famous dog breeds. Stick around after the Newfies for a bonus story about Labrador Retrievers! #newfoundlanddog #canadianhistory #documentary #dog SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNpDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thisiscanad... FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn The Defence of Hong Kong:Our attempt to keep this episode focused on Newfoundland dogs (like Sergeant Gander) meant leaving out much about Hong Kong, a significant battle in WWII which began so soon after Pearl Harbour that it's often overshadowed and overlooked.First, we would like to note a correction: technically, the attack on Hong Kong did not take place an entire day after Pearl Harbor, but 6 hours later (the international date line is the cause for this common confusion). The Royal Rifles of Canada and the Winnipeg Grenadiers sailed from Vancouver to the British Crown Colony of Hong Kong in late October, 1941, and while the invasion in early December didn't come as a complete surprise, there had been a feeling of optimism—life in the colony had continued as usual in the weeks leading up to the attack. The British commander was offered an opportunity to surrender prior to the attack, but sent his response just 15 minutes later. A one-word answer: "no." The British believed there would be no battle, and it was a mistake that would cost the Canadians dearly.The Canadian battalions sent to battle were largely inexperienced, but fought bravely, and there were numerous acts of heroism like that of Gander the dog. Sergeant-Major John Osborn similarly threw himself on a grenade that could not be returned at the enemy, smothering the explosion and saving the lives of nearby soldiers. On Christmas Day, 1941, the colony surrendered to Japan. Approximately 290 Canadian soldiers were killed defending Hong Kong. Those who survived the battle became prisoners of war and endured torture by their Japanese captors. Approximately 264 died in POW camps, bringing the human toll to 554. More on the battle here: bit.ly/2BnvqKwSgt. Gander was posthumously awarded the Dickin Medal for Gallantry (essentially the Victoria Cross for animals) on Oct. 27, 2000. The ceremony was attended by 20 surviving members of Gander’s regiment. In 2015, the commemorative statues were unveiled in Gander, and members of the Royal Rifles attended once more.Those explorers we mentioned: David Thompson and Alexander Mackenzie did not make their way through the Canadian wilderness alone. They traveled in parties, and were led by Indigenous guides. When Mackenzie crossed North America, his party of voyageurs and guides included the Dene chief Awgeenah. Awgeenah (who is also known as Mistapoose and Nestabeck) guided Europeans to the coast more than once. Before travelling with Mackenzie, Awgeenah led Matonabbee and Samuel Hearne along the Coppermine River to the Arctic Ocean.Landseer:English artist Sir Edwin Landseer was particularly fond of painting animals in service to people. He's best known for his paintings of horses, dogs and stags, and for the lion sculptures in Trafalgar Square. His paintings of black and white Newfoundland dogs, especially those depicted as water rescue dogs, were among his most popular—so much so, that the black and white variety of Newfoundlands became known as Landseers. In the Dominion of Newfoundland, only black or black and white Newfoundlands were considered proper members of the breed.S.S. Ethie:There may be more fiction than truth to aspects of this tale. The story as we describe it was broadcast around the world at the time, and has been repeated ever since. But, some sources suggest it may have been another breed, and it may not have brought a rope to (or from) the ship. The strange thing is, a few years earlier, a Newfoundland dog performed this exact feat with ANOTHER shipwreck in Kent, England. You can read about dozens of other heroes in Robert Parsons' book 'The Newfoundland Dog: True Stories of Courage, Loyalty, and Friendship.'Lewis & Clark:Lewis & Clark crossed the continent years after Alexander Mackenzie, and they ALSO had a Newfoundland dog with them, named Seaman. He was a crucial part of their voyage, retrieving meals and standing guard. The pair were inspired to purchase their dog by Mackenzie.Place names: For storytelling purposes, we occasionally refer to locations from a contemporary perspective. We will always side with simplicity, flow, and clarity in order to make the episodes as engaging as possible.DESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/950407265/3eb46529bb?share=copy00:00 S.S. Ethie Shipwreck01:33 Origins03:07 Explorers04:09 Sgt. Gander06:17 Bonus Story: Labrador Retrievers
When Americans Built a Road Across Canada Canadiana 2023-01-05 | The story behind one of Canada's most famous highways...and how it was built by a foreign army. From the Rocky Mountain foothills, all the way to Alaska—we take a road trip finding clues to its origins: rusted old trucks, strange-looking buildings, and abandoned gravel roads. This is the tale of the largest American invasion into Canada since the Gold Rush. This is the Alaska Highway.SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnThe first thing we want to mention is that the Alaska Highway originally had a far less American-centric name: the Alcan Highway (Alaska-Canada). In the same way Canol Road comes from “Canada-Oil.” We much prefer the Alcan since the majority of the highway is, ya know, in Canada.One of the central reasons Whitehorse became the capital of the Yukon (in 1953) is because of the boom it experienced during the construction—dethroning Dawson City!We wished we had the time to drive up Canol Road when we filmed the episode. The disaster caused by its construction is STILL being dealt with today. Here’s an article about the cleanup from July 2022:cbc.ca/news/canada/north/canol-trail-cleanup-1.6527710The Teslin Taxi:By the time the Alaska Highway was built, many Yukon communities still weren't widely accessible by road. However, there is at least one notable exception: the village of Teslin (Desleen), YK. It was all thanks to a multi-talented man named George Johnston. Johnston was a Tlingit photographer and entrepreneur. As a successful trapper, he used some of his earnings to purchase photography equipment, which he then used to document his vibrant community in some of the best Depression-era photography out there—particularly during the years leading up to WWII (a few of these photos can be seen in the episode). He also bought himself a four-door Chevrolet, which was shipped from the dealer down the Yukon River, up Teslin River, and over Teslin Lake to reach him. Since there was no road in Teslin, George Johnston built one 4 mile stretch himself. He turned his Chevrolet—the first car in town—into the famous Teslin Taxi, charging $1 a trip. Johnston's four miles eventually became a part of the Alaska Highway, with Teslin at Mile 804! You can find many of his photos today at The George Johnston Museum in Teslin (they also have a great Facebook page).There are certainly examples of the Alaska Highway benefitting the First Nations of the Northwest, but the change it brought was drastic. The Yukon Archives includes a page about the impact on First Nations here: bit.ly/3i7bKTsAnd they have a great bibliography here:bit.ly/3CijdWGJoe Louis:The heavyweight champion of the world was in Whitehorse for a stint during the construction. He was enlisted in the army and sent to raise the morale of troops around the world. He was spotted at the Regina Hotel where some Texan officers stormed out in protest at his presence.Soviet Spies:We made an entire episode about Soviet spies infiltrating Canada during and after WWII, and one of the ways they did so was by flying south along the Northwest Staging Route! There are even stories of spies escaping with suitcases stuffed full of secret documents. The North would soon become home to a series of detection systems to protect against the Soviet threat. Clarifications:The full cost of the construction is hard to pinpoint. The Canadian government repaid the American government $108 million “to cover airfields and flight strips... other assets...but not construction of the highway itself.” American investment in the highway is recorded as $147.8 million (between 2-3 billion US dollars today). Canada provided a lot of materials and waived taxes, fees, etc. The U.S. Department of Transportation clearly states that Canada paid the cost of the Canadian portion back in full.11,000 American soldiers were joined by 16,000 American and Canadian civilians in constructing the highway.The bridge crossing the Aishihik River is a replica of the original.We mention that a store of dynamite exploded in Dawson Creek, BC, “leveling the town.” It leveled a large part, but not the entire town. Here’s a great article about Dawson Creek and the disaster, written months after the explosion: archive.macleans.ca/article/1943/8/1/end-of-steelDESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/943370175/caa720aecd?share=copy#alaskahighway #canadianhistory #wwii00:00 Introduction01:03 America at war!02:01 Northwest Staging Route03:06 Fighting Germany04:08 The Plan05:05 The Construction08:54 Japan Invades!09:42 Soldier's Summit10:09 Victory!12:33 Bonus Story: Canol Road
Pirate Legends of Canada episode teaser | Canadiana S3 #history #pirates Canadiana 2022-12-28 | Full episode here: youtu.be/XnnObrS05jcWhen we think of swashbuckling tales of pirates and plunder, we think of Blackbeard, palm trees, and the sun-scorched shores of the Caribbean. Yet, some of the most ruthless men and women of the seven seas razed hell up North, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and along the jagged coasts of the Maritimes. Take to the lawless seas in search of treasure and tall tales in a veritable “who’s who” of pirates and privateers on Canada’s East Coast.It's a two-part episode so be sure to check out the second half for how piracy is connected to two of Canada's largest banks.#canada #history #bigbank
A forest vs. Napoleon episode teaser | Canadiana S3 #history #Napoleon #toronto Canadiana 2022-11-15 | Watch the full episode here: youtu.be/5W5UIYTHb5EOr you can watch the French language version here: youtu.be/8cPymm5qA7kIn this recent episode of Canadiana, a forest with a story that spans the Atlantic, pitting lumberjacks against an emperor, during one of the most pivotal moments in Europe’s history. Napoleon, meet Toronto’s Rouge Valley. Explore Canada's only Urban Park: Rouge National Urban Park.#canada #napoleon #forest #napoleonicwars Subscribe for more CANADIANA:goo.gl/iZAYjf
Le loup-garou de Québec Canadiana 2022-11-14 | Les Fortifications de Québec ont été témoins de tant de moments marquants du Québec et du Canada, mais cette histoire est... unique. En 1766, la Gazette de Québec rapporte qu'un loup-garou rôdait dans la campagne à l'extérieur des murs de pierre de la ville...SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM:https://www.instagram.com/thisiscanad... FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnScript translated from English by the marvellous Hélène Caron.Video edited in French by Ashley Brook.Looking for the English version? Watch it here: youtu.be/FlRrXN7tRmo
Cold War started in Ottawa ep teaser | Canadiana S3 #coldwar #history Canadiana 2022-11-11 | Watch the full episode here: youtu.be/wHilhl25QOYThree days after the end of WWII, a relieved and exhausted Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King was about to find out that post-war peace was to be short-lived. The RCMP had something to report to him: there were spies in Ottawa. Russian spies. A cipher clerk by the name of Igor Gouzenko had finally managed to turn himself in after 24 hours of panic, incompetence, and utter absurdity on the part of Canadian officials. His defection revealed a spy ring that shook the Western world — some refer to it as “the spark that ignited the Cold War.”#canadianhistory #canada #ottawa Subscribe for more CANADIANA:goo.gl/iZAYjf
A true Canadian werewolf story ep teaser | Canadiana S3 #history #Canada #werewolf Canadiana 2022-11-09 | Watch the full episode here: youtu.be/FlRrXN7tRmo for the unbelievably true story of werewolves in Canada!In 1766 a newspaper in Québec City reported that a werewolf was on the loose in the colony! Stay to the end for another mythical creature that's become a forgotten symbol of Canada — in fact, if you're a Canadian, it's probably in your own home right now!#weird #canadianhistory #beast #quebec Subscribe for more CANADIANA:goo.gl/iZAYjf
The Werewolf of Quebec Canadiana 2022-11-07 | The Fortifications of Québec have borne witness to so many of Quebec and Canada's most pivotal moments, but this story is...unique. In 1766, the Gazette de Quebec reports that there was a werewolf stalking the countryside outside the city's stone walls...SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnFRENCH VERSION: youtu.be/Rjxc8i4fS34Place names:For storytelling purposes, we occasionally refer to locations from a contemporary perspective. We will always side with simplicity, flow, and clarity in order to make the episodes as engaging as possible.French Canadian:We are phasing this terminology out of our scripts, but sometimes it slips through due to word-repetition and simplicity. Where possible, we endeavour to say “Canadiens,” or “Quebecois,” or “francophones” depending on the context. We’d actually forgotten it was in this script until the editing phase unfortunately.The Gazette de Quebec:The source of the article that first caught our interest years ago when we posted a blog/Twitter thread on the subject. Interestingly, the newspaper was relatively new at the time that the infamous werewolf story was published. The paper started in June 1764. In fact, there were no newspapers in New France between 1608 and 1763 because the French officials opposed the establishment of a printing press. In our episode about Rouge Park, we mention one of the most pivotal consequences of having a free press: the French Revolution.Wolf Blood (1925):One of the coolest things we came across with this episode is the silent-era film Wolf Blood. It’s said to be the oldest surviving werewolf movie. It’s an American film, but it’s actually set in Canada (shocking!). In a Canadian forest, two rival logging companies become so hostile with each other that a lumberjack is beaten and left for dead. Only a blood transfusion from a wolf can save him! You can find the flick all over YouTube as it’s in the public domain.The Beast of Gévaudan:There are other Canadien werewolf tales, but we found it incredible that this story lined up so closely with one of the most famous stories in the world. The first report of the beast came from a young woman who'd been herding cattle. She described the beast as "like a wolf, yet not a wolf." Not long after, a girl named Jeanne Boulet was killed by an animal while watching livestock. And the attacks continued, targeting mostly women and children, until they could no longer be dismissed as regular animal activity.At one point up to 30,000 volunteers were recruited to help hunt the beast. Some even dressed like women in hopes of luring the animal. It helped that the reward money was close to one year's salary for a working man at the time.One particular story stands out of a young woman named Marie-Jenne Valet who was walking home alone from a neighbouring farm, armed with a homemade spear, when she turned around to see the Beast of Gévaudan, which she described as a terrifyingly large dog. She immediately drove her spear into the animal's chest, which sent it running away, injured. A monument stands in Auvers, France, in honour of her bravery. Some theories have suggested the animal was a wolf-dog hybrid trained to attack people. A favourite film of one of the creators of Canadiana, The Brotherhood of the Wolf is loosely based on the animal killings in Gévaudan—though in this film, (spoilers) the beast is a lion in disguise.General Loups Garous lore:In Quebecois culture, a loup-garou is strongly connected to Catholic morality. It could be a curse given to someone guilty of not being a good Christian—like failing to confess sins.In Canadien folklore, the spell over a werewolf could be broken only if someone recognizes the werewolf while transformed, and is able to draw blood from the animal. However, if successful, neither may speak of the incident again, lest they meet an even worse fate. DESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/950332737/122300f711?share=copy#canadianhistory #quebeccity #werewolf00:00 Introduction01:05 Origins01:58 Canadien Werewolves02:52 An Uneasy Decade03:40 Beast of Gevaudan04:20 Hunting Werewolves05:37 Conclusion06:27 Unicorn Bonus Story
How the Cold War started in Ottawa Canadiana 2022-10-09 | The story of a Russian cipher clerk with an explosive secret, who just wanted someone in Ottawa to listen to what he had to say. Three days after the end of WWII, Igor Gouzenko would be the bearer of bad news that shook the world: there were spies in the capital!#documentary #coldwar #history #canadianhistory SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM:instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnCorrection: Incredibly, we've been corrected by Igor and Svetlana's daughter on a couple of points! Igor never waved a gun around, or threatened to jump out of the Justice Building window. Both are myths that have been propagated for years--even by a museum claiming to have the gun. Also, while some of the images we use to depict Igor include cigarettes--he never smoked, or drank. Igor's own daughter has informed us (through her grand daughter) that "Dad was never cool." For any descendants of Igor and Svetlana who see this: thank you for watching and we hope we did some semblance of justice to their story!"The spark that ignited the Cold War": We just want to reiterate that Igor Gouzenko’s defection, and the fallout from it, is one of a few threads that led to the decades-long Cold War. A defining moment that is commonly referred to as being the first major event, post WWII.Before the end of WWII, relations between the Soviets, the United States and Britain were rocky. Stalin took particular umbrage at the U.S.’s extremely delayed entrance into war with Germany—by that point, millions of Russian soldiers and civilians had already died. The fact their ideologies didn’t line up meant they were basically doomed to be at odds. The introduction of nuclear weapons, and their use in the tragic loss of life at Hiroshima and Nagasaki—well, it poured gasoline on red hot embers. Less than a month after the catastrophe at Nagasaki, Gouzenko would bring the spy ring to light, creating the spark. From that point onward, distrust between superpowers, who had once been allies, was the norm. To learn more about Gouzenko’s defection and his place in the start of the Cold War, here are a few great resources:How The Cold War Began: The Igor Gouzenko Affair and the Hunt for Soviet Spies by Amy Knight"Igor Gouzenko" article in Maclean's in 1946: archive.macleans.ca/article/1946/12/15/igor-gouzenkoThe Fallout for Gouzenko:The ramifications for Igor and Svetlana were immense. First, here are some clips from CBC of Igor’s famous interviews:1968 - on hiding his identity: cbc.ca/player/play/14487056036871970 - follow-up interview: cbc.ca/player/play/14028149041987 - incredible interview with Svetlana: cbc.ca/player/play/2672326221Svetlana and Igor lived in constant fear for their 8 children, as well as family in Russia. And it was more than justified. After the defection, Igor’s mother was killed during interrogation. Svetlana’s father was arrested and ‘disappeared.’ Two months later, her mother was as well. And then, Svetlana’s sister was arrested, leaving behind her 2-year-old son. In an interview, Svetlana remarks on such things as being normal in a country where 50 million people were killed by the government. The Gouzenkos never let their guard down, for good reason. They were tried in absentia and sentenced to death, a bomb was placed in their mailbox, break-ins were common.Gouzenko’s favourite song was Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, played by his wife Svetlana.The Iron Curtain movie:In one of the rare events that Canada plays itself in Hollywood, The Iron Curtain came out in 1948 and was partly filmed in Ottawa. Gouzenko was a consultant on the film. Originally we included clips from the film, until we found out that they would cost $10K per minute to use. Ironically, the production company behind the film was sued for using copyrighted music from Russia, and the entire film has been ripped and put up on YouTube in multiple places: youtu.be/TDaJBpTnvoMStephenson and Camp X: It's a matter of opinion as to who is the 'greatest of all spymasters.' Maxwell Knight is another candidate.We didn't fully cover Camp X, but late in the editing process we came across Lynn Philip Hodgson's website which is full of info: http://www.camp-x.com/camp-x.htmlNote: The Ottawa Journal was not in the building we filmed, but one very nearby that no longer exists.DESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/950321786/f031d5b575?share=copy00:00 Intro - Shortlived Peace02:03 WWII03:33 Zabotin Spy Ring04:28 The 'Fishing' Trip05:02 Igor Gouzenko06:25 The Escape07:20 The Absurdity09:29 The Climax12:17 Camp X13:52 The Fallout16:11 Diefenbunkers17:56 Bonus Story
La forêt qui a vaincu Napoléon Canadiana 2022-09-12 | Une forêt dont l'histoire s'étend sur l'océan Atlantique, opposant des bûcherons à un empereur, au cours de l'un des moments les plus marquants de l'histoire de l'Europe. Napoléon, rencontrez la vallée de la Rouge à Toronto.SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM:instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnScript translated from English by the marvellous Hélène Caron.Video edited in French by Ashley Brook.Looking for the English version? Watch it here: youtu.be/5W5UIYTHb5E
The Toronto Forest That Brought Down Napoleon Canadiana 2022-09-11 | A forest with a story that spans the Atlantic, pitting lumberjacks against an emperor, during one of the most pivotal moments in Europe’s history. Napoleon, meet Toronto’s Rouge Valley. Explore Canada's only Urban Park: Rouge National Urban Park.SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM:instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnFRENCH VERSION: youtu.be/8cPymm5qA7kClarification:In no way are we suggesting that the masts made from pine trees in Eastern Ontario were the be-all and end-all in the multi-decade battle between much of Europe and Napoleon--far from it. Without diving too deeply into the subject, we tried to generate some context. The trees shipped to England from the Rouge Valley undermined Napoleon's hopes, and produced the naval firepower the British needed to keep him off the island. But the wars were complex, alliances strengthened and fell, Napoleon was defeated and returned.Note:For simplicity we used “Toronto” to refer to that muddy early settlement, even though it was originally named York. We try not to go on expository tangents, in order to keep the pacing up. White Pines:To all those with a strong knowledge of tree species, you may have only glanced a couple of White Pines in this episode. We had a horrible time trying to hunt down actual White Pines in Rouge Park—the lumberjacks did a number on them. They are all over the rest of Ontario, but along the trails of the Rouge Valley, there seem to be far more Red Pines. We only had two days to film the minisode, and given how much walking was involved, we couldn’t spend ages looking for White Pines in cinematic spots.White Pines are pretty easy to identify. Each nub on a branch sprouts five soft and long needles. They are the pine trees that look a little gentler than their counterparts, with needles that flow like feathers in a breeze. And boy can they grow tall.White Pines aren’t just perfect for masts; they are great for any situation that calls for a strong, relatively knot-free, water-resistant wood. So sought after that many Ontario property deeds state that one must get permission before cutting a White Pine down—the Crown might call for lumber at any time. And for much of Toronto’s history, they were used in a peculiar way. If you're ever in downtown Toronto and there’s a condo tower being built nearby, you might notice crews nearer to the lake pulling gigantic pine logs out of the earth. That’s because, for the decades that Toronto’s leadership allowed it, White Pine logs were used to make ‘baskets’ that would be placed into the lake, filled with garbage and dirt, and built on top of. Toronto’s shoreline used to be much further inland (as far North as Queen Street in places), and the ‘baskets’ were the standard method for building out into Lake Ontario. And when construction crews pull those White Pine artifacts out of the ground, they are often in pristine condition, and resold nearly 100 years after they’d been cut down.Lord Nelson:The famous naval commander, Lord Nelson, died fighting in the Battle of Trafalgar, becoming a national hero in England. They named the public square in the heart of London "Trafalgar Square" and built a giant column to honour Nelson's memory. It's one of the most iconic landmarks in Britain. But he was also a hero over here. Defeating Napoleon's navy meant the trade route between Canada and England stayed open. People in Montreal were so happy about that they built their own column to honour Nelson in their own public square more than 30 years BEFORE the Londoners built theirs. It's still there in Old Montreal at the top of Place Jacques-Cartier. Though it just as likely could have been built as a provocation to francophones.Nelson had also played an important role when it came to those Baltic masts. Before Napoleon's embargo, some of the other most powerful countries in Europe wanted to keep England from being able to trade with the Baltics. So they shut down the narrow channel between Sweden and Denmark — the only way into the Baltic Sea. Nelson was the hero of that episode too. He led the British fleet at the Battle of Copenhagen. When his commander gave him permission to retreat, Nelson famously lifted his telescope to his blind eye so that he couldn't see the signal. He kept fighting and won. It meant that the British got to keep trading with the Baltics right up until Napoleon's embargo.DESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/950424090/6647d19e6d?share=copy00:00 Introduction01:11 Origins02:23 French Revolution04:13 The Problem05:09 The Solution06:37 The Aftermath08:25 Bonus Story#canadianhistory #toronto #fall #hiking #trails #napoleon
Canadas Pirate Legends: The Fall of Piracy in Canada [Part 2] Canadiana 2022-07-26 | Climb back aboard to witness the turbulent end of “The Golden Age of Piracy” in Canada. From the most notorious pirate to have sailed the seas of the North Atlantic, to the most infamous pirate trial in Halifax’s history, we find out how East Coast piracy declined and…turned legitimate.SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnClarifications:Ned Low arrived at St. John’s during his ill-fated pillaging attempt BEFORE he spent time raiding the ships around the Grand Banks—before word got out to Louisbourg’s governor. It was just simpler to relay the tale in the order we did.The Fortress at Louisbourg was most assuredly not BUILT to defend against pirates alone—but it was armed to. Louisbourg was a fort that saw many ups and downs, multiple invasions, and its construction went through a variety of phases. It just so happens that the first real push toward its eventual power over the St. Lawrence was motivated by the threat of pirates like Ned.The Miꞌkmaq flags that rise on ships are sideways, but typically the flag is vertical. It was just difficult to animate them vertically and through research we found that flying them in both directions are legitimate.Extra Tidbits:We never really had a chance to better explain what the Grand Banks were/are for those who don’t know. It’s an area of ocean, kilometres off the coast of NFLD, with a relatively shallow sea floor. This makes it perfect for cod fishing. At the same time, the Grand Banks are smack-dab in the middle of the main transatlantic sea passage. Spanish Treasure Ships regularly came north from the Caribbean and crossed the Atlantic in an arch that would have them pass right over its fertile waters. The Grand Banks was a perfect place for pirates to spend months pillaging.Edward Jordan’s tale has recently seen a spike in interest. We unfortunately didn’t have the time to go through his story in great detail, so we've compiled a few things here. Jordan was almost on his way with The Three Sisters when he was tracked down—his plan had nearly worked. At the time of his arrest, he and his wife were trying to collect crewmen for a sail back home to Ireland from Newfoundland. When he was captured, Jordans quoted as saying: “The Lord have mercy on me, what will my poor children do?” We would have loved to figure out where they eventually ended up, after the city of Halifax collected money for their passage back to Ireland.Interestingly, tampering with a gibbet was a serious offence, so Jordan’s body sat in it for roughly 30 years (it’s difficult to find a precise count on that). Legend has it that the gibbet was only taken down (and buried) when the Lieutenant-Governor’s daughter came across the horrific sight, while on a leisurely ride around Point Pleasant Park. Jordan’s skull, still tightly bound in the rusted iron, was dug up in 1844 when a new piracy trial renewed interest in his sad tale. It was donated to the forerunner of the Nova Scotia Museum.The skull is at the centre of a contemporary moral debate about museums displaying the remains of historic figures. The concept of publicly-owned remains, displayed for perceived entertainment, regardless of educational value, without the permission or guidance of descendants (whether or not they are traceable) is a discussion that’s not about to end any time soon. For the time being, the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic is understandably restricting access to Jordan’s skull—we were not allowed to film it.If you're wondering what the meaning behind the Liverpool Packet's original name ('The Black Joke') was, well it's apparently a very common gaudy ship name from a raunchy old song. We'll leave it at that.The War of 1812 is clearly a subject we need to tackle one day.Privateering was abolished in 1856 with the Declaration of Paris. The vast majority of major international powers signed it...except for the United States. Legally, the American Government can still sign Letters of Marque if they ever want to get revenge for the Liverpool Packet.We will definitely come back to stories of pirates one day!For those wondering: yes, we all love (and listened to many times during shoots) Barrett's Privateers by Stan Rogers. youtu.be/B6Nl3PaTimADESCRIBED VIDEO VERSION: vimeo.com/748581849/212bea135d00:00 Refresher01:01 Louisbourg01:53 Loathsome Ned Low03:12 St. John's Attack04:32 The Crackdown05:26 Edward Jordan07:41 The Privateers08:15 Enos Collins08:52 War of 181209:54 CIBC and Scotiabank10:42 The End11:55 Bonus Story#pirates #canadianhistory #VC478S3E1
Canadiana Season 3 Trailer Canadiana 2022-06-10 | On the hunt for the most incredible stories in Canadian historyCANADIANA is an award-winning documentary web series that follows host Adam Bunch as he makes his way across the country in search of the most incredible tales in Canadian history. From Halifax Harbour to Vancouver Island, from major cities to secluded towns, Canadiana digs up the mind-blowing true stories that contribute to Canada's unique identity. Season three begins the week of Canada Day, 2022!#canadiana #history #documentary #canadianhistory Created by Kyle Cucco, Ashley Brook and Adam Bunch.~~~It's been a long time coming. A huge thank-you to our audience for your patience and continued support. We wouldn't be back here if it weren't for you.Many thanks to our funders who helped end our lengthy hiatus. CANADIANA Season 3 was made possible by the financial participation of the Bell Fund, Canada Media Fund, Canada History Fund, and Parks Canada.~~~Please help us keep CANADIANA episodes free on YouTube, forever:Become a supporter on Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisiscanadiana Donate once with PayPal: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadianaYou can also lend your support by subscribing to this channel, hitting the bell for notifications, sharing with friends & family, liking, and commenting on videos! And you can continue to follow us elsewhere:WEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.com TWITTER: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadiana MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn
Canadiana Shorts: Camels Come From Canada Canadiana 2020-07-21 | Before camels were masters of the desert, they were masters of the snow.SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnFor more information about the evolution of camels and their place in Canada's/Yukon's natural history, check out the incredible Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre either by visiting it in Whitehorse, or through their website: beringia.com/exhibit/ice-age-animals/yukons-camels. The lovely folks there gave us a tour and let us snap some photos and take video—we will share some of that on our social media channels in the future.For a much broader look at the full evolution of camels, from beginning to end, check out this PBS Eons video: youtube.com/watch?v=lJNoAE0UHzYThere weren't any great-looking Canada-focused maps depicting the time periods we cover in this short, so we purchased the rights to use a stylized topographical map and then photoshopped it to look similar to the diagrams we found for the ice age(s) and late Miocene epoch. The maps are far from perfectly accurate, but we tried to get it pretty close—specifically on the coastlines. For instance, the placement and size of the lakes in North America varied constantly across the millions of years we scroll through. There were also multiple ice ages that came and went, of course.We reverse back in time to around 7 million years ago when discussing the Yukon Giant Camel—that date may not be perfectly accurate. Various sources specify that the Paracamelus migrated across Beringia anywhere from 10 to 5 million years ago. We decided to split the difference and keep it simple. The Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre states that the migration may have occurred "as early as 5 million years ago." When you are dealing with time periods so enormous in scope, it's hard to be entirely precise, so we implore you to read up on the subject and come to your own conclusion.While there is consensus that the features that make camels suited for arid climates originated in snowy colder climates, there is debate regarding the evolution of their hooves. Camels don't gallop in the same way horses do, they have a strictly pacing gait—which means both of the legs on one side move at the same time. This can be really unstable, especially for large and wide animals like camels. So, it's possible that the width of the hoof evolved in response to their pacing gait—the wider the foot, the more stable the sway side-to-side.To our knowledge, it's surprising to many to learn that camels originated in North America. The same goes for their distant relatives the Llama and Alpaca. Dromedaries, Bactrian camels, Llamas and Alpacas all came from a common ancestor in North America 45 million years ago called the Protylopus, a tiny deer-like mammal that lived in thick ancient rainforests. Millions of years later, during the Miocene, there was a camelid explosion and it ultimately led to some camelids moving North, and others moving South—those were the ancestors to Llamas and Alpacas. Strangely, the modern-day species of camelids live in the inverse direction of their origin point, which is why many don't realize camels evolved in North America.You may notice that the extinction of the Western Camel coincides with another major migration in the world's history—the great Paleolithic human migration across the Bering Land Bridge to North America that occurred in earnest sometime around 14,000 years ago. While the camels had gone one way and assured their survival through evolution, the humans went the other and populated the entirety of the Americas. These Paleolithic hunter-gatherers were highly skilled, with the perfect tools to hunt Western Camels along with other Megafauna. While it is a theory that the Camelops extinction came at the hand of these new occupants, it seems pretty difficult to argue against it—especially since camel bones have been found at prehistoric camp sites next to firepits. But it's safe to say humans played at least some role in the end of camels roaming the Americas. A small note about the High Arctic Camel: officially it's related to the Yukon Giant Camel, but apparently not identical. It is a Paracamelus though. This is why we gave it its own label. It lived on Ellesmere Island at the same time, the fossil dates to 3.4 million YA.And no, Adam is not green-screened into a desert scene—that's the Carcross Desert, near Whitehorse, labeled usually as the "world's smallest desert." We are aiming to put together a little montage explainer video about it soon and we will share it on Patreon along with our social channels.
Winnipegs Secret Code Canadiana 2019-07-09 | The Manitoba Legislative Building has a hidden code. If you look closely, you’ll find Egyptian sphinxes, the Ark of the Covenant, Greek monsters, cattle skulls, lion heads, and a mysterious black star. The question is: what does it all have to do with Winnipeg?SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadiana TWITTER: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.com MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn*Listen with Described Video: youtu.be/s2ssJ1yQsTY*CORRECTION: 13 press gallery seats are above Speaker's chair.Recently, Dr. Frank Albo, an architectural historian, has dominated the study of the building’s architecture—he’s spear-headed the theory surrounding a Masonic code. He wrote a book called The Hermetic Code and leads authorized tours of the building. We were not able to find his book in print, nor did we take his tour, but some of his theories are referred to in the episode, found in the plethora of newspaper articles available (many from the Winnipeg Free Press). Some of his views are debated, which was one of the reasons we decided to look at the broader historical context surrounding the building’s construction. But it's all quite interesting regardless! Here’s his website: frankalbo.comIt goes without saying that events like the Red River Rebellion and the General Strike deserve episodes of their own—consider this episode as us dipping our toes into the incredibly rich history of Winnipeg and Manitoba as a whole.We decided to use the architecture as a stepping stone to speak about the historical context surrounding its construction, so we bypassed quite a few other architectural details. Here are a few more:- The triangular pediment that hangs over the North entrance represents the span of the country: on the east end of the pediment is a nautical wheel, symbolizing the Atlantic; on the west is Neptune's trident, symbolizing the Pacific. In the centre is a goddess representing Manitoba, the keystone province, with a lictor's staves across her knees.- Normally you’ll only find mention of one Ark of the Covenant (officially the War Chest), but there’s actually two—on the East and West sides. They are chests guarded by a pair of figures: an Indigenous chief and Roman soldier, and a pair of Greek goddesses. No one knows what is inside them. In the Bible, the Ark of the Covenant held the 10 Commandments.- The Lieutenant-Governor’s Reception Room is reserved for visiting royalty and is closed to the public. We were granted access to shoot this room as well as the Legislative Chamber (from behind a rope barrier) and these shots didn't make it into the video. The L-G Room is essentially the Queen’s office if she’s staying in Winnipeg. There’s a theory that it’s designed with the dimensions of the inner sanctum of King Solomon’s Temple, including a blue curtain that would have shrouded the ‘original’ Ark of the Covenant. - If you stand in the centre of the star (in the Pool of the Black Star) and whisper, your voice echoes throughout the building by some pretty remarkable acoustics (unfortunately this didn’t translate well to a lav mic).- Normally the Golden Boy figure is read as being Hermes, the son of Zeus, messenger to the gods. However, it’s more likely Mercury, god of trade and commerce. The wheat in his arm is the fruits of his labour, the torch is a call to the youth toward a prosperous future. He gained his nickname from a local newspaper writer.- Four groups of statues surround the dome of the building: agriculture, industry, art, and science.- Most of the building is constructed out of Tyndall stone, limestone native to Manitoba and full of fossils.A great article detailing how the Panama Canal affected Winnipeg: bit.ly/32cCqW1There are remnants of the political embezzlement scandal that rocked Winnipeg at the Kelly House apartment block, not far from the MLB. Look for some curious pillars, and read this wonderful article: bit.ly/32h0eYQFreemasonry isn’t a secretive subject. In the early 1900s it was everywhere, later, it turned into a sort-of boys club. There are a lot of famous freemasons—John A. MacDonald was one—but this episode isn’t so much about the boys club as the tenets that were followed by the movement in the arts.The quotation in the episode comes from the government committee set-up to organize the contest and pick the winner. They took it from Victorian art critic John Ruskin.A closing quote from FW Simon, the architect: "Here you have no mountains to which you can lift up your hearts. And so you have all the more need for architecture to lift them up. Men and women cannot be happy or good in surroundings that are commonplace, ugly or uninspiring."And...youtube.com/watch?v=xLlsjEP7L-k
The Assassination of DArcy McGee Canadiana 2019-04-04 | A Canadian political assassination mystery: the assassination of D'Arcy McGee! Less than a year after Confederation, one of Canada's founding fathers was shot dead on Sparks Street in Ottawa, and to this day the question remains: who killed D'Arcy McGee?#documentary #history #canadianhistory #assassination SUPPORT THE CHANNEL W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNpSUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjfDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadianaX: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadianaIG: www.instagram.com/thisiscanad...FB: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.comMERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnThe story of the assassination of D'Arcy McGee is gigantic. Putting this episode together was daunting because so many details, characters, and events had to be left out. We strongly suggest that interested viewers dive into external sources to come up with their own theories and see the trial from angles we might have only touched on. We tried to find common denominators between the works of multiple historians, in tandem with primary documents, to tell the tale in as succinct (yet open-ended) a way as we could. But bear this in mind: the debate surrounding the trial and who killed McGee rages to this day—there is no definitive accepted truth, just clues, court transcripts, a whole lot of rumours, and a hanged man.It would be impossible to share everything we came across in our research in this description, so here are a few highlights:First, it's worth mentioning just how determined McGee was in his campaign against Fenianism. He was a rebel in Ireland, to the point he had a warrant out for his arrest—he escaped to North America on a ship disguised as a priest. In Canada, he became a pioneer of multiculturalism and equality, and he traveled the country passionately sharing his message. Undeterred by the constant real threat of being killed, McGee gave furious speeches in both Catholic and Protestant Irish societies, a lot of the time to enraged crowds. He was fearless, even though he suspected his tenacity might lead to a violent end. McGee apparently had nightmares about his death, and said to a colleague: “There is no danger of my being converted into a political martyr. If ever I were murdered, it would be by some wretch who would shoot me from behind.”We briefly touch on how strongly the country mourned the loss of their 'Prophet of Confederation,' but it can't be over-emphasized. McGee's funeral was the biggest in Canadian history, our country’s first-ever state funeral, and an official day of public mourning. It took place on what should have been D’Arcy McGee’s 43rd birthday. A crowd of 80,000 lined the streets of Montreal—80% of the city’s entire population—to pay their respects as a black catafalque was driven to St. Patrick's Church. 15,000 mourners followed the body while the band played Handel's “Death March.” McGee had spent most of his time living in Montreal where he was beloved.Now the elephant in the room: was Whelan a Fenian and did he have a role in the murder? Briefly: most agree Whelan was a Fenian whether or not he admitted to it, but that doesn't make him a killer. What we hoped to accomplish in this episode wasn't to project a verdict on Whelan, but on the trial itself. It's generally accepted that if this trial were to have taken place in modern times, Whelan would have received a 'not guilty' verdict. Clearly, the fact that John A. and Judge Richards worked together to make sure Whelan was convicted and hung quickly is cause for a mistrial, but there's grounds for a 'reasonable doubt' of his guilt in just considering that the entire trial relied on circumstantial evidence given by witnesses who could not be trusted. A quick list of some key points:- The guards who recounted Whelan's confession in jail may have misinterpreted sarcasm, or worse—as it's been suggested elsewhere—they may have made it up. That confession played a significant role during the trial.- We weren't joking when we said the reward money for witnesses was problematic. A majority of the witnesses who testified against Whelan didn't come out of the woodwork until the reward was raised, *months* after the murder.- Pistols like Whelan's were commonplace in Ottawa at the time.- Lacroix described Whelan as short and McGee as tall, the reverse was true.- Whelan appealed his sentence based on the stacked jury, a clear injustice to many at the time.- A lot of witness testimony was focused on hearsay "threats" Whelan allegedly made but could be summed up as common grievances hundreds of people had against McGee.- We've run out of space, we aim to compile our research in a blogpost one day.*Listen with Described Video: youtu.be/OOXVY2pqWGEThank you to those who graciously contributed their voices for some of the quotations in the episode: Leete Stetson (D'Arcy McGee), Hayden Finkelshtain (Patrick J. Whelan), Nikolai Efimov (Patrick Buckley), and Josef Beeby (Messenger).
The Hidden Story Behind Vancouvers Twin Peaks Canadiana 2019-03-21 | The Lions are two of the most famous mountain peaks in Canada. But they have a much, much older name that's tied to a story from long before the city was founded. HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNp CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjf TWITTER: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadiana INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/thisiscanadiana FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadiana WEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.com DONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadiana MERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqnFrench subtitles by: Murielle Cayouette (thank you so much!)Read the full story of “The Two Sisters” as told to Pauline Johnson by Joe Capilano here: legendsofvancouver.net/two-sisters-vancouver-bcThis episode, maybe even more than any other we’ve done so far, relied on collaboration beyond our little team.We want to thank Stefany Mathias so much for reading the passage from “The Two Sisters”. As we mention in the episode, she’s the great-granddaughter of Joe and Mary Capilano and one of sixteen hereditary chiefs of the Squamish Nation. She’s also an actor who you might know from shows like DaVinci’s Inquest and Longmire. It’s a dream come true to have her read that passage. You can follow her…On Instagram: instagram.com/stefany_mathiasTwitter: twitter.com/stefanymathiasAnd Facebook: facebook.com/pages/category/Artist/Stefany-Mathias-151092856074If you’d like to learn more about the history of the Squamish Nation, they share a bit more about it on their website: http://www.squamish.net/about-us/our-historyWe were also honoured to be guests on the territory of the Six Nations near Brantford, Ontario, while we were filming at Chiefswood. Pauline Johnson’s birthplace and childhood home is a national historic site now, which you can visit yourself: http://www.sixnationstourism.ca/chiefswood-national-historic-siteThe Six Nations shares a bit more about the history of the Haudenosaunee on their website, too: http://www.sixnationstourism.ca/chiefswood-national-historic-siteSince the episode's release, there has been more attention paid to 'Gassy' Jack and, unfortunately, we missed a disturbing aspect of his history. Namely, pedophilia and abuse of Squamish girls he forced into marriage with him: thetyee.ca/Culture/2020/08/01/Tearning-Down-Monumental-MistakesJohnson loved Vancouver’s natural surroundings, and spent long hours exploring the city’s waters in her canoe. She even did a little renaming of her own while she was there: coming up with a new moniker for a little tidal bay that has been turned into a permanent lake in Stanley Park. The Squamish called it Ch'ekxwa'7lech; the settlers called it Coal Harbour; Johnson wrote a poem about it called “The Lost Lagoon” and that’s still the name it’s known by today.Fun fact: Johnson was the very first Canadian woman to appear on a stamp. And just a few years ago, she was one of the five women picked as finalists when the government was deciding who to feature on the new $10 bill. (They eventually picked Viola Desmond, who might be in your wallet right now.)We’d also like to thank the family of Ben Lim. He’s the North Vancouver artist who did the illustrations for the 1961 edition of Legends of Vancouver, which is an absolutely gorgeous little book. We’re thrilled to have been able to use his art in our episode. Sadly, he passed away in 2016, but he left a remarkable artistic legacy behind, including extraordinary ceramic sculptures of the wildlife of the West Coast: http://doodlebugdabblings.blogspot.com/2016/08/artist-ben-lim-inspired-animal.htmlAnd finally, we’d like to thank the Seymour Gallery, as well. They’re a not-for-profit who’ve been bringing art, performances and education programs to North Vancouver since 1985: seymourartgallery.comThose giant old trees that used to tower above the forest floor in the places where Vancouver’s glass skyscrapers now stand weren’t only coveted by the city’s own settlers. Some of them were chopped down to be sent off to China on the order of the Celestial Emperor of China. He used them to make huge beams — dozens of them — which are now part of the Gate of Heavenly Peace in Beijing’s Forbidden City. You may also know that gate by its Chinese name: The Tiananmen. And if you’re interested in Chinese gates, then oh boy, do we ever have an episode for you: youtu.be/twlFQUvB1aY.Oh, and while we’re at it, we’ve also got an episode about King Edward VII — the monarch that Joe Capilano petitioned on his trip to London. Or, at least, about a statue of the king that stands in a park outside the Ontario legislature in Toronto, but which used to stand outside a 400 year-old fort half a world away: youtu.be/0JtZ8Kf8_wg*Correction: the photo shown at 4:40 is of the Kwakwakaʼwakw of Northern Vancouver Island/mainland area. We regret the mistake and aim to avoid similar ones at all costs in the future.
Canadiana: 2018-2019 Trailer Canadiana 2019-01-16 | Canadiana is a documentary series on the hunt for the most incredible stories in Canadian history! All videos © The Canadiana Project Inc.Creators: Ashley Brook, Kyle Cucco, Adam BunchHost: Adam BunchEditors / Motion Graphic Artists: Kyle Cucco, Ashley Brook, Josef BeebySeries Producer: Ashley BrookVisit our website for more information: thisiscanadiana.com*Canadiana is on a hiatus but WILL return with a lot of new content. Thank you for your continued support!*Support the series through our Patreon page:patreon.com/thisiscanadianaFollow us: twitter.com/thisiscanadianainstagram.com/thisiscanadianafacebook.com/thisiscanadiana
The Invincible Martha Black Canadiana 2019-01-15 | A Klondike Gold Rush odyssey featuring "The First Lady of the Yukon." Climb the treacherous Chilkoot Pass, run the Whitehorse Rapids, and experience what was once the most famous city on Earth: Dawson City.HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNpCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjfTWITTER: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/thisiscanad...FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadianaMERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn*LISTEN WITH DESCRIBED VIDEO: youtu.be/StrMxoAQk50There were many, MANY more entertaining characters in Dawson City we wish we’d had time to include in the episode. We’re very much hoping that we’ll be able to cover some of them in more detail in the future. In fact, we’ve already shot a bunch of footage for an episode about Klondike Kate Rockwell and her rival in Whitehorse, Klondike Kate Ryan, which we’ll be releasing some time in 2019. Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss it! There was also Belinda Mulroney, “the richest woman in the Klondike”, whose broken-down pet mule, Gerry, had a habit of poking his head into the saloons to and getting drunk on free booze until he finally got kicked out. (At least, according to some stories — including the tales Pierre Berton tells in “Klondike: The Last Great Gold Rush”, although we’ve been told that he could get more than a little carried away with repeating the most exciting myths sometimes.) There was “Swiftwater” Bill Gates, a dishwasher from Idaho whose claim on Bonanza Creek was so rich he paraded through the muddy streets in a top hat, with a diamond pin in his tie and the only starched collar in town. He fell so deeply in love with a teenage dancer that he offered her her weight in gold if only she would marry him—but still got soundly rejected. He died decades later, searching for silver in Peru. There was Charlie Kimball, who sold his claim on Bonanza Creek for $100,000, opened a dancehall and was so excited by its success that he got drunk for three straight months, spent all his money on booze, and lost his dancehall in the process. There’s more to the story of Martha and George, too—especially when it comes to their contributions to the First World War. When the war broke out, the Blacks were determined to do their part. George created his own Yukon Infantry Company and convinced nearly 300 men to sign up. And when they sailed off to join the fight, Martha made sure she was with them. She spent the war in England, working harder than she’d ever worked before: volunteering for the Red Cross and the YMCA, writing reports for the newspapers back home, and visiting wounded soldiers in hospital. She was even made a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society thanks to a series of talks she gave about the flora of Yukon. (She was very much an expert on the subject; in fact, the Canadian Pacific Railway displayed the art she made of pressed flowers in hotels across the country.) Just a few months before the end of the war, George joined the list of the wounded. At the Battle of Amiens, his legs were hit by shrapnel and cut through by a machine gun bullet. And the Blacks were far from the only Yukoners who made sacrifices during those terrible years of the war. Dawson City and Whitehorse spent more per capita on war bonds than any other cities in Canada. And in 1918, the territory was devastated by the sinking of the SS Sophia. The steamship was owned by the Canadian Pacific Railway, ferrying passengers between Alaska and Vancouver — including soldiers destined for the front lines in Europe. There were more than 350 people on board when the ship struck a reef. It was stranded there for nearly 48 hours, in sight of the desperate rescuers who tried and failed to save the passengers before the ship finally sank beneath the waves. Every single one of them died. This, too, is a story we’d like to cover in more detail someday. You can read more about the sinking of the Sophia from the Canadian mint, who created a memorial coin this year, here: bit.ly/32oong4 Note: The portrait of Martha Black used in the episode for her journey to Dawson is a substitute for the fact there are no usable photos of her during her younger days. Rather than use a photo of an elderly Martha Black, we chose to find a public domain image that closely resembled her since Martha was not an elderly woman when she first came to Yukon--she grew old here in Canada, and we didn't think it would make sense to use a late photo for her 20s and 30s. We believe strongly that the animations in Canadiana episodes are a way to connect to the past, so we make decisions to strengthen that sensibility, even if it means fudging some lines (think: re-enactments).A big thank you to Alpine Aviation, Janet and Gerd, and to our pilot Andrew who gave us the experience of a lifetime flying over Chilkoot Pass!
Chinatown: Victorias Forbidden City Canadiana 2018-11-01 | The story of Canada's first Chinatown and the country's first war on drugs.HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: goo.gl/2tGNNpCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: goo.gl/iZAYjfTWITTER: www.twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/thisiscanad...FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: www.thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: www.paypal.me/thisiscanadianaMERCH: goo.gl/SPwzqn*Described Video version: youtu.be/CkjCiDNXy1QThere's so much more to the history of Canada's Chinatowns and the country's Chinese Canadian heritage—do not stop with us. Our aim is to make our channel a gateway drug. A great starting point, which proved an invaluable resource for us, is Simon Fraser University's community-based research initiative 'From C to C: Chinese Canadian Stories of Immigration': http://www.sfu.ca/fromctocThis episode doesn't even break the surface of what is a deep well of stories, historical figures, and pivotal events through which Chinese immigration shaped the course of the country's history. In our eyes, we no longer think of the colonization of Canada through the lens of two nations interacting with the Indigenous, but three. So next time you step through a paifang or Chinese arch in your town or city, or see a Chinese restaurant or street sign, we hope you stop and consider the historical weight behind them.We've barely touched on the construction of the railroad, we haven't even mentioned the riots in Vancouver, we haven't focused on the Chinese diaspora across the nation, nor have we even uttered a word about Chinese Canadian cuisine—down the road, there's a whole series of episodes to make if the channel survives.Notes:The image we included as a depiction of Lee Chong (his name is spelled differently in many different sources—the frontrunners being Lee Chong and Lee Chang) is only that: a representation. One of the roadblocks to this episode was the fact the era of Chinese Canadian history from 1858 to 1900 is sparsely documented (or too expensive for us to license). Lee Chong would/should be considered a Founding Father of Victoria, but there is no visual evidence for him—only written documentation, newspaper ads, and signage—and we think that puts sharing his story at a disadvantage. We want to bring history to life so viewers are able to picture/identify with historical figures regardless of the country's shoddily documented past, so when there is no visual record of a historical heavyweight like Lee Chong we supplement their presence with edited, historically accurate portraits of other people. To us, it's the same thing as modern re-enactments with actors—if not more accurate. For Lee Chong, we found a photo of a late 19th Century, Southern Chinese, gentleman—a business magnate. His wife? Well, the Canadian Consulate General of Hong Kong and Macao referred to the image we used as being a portrait of Mrs. Kwong Lee (that's the only way she's ever referred to)—we suspect it was a portrait of a different Chinese Canadian woman that has been run through a rumour mill, but it remains historically accurate in terms of location and time period. Our other option was to have black silhouettes or omit their characters entirely—we hope you agree it was worth it to do it this way.If other arches were built between 1912 and 1981, we could not find them. We referred to a research exhibit (which included a focus on the arches) put together by the University of Victoria that used to be available to the public a few years ago, but has since been made private, solely for the eyes of students of the university (which is pretty lame).Addendum (there's much more than this):The Chinook Language (or Jargon). We initially had a section in the episode dedicated to outlining how Chinese immigrants were able to build successful businesses in a land of many different alien languages . The tool they used to communicate was a jargon developed solely in the Pacific Northwest for the purposes of trading and communicating between the plethora of different nationals who flooded there during the gold rush(es). Due to the episode's length, and the fact the Chinook language deserves its very own episode, we had to cut it.The Bachelor Society of Chinese Canadians up to World War II. In previous cuts, we had a section detailing some of the ramifications of the Head Tax Bill (a bill that required all Chinese immigrants to pay hundreds of dollars to enter the country—in modern times, tens of thousands). We had to cut it to keep the pace moving, but the focus was on the fact that the vast majority of Chinese immigrants were men—98% or so. Chinese women were either married or sex workers, and the Head Tax made it impossible to bring families across the ocean. It's a story for another episode focused on Vancouver and Alberta.If you're ever in Victoria's Chinatown, check out the totally-not-a-tourist-trap Fan Tan Cafe because the food there is great.
The Brothel Behind The Trump Fortune (Canadiana Shorts) Canadiana 2018-10-24 | A story about a ghost town, a brothel, and a businessman whose ventures during the Klondike Gold Rush solidified his family's name for years to come: Frederick Trump.Support the channel:patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thisiscanad...FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaMERCH: redbubble.com/people/canadiana?ref=artist_title_name*Please note: This is a re-release of a previous version published briefly to our channel in September 2018. A small change was necessary but the story remains the same.Friedrich (Frederick) Trump continued operating his hotel/brothel in Whitehorse, Yukon for over a year—he actually had the building rafted there from Bennett, BC after just six weeks.Eventually, news got out that the Mounties were going to crack down on gambling and prostitution, so Trump took his money and went back to Germany. But, Germany didn't want him. To his homeland, he'd been a draft-dodger—leaving the country at the time he would have been conscripted—so he was deported. Trump moved back to the U.S. (he'd become a citizen while in Seattle) with his new wife. The couple had children, one of whom was Fred Trump Jr.. He would turn his father's Klondike nest-egg into the fortune eventually inherited by Donald Trump.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave President Trump a photo of Frederick Trump's hotel as a gift.Notes/Corrections:There's controversy regarding the term 'pimp' and the wider story of the hotel's secondary function as a brothel. In fact, Snopes deemed a meme that circulated about the story 'mostly false' in this article: goo.gl/Kqkne4. We've read their treatment and see that it focuses on a rumour Trump was involved in the opium trade—we can't speak to that because we haven't seen any mention of it. The article also takes the position that, during the Gold Rush, most hotels included sex work. Snopes states that Trump's establishments may have also been brothels, but the evidence is anecdotal. What convinces us is the excerpts you see and hear from newspapers at the time, as well as the mountain of other articles written about Frederick Trump that point to the fact that owning a combination hotel-brothel wasn't unusual for him. Calling Trump a 'pimp' might be a little on-the-nose because he most likely rented those 'private rooms' to sex workers to use rather than literally going to find customers for them. However, the distinction is a grey area and he clearly profited from the prostitution he promoted in newspaper ads. We leave it to you to decide what to make of it all, and would like to point you to the following articles and resources:Gwenda Blair's "The Trumps: Three Generations of Builders and a President" - goo.gl/qXkzboArticles by Maclean's, Bloomberg, and CBC (there are many others as well): goo.gl/AqJYJt, goo.gl/zT7hCG, goo.gl/h5cibDThe Trump family name was once Drumpf: https://nyti.ms/2wUmNDO
Sudbury and the Mysteries of the Universe Canadiana 2018-09-20 | Sudbury, the nickel capital of the world, is a city deeply connected to the cosmos. Over 1.8 billion years ago an enormous impact set in motion a series of events, the end result of which involves a mysterious 'dark' experiment deep underground.Support the channel:patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thisiscanad...FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaLISTEN WITH DESCRIBED VIDEO: youtu.be/IJ71qNW_cKw We can't thank SNOLAB, the Creighton Mine, and Blaire (our incredible guide) enough for the once-in-a-lifetime adventure that was touring and filming in SNOLAB. We will never forget it for the rest of our lives. We hope we could do some semblance of justice (with our independent, low-budget filmmaking pedigree) to what we consider the brightest beacon of Canada's scientific community. If you come away from this episode with something, we hope it's interest in what's going on at SNOLAB.We've stepped out of our comfort zone a little on this one, so there are many important addendums to this episode below.We barely touched on what dark matter is, so if you're scratching your head, please watch this awesome video by Kurzgesagt: goo.gl/aPkxQDRed flag: when we say dark matter makes up 85% of the "stuff" in the universe, we mean matter—85% of matter is dark matter. Universally-speaking, the universe is made up of approximately 70% dark energy, 25% dark matter, and 5% regular matter. We apologize for wording it in such a confusing and vague way—just remember we are focusing on the physical "stuff" that makes up 30% of the universe and aren't including (dark) energy.Now for the comet. If you are interested in astronomy you probably already know this, but there's a debate as to what exactly impacted with the Earth 1.8 billion years ago: a comet or an asteroid. In both cases, once the cosmic entity hit the Earth, it immediately became a "meteorite" by definition. The reason we stick with comet is because in the past ten years it has become the most popularly-accepted theory, making the rounds from scientific journals to press releases. Here are some of our sources: The Scientific Journal, Terra Nova, included a 2014 study that came to the conclusion it was a comet: goo.gl/CNJbTMThe Scientific American popularized the notion: goo.gl/KXKNFLThe study itself produced follow-ups, including a study focused on the ramifications of the comet's impact, published in Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta: goo.gl/gfXaFfBasically, things that happened 1.8 billion years ago are never set-in-stone—a comet vapourizing to produce a meteorite strike just seems like the most plausible explanation for the Sudbury Basin at the moment.In a similar vein, our depiction of the Earth's surface 1.8 billion years ago is based entirely on contemporary theoretical models, and is most likely inaccurate. Essentially there was a supercontinent, Nena, and a couple other subcontinents, Ur and Atlantica. At some point (around 1.5 billion years ago) they, as well as other landmasses, amalgamated to form the supercontinent Nuna. The timeline of all of this, the exact geography, and orientation, is all theoretical, so we tried our best to emulate what we saw in our research. Here is a theoretical computer model on the timeline we cover: goo.gl/HCHfGBThere's another area where lines had to be blurred: the uses of nickel. Nothing is ever built entirely out of nickel, not even five cent coins. When we refer to artillery, inventions and car batteries, nickel is a major component of the objects. Usually it's use is centred around being an alloy, used in conjunction with iron to produce steel. That doesn't mean it was any less important—without the nickel from Sudbury most of the things we brought up wouldn't exist or wouldn't have been made in such high volumes. Nickel from Sudbury was, and continues to be, a major commodity in the world's markets. Copper was/is also plentiful in Sudbury, but the amount of nickel dwarfs it.Sudbury is no longer the wasteland it once was. We don't touch on it enough in the episode but we will in social media posts and follow-ups. Sudbury has actually become a beacon of environmental revitalization and we were stunned by it when we filmed there.There are conflicting reports about the rock formations at Onaping Falls—signs on-site say they are shatter cones, someone from Science North directed us that they are, but a commenter has said they were formed from dynamite blasts and shatter cones are much more subtle.Go to the Laughing Buddha restaurant if you visit Sudbury. What would an episode about Sudbury be if we didn't include Stompin' Tom (listen for the Inco line): goo.gl/3Nhp2F
Camp 30 Bowmanville: A POWs Paradise Canadiana 2018-08-16 | In the middle of the second World War, while massive armies clashed on the Western Front, an overlooked battle took place between Axis and Allied forces… in the most unlikely place imaginable. HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thisiscanad...FACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaMERCH: redbubble.com/people/canadiana?ref=artist_title_name*A VERSION WITH DESCRIBED VIDEO CAN BE FOUND HERE: youtu.be/x0OmxWcPoqEClosed Captioning and Described Video provided by Described Video Canada. describedvideocanada.comCamp 30 was a prime spot for a POW camp for a few reasons. The land had originally been donated to the government by John H H Jury so they could build a correctional facility for, in his words, ‘unadjusted boys who were not inherently delinquent’. It functioned more like a school than a prison, trying to reform 'unadjusted' youth by teaching valuable skills. But it was still under the auspices of the department of corrections, who also oversaw the POW camps. So when the sudden need arose for more camps, it was trivial for them to just rebrand the school. This also explains why Camp 30 had some of the most luxurious perks for the prisoners. Things like the indoor pool weren’t built for them, just carried over from the buildings’ past lives. Which is not to say the German experience there was an outlier - sports teams, orchestras and shakespeare troupes were a staple of POW camps across Canada.The school had also been set up to be totally self-sustaining, making it easier to keep a closed ecosystem with the prisoners - when they weren’t off on day trips.Despite the posh conditions in the camp, prisoners considered it their duty to escape. They never abused their ‘word of honour’ but there were near-constant attempts and even an ‘escape committee’ set up by the German officers to field and approve plans. Mostly, they dug tunnels, which could become quite elaborate - they patched into the electrical grid to light them and had trolley systems for carting out excavated dirt. The most extraordinary attempt involved a soccer riot, a zipline, a dummy, and a mad dash across three provinces. It’s a story we plan to tell in a future episode.The escape efforts ended before the war did, though. News reached the camp from Europe that a group of allied POWs had been caught trying to escape - and Hitler had ordered them all executed. Horrified, the German prisoners disavowed him and his actions. They agreed that after the humane treatment they’d received they owed it to not cause any more trouble for their Canadian captors, and resolved to just wait out the rest of the war.After the war, Camp 30 reverted to being a Boys Training School though the correctional edge soon softened and it became more of a trade school. It lasted until 1979, after which it hosted several more academic institutions. First it became a school for Malaysian students, then the campus of St Stephen’s Catholic School. Finally, an Islamic university took over until 2008, when they moved out rather abruptly, leaving behind furniture and supplies - apparently due to an issue with building codes and sewage treatment.The buildings were left to the elements and soon became a popular urbex destination, the walls filling up with graffiti, the ground carpeted in broken bottles. They continued to deteriorate as heritage organizations like Clarington Museum & Archives fought to preserve them. In 2013 the camp was placed on Heritage Canada’s ‘top 10 endangered places’ list which expedited the process - later that year, it was declared a National Historic Site.Kaitlin Group, the current private owners, had intended to demolish the structures and develop the land. They’re now working with heritage organizations to preserve and restore the most historically significant buildings and incorporate them into development plans. The final granting of heritage status to some of the buildings happened only last year.If you’d like a more in-depth look at the experience of a German POW, the NFB produced a documentary in 2003 called The Enemy Within. Director Eva Colmers tracks her father’s story as he is brought to Alberta as a prisoner of war. You can watch the whole thing here: nfb.ca/film/enemy_withinDisclaimer: Stock footage of the war isn't precise, we are left to pick from what's available to us to use—the footage isn't necessarily accurate to the specific story we are telling, more so representative.
The King of Queens Park Canadiana 2018-07-31 | A story about how an imperial statue from halfway around the world ended up in the middle of downtown Toronto.HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana*A VERSION WITH DESCRIBED VIDEO CAN BE FOUND HERE: goo.gl/zSJg9mClosed Captioning and Described Video provided by Described Video Canada.A Toronto Star Article about Queen's Park's various statues and the contradictory nature of historical figures—featuring our host Adam Bunch: goo.gl/rpqXfjA Torontoist article that goes further into the history of the King Edward VII statue and its relationship to Toronto: goo.gl/BKw24jThe two massacres we refer to are the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919) and the Qissa Khwani Bazaar Massacre (1930). "The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, also known as the Amritsar massacre, took place on 13 April 1919 when troops of the British Indian Army under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer fired rifles into a crowd of Indians, who had gathered in Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar, Punjab. The civilians had assembled to condemn the arrest and deportation of two national leaders, Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew. There has been much debate over whether the crowd knew of the proclamation Dyer had made banning meetings, in its supposed inefficacy, however, Raja Ram has argued that the crowd formed in deliberate defiance, being the beginning of Indian nationalism." goo.gl/Qkm9KJ"The massacre at the Qissa Khwani Bazaar in Peshawar, British India (modern day Pakistan) on 23 April 1930 was one of the defining moments of the independence movement in British India. It was the first major confrontation between British troops and demonstrators in the city. Estimates at the time put the death toll from the shooting at between the official count at 20, and the figure of 400 dead put forth by Pakistani and Indian sources. The gunning down of unarmed people triggered protests across British India and catapulted the newly formed Khudai Khidmatgar movement into prominence." goo.gl/qerHsoExtra trivia:- Altogether there are ten monuments of historical figures in Queen's Park.- King Edward VII laid the symbolic foundation stone for his own mother's statue (Queen Victoria). At the time he was still a Prince.- Every year, during the University of Toronto's Frosh Week, Engineering students paint Kildare's testicles red. The tradition definitely goes back to the 1980s, and might go further. You can see it in some of the footage in this episode. (We don't know where the sticker on King Eddy's head came from or what its purpose is.)
A Tomb in High Park (Canadiana Shorts) Canadiana 2018-06-07 | Hidden away in Toronto's High Park, next to Colborne Lodge, is a massive tomb surrounded by an iron fence...Our second Canadiana Short! New full-length episodes coming soon. We're off to BC and the Yukon to shoot a bunch more!A huge thank-you to Elizabeth Nelson-Raffaele, Adrianna Prosser, and Karen Raittinen at Colborne Lodge for all their help and guidance on this episode!HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana
The Sakura Trees of Toronto (Canadiana Shorts) Canadiana 2018-05-14 | Every spring, parks across Toronto turn white and pink with cherry blossoms. The Sakura trees are a gift from Japan — and a reminder of one of the most disturbing chapters in Canadian history.The first of our new line of Canadiana Shorts!HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana
The Midgets Palace of Montreal Canadiana 2018-03-29 | A story about a couple who turned the tables on exploitation by making their home into a palace.HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana*French subtitles coming soon!Disclaimer: The use of the 'M' word in this episode is specifically due to the fact it was repeated constantly in the primary source documents—there was no way around it because it was embedded in how the Nicol's marketed themselves and the palace. When we refer to it, it's from direct quotations from the pamphlets and press releases by the Nicols. Phillipe and Rose clearly lived in a different time, but they re-appropriated the word in order to turn their home into the landmark it became. They were part of an international movement that would work towards de-stigmatizing people of short stature, and part of that process opened the eyes of many to the fact the 'M' word was—and is—a derogatory slur projected by those that exploited little people. We encourage everyone to take a look at the Little People of America's press release on the topic here: goo.gl/7AZP3C"The dwarfism community has voiced that they prefer to be referred to as dwarfs, little people, people of short stature or having dwarfism, or simply, and most preferably, by their given name."Their names are Phillipe Nicol, Rose Nicol, Phillipe Nicol Jr., and Huguette Rioux.There's another possible thread to the story of Rose and Phillipe's son, Phillipe Nicol Jr., that we couldn't quite verify. He may have actually gone to the United States and performed as a little person boxer for a while—a disturbing sideshow trend at the time. Afterwards, he might have come back to Montreal, living out the rest of his days alone, before passing away in 1992 in complete destitution. We aren't quite sure if it's true, or if this happened after the robbery, because we only saw one mention of it from a questionable source in our research.Many thanks to La Banquise — that delicious poutine restaurant in Montreal, Quebec — for permitting our team to film there. Next time you're in Montreal, grab a poutine and discover some nearby Canadian history, too!
The Love Triangle That Brought Down Québec Canadiana 2018-02-24 | A story about a colony, a thief, his wife, and her lover.HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?subTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadiana*French subtitles coming soon!The novel written in 1877 that Madame Pean starred in is called 'The Golden Dog/Le Chien d'Or,' written by the Canadian author William Kirby (his most popular novel). The book draws on the historical background of Quebec City and "tells its story through two intertwining plotlines. The first is of the lady Angélique de Méloizes, Madame de Péan, while the second is of Coronel Pierre Philibert, the son of a prosperous merchant."In case you're wondering why we are calling a cannonball a bomb: it's because it is a bomb—cannonballs are much smaller. Bombs like this one had explosive powder packed into a hollow core, as well as a wick that stuck out which would have been lit before it was fired from a cannon. We could have called it a cannonball, because in common parlance most people still do, but we wanted to be more accurate—kind of a lose-lose situation.Similarly, in case this comes up in the comments: the bomb in the base of the elm tree may or may not have been moved into the position it sits today (from nearby). There are three running theories—and no definitive winner. The "most popular" is that the bomb landed next to the elm tree and has slowly been swallowed over the course of 250 years. The next theory is that the military personnel who moved into the building in 1811 placed it there to guard the edge of the house. The third, and probably the most boring story, is that taxi drivers put it there in the early 1900s for similar purposes—possibly welding a metal rod to it that sticks into the ground. Whether or not it's a glorified wheel-guard, it remains a tangible symbol of one of the most important events in the history of the country, and an object that carries the memory of those who partied away in the house beside while New France crumbled.The Maison Pean was burned down in a fire in 1791. The building there now was constructed in 1811, and ever since then has been owned by the Department of National Defence (a glorious bit of irony for a spot that was the nucleus of the corruption at the heart of the fall of a 'nation'—New France). Today it houses the families of those serving in the Canadian Armed Forces. A bit of a happy twist to the tale.The fortress at Louisbourg—and most of the East Coast—was lost to Britain after a 47 day siege, which ended on June 26th. Intendant Bigot was applauded by French authorities for agreeing to capitulate and cede the fortress to the British. He also made small fortune from selling everything in the fortress' storehouse to the British army.Rue Saint Louis is a veritable walk down memory lane in terms of Canadian history. If Canadian identity were a street—this would be it. A couple of the many, many notable spots on along the road: #85 was the home of Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier, the writer of the French lyrics of 'O Canada' (he stars in our first episode), and #47 is where the house General Montcalm died in used to be. He was taken there after being shot in the Battle of the Plains of Abraham.Also, with a name like 'Plains of Abraham' you might assume it was called that as a reference to something biblical...it wasn't, it was just some guy named Abraham's farm before it was the most iconic battlefield in the country.Disclaimer: The Porte St. Louis wasn't around when the Siege of Quebec took place. The stone walls of Québec did exist in the same general area. We specifically aimed to use the iconic gate to represent the walls that have since been rebuilt or destroyed.
A Canadian Slavery Story Canadiana 2018-01-15 | A story about a woman forced into slavery who may or may not have set Montréal on fire: Marie-Joseph Angélique.#documentary #history #blackhistory #canadianhistory Support the Canadiana channel:patreon.com/thisiscanadianaTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaSpecial thanks to the Centre d'histoire de Montréal for permitting us to film on location. If you are interested in Montréal's history, you should absolutely check out the museum—you'll see the model we feature in the episode on display.* Correction: Mathieu Léveillé's name is mispronounced in the video. We sincerely apologize for the error, which was the result of a missing accent on the second 'e' in our shooting script. * Note: The Nôtre-Dame Basilica in Montréal today is a reincarnation of the building that Angélique was brought to in 1734. The ruins of the original building are buried beneath the Place d'Armes, right in front of the modern cathedral's entrance. Construction of the current building was completed in 1829.* Disclaimer: Since there is no record of archival imagery for any of the subjects in this story, the character designs are entirely fictional for the purpose of illustration only (created using a blend of faces from historic photography archives). Mathieu Léveillé suffered constant illness and severe melancholy as the executioner in New France from 1733 to 1743. He hated the job he was forced to do. He'd spent the first twenty-four years of his life in the Caribbean and had a difficult time adjusting to the change in climate—he was hospitalized at Quebec City's Hôtel-Dieu (the oldest hospital north of Mexico) almost immediately upon his arrival in Québec and again on numerous occasions. Léveillé died of pneumonia on September 9, 1743.In Canada, unlike the south, the majority of enslaved people were of Aboriginal origin. The term "Panis" in its strictest sense actually referred to the Pawnees, a nation which inhabited the basin of the Missouri River and which was consistently targeted by the French. However, colonists soon began to use "esclave panis" as a generic term for any Aboriginal slave.In 2012, a public square across from Montréal's city hall was named in honour of Marie-Josèphe-Angélique. However, the square was under construction when we went to film there in May 2017. A new unfinished public space named Place des Montréalaises was inaugurated in November 2017, and will be dedicated to Angélique among several other women. See: goo.gl/B9UyqX"The square is named in honour of women who have marked Montréal history. Fortin mentioned Jeanne Mance, Marie-Joseph Angelique, Jessie Maxwell Smith, Ida Roth Steinberg and the 14 engineering students murdered at Polytechnique Montréal in 1989."The Hôtel-Dieu burned and was rebuilt three times between 1695 and 1734. In 1861 it was moved from Old Montreal to its present location near Mount Royal. One of the best sources we had on this story was an award-winning website: Great Unsolved Mysteries in Canadian History. You can read the actual transcripts of the trial, look over maps and images, and try to unearth the truth for yourself in this horrific tale. We will never know for sure who set the fire, but we do know that Angélique was brutally punished for standing up for her own freedom one way or another. You can sort through it all here: goo.gl/1G9nB2The torture scene is taken from a public domain film made in 1922 called Häxan. It's Swedish-Danish silent-film that borders between documentary and horror. It just so happened to have the perfect depiction of 'The Boot.'A few tangents (look for more on a future blogpost):- Marie-Josèphe-Angélique was not silent during her trial, she consistently maintained that she had not started the fire right up until she was brutally tortured. She yelled at Marie-Manon when she felt betrayed by her testimony, and she pleaded with the widow's niece not to incriminate her—fearing she was being forced to against her will.- Claude Thibault's timeline changes slightly in accounts. He was either released on the day of the fire, or the day or two before. In one case, he was seen eating a sandwich at an inn. When he was told that the Merchant's Quarter was on fire and Angélique the main suspect—he fled. Was he part of a another escape plan?French subtitles by: Marika Lapointe
The Exiled Princess of Ottawa Canadiana 2017-11-08 | A story about a royal family, a world at war, a baby, and a whole lot of tulips.CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?sub_confirmation=1HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaTWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaFrench subtitles by: Marika LapointeSpecial thanks to the Canadian Tulip Festival and The Ottawa Hospital for permitting us to film on location.Two crazy Canadians who helped a starving Holland (Farley Mowat story): goo.gl/yNTx1ESome more incredible footage of the Liberation of the Netherlands (in colour): goo.gl/3k3Mh8Queen Wilhelmina (Juliana's mother) stayed in Britain during the war and basically took control of the Netherlands as the head-of-state. She fought against those in the Dutch parliament who thought the Germans were going to win the war, and she refused to negotiate a peace agreement with the Nazis. She began regularly broadcasting to her people via radio, and became a cherished figure of Dutch resistance during the war. Wilhelmina reigned from 1890 to 1948 (the longest in Dutch history), through two world wars and an economic crisis. She was almost killed by a German bomb while in England—it killed two of her guards.Juliana reigned from 1948 to 1980 and died in 2004. She requested that with each annual gift of tulips, some be displayed on the Ottawa Civic Hospital grounds.To be clear, had Margriet not been born on 'extraterritorial' grounds, she would not have been eligible in the line of succession according to Dutch royal tradition. At the time of this video's posting she's 74 years old.Margriet's father, Juliana's husband, Prince Bernhard was a controversial figure in the Netherlands for a whole hell of a lot of reasons. One being that he was a former member of the SS and of the Nazi Party prior to WWII. He separated himself completely from them and cut off ties to Nazi-leaning family members though, taking charge to fight the Netherlands' aggressors wherever he could. He became a bomber pilot and secretary to Queen Wilhemina. Later in life more drama arose (which includes a bizarre battle with a faith-healer charlatan and bribes with airplane manufacturers). If you're interested, the Wikipedia page is a bit of a read: goo.gl/W5RpzD *Correction: In 1946 (the second year of the Netherlands' tulip gift to Canada) it wasn't 10, 000 tulips that were delivered, but 20, 500!
The Battle of Nepean Point Canadiana 2017-10-10 | A story about a famous Canadian monument that's unfinished, inaccurate, celebrated, loathed, shamed, shunned, loved...HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?sub_confirmation=1TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaFrench subtitles by: Marika LapointeArtist Jeff Thomas' Website (check out 'Seize the Space' portfolios, 'Champlain Series 2000 - 2011'): http://jeff-thomas.caIf you've somehow never listened to A Tribe Called Red: goo.gl/fWU4SvWhere Ottawa's head is at today in regards to Nepean Point (see: no mention of the statues in future plans): goo.gl/jT4unbAn example of what Ottawa needs more of in terms of Indigenous-focused-and-made monuments, by artist Llyod Pinay, the National Aboriginal Veterans Monument: goo.gl/zNWSGgThe 'Scout' was named in a naming ceremony in 2013, but the plaque remains vague: goo.gl/xhsg3GA few notes:- Originally the 'Scout' was supposed to be in a canoe, the citizen's collective at the time weren't able to come up with the fundraising to finish it.- Originally there was no 'Scout', only a couple months later did people at the time think they should honour the Indigenous who led Champlain through the country along the Ottawa River.- Champlain was only in Ottawa briefly (4 days recorded in some places), so he really has next to nothing to do with the capital. Some have argued that if there's got to be a settler up there, it should be John A. or another notable Ottawan.- The 'Scout's' new location divides opinion of Indigenous voices— some have said it should have stayed where it was.- There is no recorded historical image of Samuel de Champlain, some guy posted his own portrait on Champlain's map collection and from then on we've never thought twice.
The Mystery of Meech Lake Canadiana 2017-09-22 | A story about a secretive scientist who turned water into light.HELP US MAKE MORE VIDEOS W/ PATREON: patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?sub_confirmation=1TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaFrench subtitles by: Marika LapointeThe Meech Lake Accord failure: goo.gl/GgGwX3And Elijah Harper's role in it: thestar.com/news/insight/2017/05/27/canada-150-when-a-man-with-an-eagle-feather-thwarted-the-high-and-mighty.htmlUnion Carbide made a lot of money off of Carbide Willson's patent for calcium carbide production. The company would later be taken over by DOW Chemical in 1999 for $8.89 billion.Churchill Falls power plant is the 2nd largest in North America, and makes almost 1% of the world's hydroelectric power. It isn't your typical dam, but a series of dikes that direct water to a natural reservoir/lake (the generating plant is underground). It's a very controversial facility for many reasons: it flooded the traditional hunting and trapping grounds of the Innu people (and was built without their consent) and it's been at the centre of a centuries-long argument between Newfoundland/Labrador and Quebec.* Correction: The footage shown at 5:03 to 5:06 is actually Chicago—the result of a mislabeled bit of archival.
Canadiana Season 1 Trailer Canadiana 2017-08-29 | A look at what's coming up in our first 'season' of Canadiana. We have a lot of amazing stories to tell and we can't wait to share them with you! CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?sub_confirmation=1YOU CAN HELP MAKE OUR NEXT SEASON A REALITY BY BECOMING A DONOR THROUGH PATREON (every little bit helps!): patreon.com/thisiscanadianaStay up to date with the latest by going to www.thisiscanadiana.com or by following us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram.TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana
The Bizarre History of O Canada Canadiana 2017-08-15 | O Canada: the story of Canada's national anthem. This is a tale of a song at the crossroads of 360 years of Quebecois history and a wave of 20th Century multiculturalism, and what happens when they collide under a hail of rocks and bottles. Support the channel:patreon.com/thisiscanadianaCLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?sub_confirmation=1TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadianaWEBSITE: thisiscanadiana.comDONATE ONCE W/ PAYPAL: paypal.me/thisiscanadianaMERCH: redbubble.com/people/canadiana?ref=artist_title_nameFrench subtitles by: Marika LapointeThe beautiful studio recording of 'Gens du pays' by Gilles Vigneault and Gaston Rochon (Quebec's unofficial NATIONAL anthem): youtube.com/watch?v=Z6gXAZeOFo0Sir Adolphe Basile Routhier was knighted twice! By the Pope and the King of England.
Canadiana – Series Teaser Canadiana 2017-03-24 | Introducing Canadiana, a web series on the hunt for the most incredible stories in Canadian history. Coming Summer 2017.CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL: youtube.com/canadiana?sub_confirmation=1TWITTER: twitter.com/thisiscanadianaINSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thisiscanadianaFACEBOOK: facebook.com/thisiscanadiana
