Canadian+History+and+Identity

**Canadian History and Identity** **French Settlement (1534)**

- In 1534, Jacques Cartier first came to the North America looking for a short cut to Asia. - Instead of finding gold and other riches like he had planned on, he found about Canada's fur trade system. -The fur trade became the start of French exploration and settlement - The population grew as more people from France found new occupations in Canada. -The French formed a very good relationship with the Mi'kmaq tribe and traded with them for furs. __**Current Time:**__ - This affects Canada's identity today because of how this event introduced the French culture to Canada, and how it gave our country the opportunity to have an official second language. -22.3% of the Canadian population currently speaks french as a first language. -About 80% of Quebec's population are francophones and 95% of the population speak French as their first or second language

__**References:**__

 "French Language in Canada." // Wikipedia //. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2011. .

 "Canadian Settlement." // Collections Canada //. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2011. .

**John A. MacDonald becomes Canada's first Prime Minister and (1867)**

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; text-decoration: none;">-In August 1867, the new nation's first general election was held <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; text-decoration: none;">-Macdonald's party won easily with strong support in both large provinces and a majority from New Brunswick. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; text-decoration: none;">-Not only did MacDonald become the first Prime Minister, but his party also won a majority. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;"> -Due to the lack of citizens in the country at the time, only 268,387 votes were cast. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; text-decoration: none;">-While sir John A. MacDonald was in office, the provinces of Manitoba and British Colombia were created. __**Current Time:**__ <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-This affects Canada's identity today because it was the main introduction to a sustainable parliamentary system. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">- If it wasn't for this event and the events leading up to it, Parliament would be a lot different. It might be sustainable with a different type of government, or it could be a crashing train wreck that puts all Canadian citizens in a mess. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-B.C and Manitoba also wouldn't be created as they were if not for this event. If it wasn't for this event, Canada might of only has 8 provinces in total.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 13pt;">__**References:**__

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">"Elections." //SFU//. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Sept. 2011. <www.sfu.ca/~aheard/elections/historical-turnout.html >.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">"Canadian Federal Election."//Wikipedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Sept. 2011. <en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_federal_election,_1867#See_also >.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">"John A. MacDonald."//Wikipedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Sept. 2011. <en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_A._Macdonald#First_term.2C_1867.E2.80.931871 >.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**Great Depression (1930)**

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-1 in 5 Canadians became dependent upon government relief for survival. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-Until WWII, Canada's unemployment rate never declined from 12% <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-Saskatchewan's total provincial income from the farmers crops plummeted by 90% within 2 years <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-The other western provinces were technically bankrupt from 1932 onwards. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-1929 and 1933 Gross National Expenditure declined by 42%, and then later by 30% <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-33% of Canada's Gross National Income came from exports, so the country was greatly affected by the collapse of world trade. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-The net farm income fell from $417 million in 1929 to $109 million in 1933. __**Current Time:**__ <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-This has repeated and affected Canada's economy again by the recession in 2008-2009 <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-Canada wasn't as effected as much as other countries were, but the damages were still done. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-Canada's unemployment rate rose 2.5 percentage points between 2008 and 2009 <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">-Canada has recovered from the recent economic downfall and currently has the 9th largest economy in the world

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 13pt;">__**References:**__

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">"Great Depression ." //Canadian Encyclopedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Sept. 2011. <http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0003425 >.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">"Was Canada's recession 'average'?." //The Globe and Mail//. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2011. <www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/was-canadas-recession-average/article1535179/ >.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">"Economy of Canada."//Wikipedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2011. <en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Canada >.