1. CANADAS BEGINNINGS IN 1900 NATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

2. ECONOMIC BACKGROUND Natural resources were the greatest production area in Canada (for the most part it still is); Forestry, Mining, Fishing and Agriculture experienced growth in exports as the population of Canada grew and the needs of those in the U.S. and in Europe increased; Electric manufacturing also increased the need for primary resources within Canada;

3. RAILWAYS The Canadian Pacific Railways was completed across the country in 1885 and was widely used to transport goods and people; By the 1900s more railways were needed for competition which led to the building of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway and the Canadian Northern Railway; All of these were not able to compete effectively so the government merged the newest routes in 1922 to develop the Canadian National Railway;

4. AUTOMOBILES Growth of the auto as the best means of personal transport was still only available to the wealthy; Early 1900s – Sam McLaughlin for the McLaughlin Carriage Company set up Canadas first car manufacturer in Oshawa; He bought Buick motors from Michigan and built the bodies in his plant; Sold the whole operation to General Motors in 1918 after he had been building Chevrolets since 1915;

5. URBANIZATION The beginning of 1900 saw a rapid increase in Canadas population in the urban and rural areas; The rapid growth of cities led to the development of slums, with overcrowding, unhealthy conditions and inadequate housing; The city councils had no idea that the urban areas would increase at such a rate and so there was no appropriate urban planning;

6. TECHNOLOGY The increased use of electricity aided the industrial expansion and made production easier and more efficient; Rivers and waterfalls were being dammed for electricity in the 1880s and by the 1900s more appliances were available for popular consumption (phones, stoves, lights, irons); The wireless telegraph also assisted in keeping North American up to date with news in Europe (1902 by Guglielmo Marconi)

7. TECHNOLOGY Increased variety in technological advances led to developments in other areas, such as speed limits on city streets as the number of cars grew; The onset of aviation in 1909 (JAD McCurdy flying the Silver Dart) also influenced the impression and ideas of travel and transport;

8. TECHNOLOGY AND DISASTER The collapse of the Quebec City Bridge in 1907 influenced building practices; 1912 sinking of the Titanic also altered how people viewed intercontinental travel and ship building – procedures and safety; As we the concept of accountability in building and development was greatly influenced by these tragedies; What recent tragic events could influence changes in technology during our own age?

9. SOCIAL CIRCUMSTANCES The problems of the urban centers were not expressed by social reformers such as clergy and political individuals like J.S. Woodsworth; This time period demonstrated a growth in womens movements in response to social problems, deterioration of the family and social units and growing substance abuses; They believed that these issued affected the very moral fabric of the nation;

10. ALCOHOL This was thought to be the greatest problem among the lower class families; Men would frequently receive their pay cheques and would drink most of the money away before they got home; These actions left the women with very little money to pay rent buy food and clothing for the remainder of the family; Stress on the family unit was frequently about money;

11. SOCIAL CONTROLS Womens groups began to form as supports for these lower class women and called for stricter controls on the distribution and sale of alcohol; The Womens Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) demanded a full ban on the sale and production of alcohol; Some of the women involved in these political action groups were already part of the suffragette movement aimed at gaining voting power for women in Canada;

12. WORKING CONDITIONS Another area that women focused on affected the financial and moral well-being of the Canadian population; The conditions of workers in the manufacturing sector did not seem to improve with the changes in the development of mass production of products; These products could be developed quickly and with little variation in quality of the individual item;

13. WORKING CONDITIONS Growth of labour unions throughout the 1880s continued into the 1900s which eventually spurred the Federal government to establish the Department of Labour in 1907; Although unions were influential in the individual activities with employers, there were bouts of violence during strikes; Organization of the Canadian Labour Congress in 1902 was meant to lend support to individual labour unions;

14. WORKING CONDITIONS Child labour was common at this time and most children employed in manufacturing had to endure the same harsh conditions as any other worker; They worked under conditions with severe punishments, low pay and long hours; While parents attempted to make a living, in 1914 school became mandatory for children up to the age of 14 years; The main purpose of school was to give children the necessary background that would allow them to be active and responsible Canadian citizens;

15. ASSIGNMENT #1 Answer the following in a small group: –Review the list of subjects on Page 18 of the text: why are the subjects you study similar to those of almost 100 years ago? –Review the pictures provided from the Group of Seven: what impression do they give of Canada? –Are these ideas reflective of Canadas character? –Why do these artists think that nature paintings are important to the identity of Canada at the time?

16. ASSIGNMENT #1 Read the Changes in Entertainment from Page 19-20 in the text. What types of events were enjoyed in the leisure time of those in the early 1900s? How different are they from the events that you enjoy today? Using the advice given from the Markham Economist (page 20-21), develop a list of 10 dating tips for people of your own age (15 years old in the 2000s).

17. INDUSTRY AND ECONOMY The industry of Canada was separated according to region with the manufacturing mainly taking place in Eastern and Central Canada and the primary production (agriculture) in Western Canada; In order to maintain Canadian interests and companies, MacDonald had introduced tariffs on imported good from the U.S. (late 1800s); These are taxes added to goods produced in other countries, while Canadian made products become cheaper (no tariffs);

18. ECONOMY The problem became that Western Canadians would get American products cheaper than they could Eastern Canadian products, but they were now forced to pay a tariff on the American product; The reciprocity agreement with the Americans would allow for a drop in the tariff on many products and increase the fishing, lumber and agricultural product trade with the U.S.;

19. ECONOMY AND ELECTIONS Laurier lost the election of 1911 because his opponents took the opinion that reciprocity would make Canada a satellite of America and would spell the end of Canadian jobs; It was felt that this was a circumstance where the Americans would consume Canadas natural resources in exchange for manufactured goods;

20. IMPERIALISM AND CANADA The British connection had always strained relationship between French and English Canada; Canada was a self-governing dominion led by their first French Prime Minister – Wilfred Laurier – however the history of problems came in many forms during first decade of the 20 th century;

21. IMPERIALISM AND CANADA BOER WAR (1899 – 1902) After gold was discovered in South Africa by the Dutch settlers (Boers), and the success of the existing diamond mines, the British wished to establish control over the areas; They made advances into Boer territories and so these disputes erupted into war between the British and the Dutch;

22. IMPERIALISM AND CANADA Canadians saw this as an opportunity to prove their loyalty to Britain and desired to support their efforts; French saw this as a foreign conflict that had nothing to do with Canadian politics; Laurier, wanting to appease both sides, offered to send a volunteer force that would be paid and trained by the British; Over 7,000 men went to South Africa from Canada;

23. IMPERIALISM AND CANADA ROYAL NAVY Britain, the traditional leader in naval power, was insecure about the advances made by Germany in the naval arena; In order to keep pace, they required money from the colonies (Commonwealth) in order to protect the interests of the Empire; Laurier instead proposed a Canadian Navy and so passed the Naval Service Act 1910 and created the Royal Canadian Navy;

24. IMPERIALISM AND CANADA ALASKA BOUNDARY DISPUTE Americans were interested in extending the panhandle down the Western coast; Because Britain had just come out of the Boer War, they did not have the motivation to defend Canadas interest in this case; Although delegations were sent to discuss both sides, the British sided with the Americans and Canada (Yukon especially) lost access to the ocean on the north western coast;

25. ASSIGNMENT #2 Read the sections titled Election Fever and Laurier Loses on pages 28-29; What were the main election issues faced by Laurier and his opponent Robert Borden? Why were these important for the young Canadian country? What election issues do you think would appear in a modern election that are similar to those faced by Laurier? (You can make a chart if desired.)

26. SUBMISSION When called for, submit the following, ensure your first and last name and the date appear on the work: Assignment #1 and Assignment #2