Curious Canadian History

Since the election of Donald Trump, one of the most frequently discussed issues has been that of the Canadian-American border. President Trump has labelled accusations that Canada has not done enough to stem the tide of fentanyl and illegal immigrants into the US. While the veracity of Trump’s claims is hotly debated, his emphasis on the border as a concern in Washington brings up some interesting historical questions. How did this massive national delineation get created? Have drugs and immigration always been a border issue? Are there historical precedents for what Trump is arguing? To take us through a two-parter exploring the Canadian-American border from an historical lens is historian Benjamin Hoy. Benjamin is an associate professor of history at the University of Saskatchewan. His research focuses on the creation of the Canada-US border as well as on how communities, both past and present, have learned about history through the games they play. His first book, A Line of Blood and Dirt: Creating the Canada-United States Border across Indigenous Lands received the Governor General's Prize, the Albert Corey Prize, and the Best Book in Political History Prize. Please fill out a survey here to provide feedback on what you love (or don’t love) about Curious Canadian Historyhttp://bit.ly/curiouscanadianhistory-surveyDon’t forget! You can purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca

You cannot turn on the news right now without hearing about President Donald Trump’s threat to apply a 25% tariff to Canadian goods. While his claim that our border is contributing to America’s fentanyl and illegal immigrant problem may be dubious, the ramifications of a tariff war are very real. Has a tariff war like this ever happened before? How has Canada historically responded to American economic aggression? What would the consequences of a trade war be today? To help us walk through these complex issues we have brought on economist Trevor Tombe. Trevor is a Professor at the University of Calgary’s Department of Economics and the Director of Fiscal and Economic Policy at The School of Public Policy. His research explores a broad set of topics, from international trade to public finances to fiscal federalism. He has published in top economics journals, is co-author of the textbooks Public Finance in Canada and Macroeconomics, co-editor of the recent volume Fiscal Federalism in Canada, and is Co-Director of Finances of the Nation. In addition to his academic work, he actively advises various governments on a wide range of issues (currently a member of the Government of Canada Working Group on Productivity in the Public Sector; and previously a member of the Bank of Canada panel reviewing its pandemic response) and contributes to policy development and discussions through regular op-eds, articles, and media engagement.Website: www.trevortombe.comPlease fill out a survey here to provide feedback on what you love (or don’t love) about Curious Canadian Historyhttp://bit.ly/curiouscanadianhistory-surveyDon’t forget! You can purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca

William Lyon Mackenzie King was Canada's longest-serving Prime Minister, from 1922 to 1930 and from 1935 to 1948. Historians have ranked him as Canada's greatest Prime Minister for his political leadership in winning Canada's autonomy from the British Empire and for organizing Canada's enormous war effort that enabled Winston Churchill and President Roosevelt to lead the western allies to victory in World War II. But what many people don’t realize is that Mackenzie King was also a die-hard spiritualist. From fortune tellers, to mystics, to seances with the dead, Mackenzie King used every tool in his spiritualist toolbox to communicate with his dead family and to help guide him in important political decisions. To help us dive into this matter we’ve brought on the show Anton Wagner. Anton Wagner was a founding executive member of the Association for Canadian Theatre Research and has edited ten books on Canadian theatre and drama. He was the Director of Research and Managing Editor of The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre, published by Routledge. Anton was a member of the Hiroshima Nagasaki Day Coalition steering committee in Toronto for more than a decade, and produced and directed Our Hiroshima on Canada, Mackenzie King, and the atom bomb for Canadian and international television. He holds doctorates in drama (University of Toronto) and theatre (York University). Anton has recently published a two-volume history of William Lyon Mackenzie King titled The Spiritualist Prime Minister which offers a uniquely fresh look at Canada’s longest serving PM. Don’t forget! You can purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca

For today's episode we've done something a little different. Craig Baird is a friend and fellow podcaster over at the great Canadian history podcast Canadian History Ehx and today CCH has opened up its floors to a CHX episode on a legendary moment in Canadian musical theatre history. In 1972 the hottest new Broadway production, Godspell, came to Toronto and hundreds of young actors auditioned for it. When the dust settled, and the cast was announced little did anyone know the legendary impact that this cast would end up having on Canadian and North American theatre, television and film. The cast became a veritable who’s who of Canadians that would become central to some of the most important television and film moments in the ensuing decades.  Don’t forget! You can purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca

It is impossible to deny the legendary status that Jackie Robinson has had in the game of baseball. There have been movies, songs, poetry, books and essays about his career and countless tributes and celebrations of his life and impact on the game. Jackie was born in Georgia in 1919 but spent most of his life growing up in Pasadena, California. By the time he went to college he was already a star athlete, in both baseball and football. He had a short stint in the army during the Second World War before joining the Negro Baseball League. It was there that he caught the attention of Brooklyn Dodgers General Manager Branch Ricky who in turn thought Jackie would be the perfect player to break the MLBs historic colour line and forever change the game of baseball. On his path to his legendary career Jackie spent one season on the Brooklyn Dodgers minor league affiliate, the Montreal Royals. In today’s episode we deep dive into Jackie’s incredible life focusing on his one season in Montreal and how that season set him up for a legendary career. For today’s episode we’ve brought on historian and author William Humber. Bill is a member of the Order of Canada (2021), and the first historian inducted into Canada’s Baseball Hall of Fame (2018). He has authored 15 books. Seven of which have been primarily focused on baseball’s history in Canada. (two have just recently been released– Tex Simone: The Man Who Saved Baseball in Syracuse, co-authored with the Simone family; and Old Ontario at Bat: Baseball’s Unheralded Ancestry, released by the Centre for Canadian Baseball Research). As well, he has written on soccer, bicycling, African-Canadian athletes, winter sports, his hometown of Bowmanville, Ontario and on the topic of urban regeneration. He has been listed in Canada’s Who’s Who for over 35 years. A retired Seneca Polytechnic administrator he was recognized for his work in environmental education including Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Sustainability Educator of the Year, an Yves Landry Award for sustainability leadership, and by the College and Institutes of Canada for his Green Citizen campaign at Seneca. He has held secretarial positions, and still sits, on the Boards of Jury Lands Foundation, as well as Valleys 2000, both focused on enhancing the heritage and environment of Bowmanville within the Municipality of Clarington. His initial volunteer position was as President of the Visual Arts Centre of Newcastle in 1975, so he approaches 50 years of community engagement. His roots in Bowmanville date back to his great grandmother’s birth here in 1860 and Bill and his wife Cathie still live there but their grownup children, Bradley, Darryl and Karen have opted for the attractions of nearby big cities.Don’t forget! You can purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca

On the 7th of June 1939 a ship sailed for Cuba, on board were 907 Jewish refugees fleeing the violent antisemitic state that had become Nazi Germany. When arriving in Cuba, their visas were no longer accepted, and the passengers were told they could not disembark. The ship then sailed to the United States, where the passengers were once again refused asylum. Finally, the ship sailed to Canada in a last gasp effort for freedom…but they too were denied. Tragically, the ship returned to Europe and the passengers returned to a horrific fate. Jeremy Maron is the curator of Holocaust and genocide content at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, where he has worked since 2011. In this role, Jeremy oversees content development in three of the museum’s core galleries – Examining the Holocaust, Turning Points for Humanity, and Breaking the Silence. He holds a PhD in Cultural Mediations from Carleton University, where his dissertation focused on the treatment of the Holocaust in Canadian cinema. His discussion of Victoria Beach in the episode has been written about here: The stain of antisemitism in Canada | CMHR and he was a contributor to a digital story about antisemitism in Canada here.Don’t forget! You can pre-purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca

November 30, 2024 marks 150 years since Lucy Maud Montgomery’s birth, and her legacy continues to endure. Best known for Anne of Green Gables, Montgomery created characters that embody resilience and imagination and  some have gone on to become Canadian fiction icons. In this episode her granddaughter, Kate Macdonald Butler, shares family stories, preserves her grandmother’s legacy, and reads from Emily of New Moon, which she views as Montgomery’s most personal work. The episode also explores her influence, her personal struggles, and Dr. Jessica Katz Edison’s insight into how Montgomery’s work resonates with neurodivergent audiences, long before such language existed. Today we’re going to get some help in exploring the life of Lucy Maud Montgomery. You see, our friends at The Walrus Lab have just launched a brand-new season of Canadian Time Machine. Each episode, hosted by Angela Misri, revisits a key anniversary in Canadian history, exploring how those moments continue to shape the world we live in today. With rich storytelling, expert insights, and fresh perspectives, this podcast invites you to see history in a whole new light. More episodes of Canadian Time Machine are available at: https://lnkfi.re/canadian-time-machine. To read episode transcripts in both French and English and explore more historic Canadian milestones, visit thewalrus.ca/canadianheritage. A French counterpart of the show, Voyages dans l'histoire canadienne, is also available—if you're bilingual and looking for more, head to https://lnkfi.re/Voyages-dans-lhistoire-canadienne.

Across Axis occupied Europe a shadow war raged as numerous resistance groups in all occupied countries sought to dismantle or disrupt the Axis forces implementing their brutal occupation regimes. In some cases, these groups were quite successful, in others only marginally so, in all, though, the Allies ensured that they supported these movements to continue to strike against their daunting enemy. In the former Yugoslavia, agents of the Special Operations Executive were sent in to assess the quality of the resistance forces within that country and then to support those groups deemed worth of such support. What they found was a complicated and fraught situation and the SOE needed people familiar with both the language, culture and region to help sort it all out. Many of these to-be agents were drawn from Yugoslavians and those of Yugoslavian descent living in Canada. These agents would go on to eagerly expose themselves to intense danger, from Axis soldiers but also Yugoslavian groups sympathetic to the Axis powers. They fought Axis soldiers, they provided intelligence on Axis locations, and by the end of the war the ‘Partisans’ became one of the most effective resistance movements of the entire Second World War.Book recommendation Roy MacLaren’s Canadians Behind Enemy Lines, 1939-1945originally published in 1981 by UBC Press. Don’t forget! You can pre-purchase a copy of Punching Above Our Weight: The Canadian Military at War Since 1867 right now at the below links:AmazonIndigoDundurnGoodreadsIndiebookstores.ca