Welcome
to my site
where I am bringing you the history of Canada and the Canadians. While it will be years of work to bring you everything
I want to there is already lots of information up already for you to
enjoy. You can also learn along with me as I add to the site in the
coming years. Should you have something to contribute I'd love to
hear from you.
Alastair McIntyre,
GOTJ, FSA Scot
"History may be
made, in several ways, an important factor in forming intelligent,
patriotic citizens:
(a) It must be remembered that society, with all its institutions,
is a growth, not a sudden creation. It follows that, if we wish to
understand the present and to use that knowledge as a guide to
future action, we must know the story of how our present
institutions and conditions have come to be what they are; we must
know the ideals of our forefathers, the means they took to realize
them, and to what extent they succeeded. It is only in this way that
we become capable of passing judgment, as citizens, on what is
proposed by political and social reformers, and thus justify and
guarantee our existence as a democracy.
(b) Patriotism, which depends largely on the associations formed in
childhood, is intensified by learning how our forefathers fought and
laboured and suffered to obtain all that we now value most in our
homes and social life. The courage with which the early settlers of
Upper Canada faced their tremendous labours and hardships should
make us appreciate our inheritance in the country of to-day, and
determine, as they did, to leave our country better than we found
it.
(c) History teaches that right and wrong are real distinctions. The
study of history, especially in the sphere of biography, has a moral
value, and much may be done, even in the primary classes, to inspire
children to admire the heroic and the self-sacrificing, and to
despise the treacherous and the self-seeking. The constant struggle
to right what is wrong in the world may be emphasized in the senior
classes to show that nothing is ever settled until it is settled
right (sic).
(d) History affords specially good exercise for the judgment we use
in every day life in weighing evidence and balancing probabilities.
(e) History, when taught by a broad-minded, well-informed teacher,
may do much to correct the prejudices — social, political, religious
— of individuals and communities.
(f) The imagination is exercised in the effort to recall or
reconstruct the scenes of the past and in discovering relations of
cause and effect.
(g) The memory is aided and stimulated by the increase in the number
of centres of interest round which facts, both new and old, may be
grouped.
The sections available are...
General History
This section brings you the history of Canada as well as the history
of all the Provinces and also includes histories of the ethnic
groups found in Canada including the First Nations. Makers of Canada
In this section you will learn of the really important people that
helped to build Canada to what it is today. We will also bring you a
section in here of other important Canadians as we find them. Pioneering
Here we explore the process that the Pioneers went through to settle
the land so you get a better understanding of the challenges they
faced and how they overcame them.
Canadian Armed Forces
Here we will research the various Canadian regiments and what they
did for Canada as well as the history of the RCMP.
Industry & Transport
In such a massive country transport links had to be developed which
was a major undertaking and especially the Canadian Pacific Railway.
We will also explore the various Industrial and Commercial sectors. Religion
Here we explore how religion developed in Canada and the important
work the churches and their ministers did to help build not only
churches but schools as well.
Lifestyle
This is where we bring you information on culture, sports, music,
and if possible some travel information on Canada and their
Provinces. My Canadian
Experience
Alastair's record of settling in
Canada. The Dept. of Immigration suggested that it would be
interesting if I documented my experiences in coming to Canada and
the progress I made towards getting Permanent Landed Status and then
on to Citizenship. I don't pretend this is an exciting read as
there is a lot of mundane stuff but you might find it of interest
and especially if you are thinking of settling in Canada.
A video introducing my ElectricCanadian.com web site.
It's around 27 minutes in length.
Electric Canadian Forum
This is where you can post messages on Canadian issues which will
compliment this web site. You can read messages as a guest but need
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