Highlights of the day

  • 1813 Red George Macdonell leads a pre-dawn raid on US Fort Ogdensburg across the frozen St. Lawrence.
  • 1893 Québec Legislature declares beer of not over 4% alcohol a ‘temperance drink’.
  • 1943 HMCS Weyburn strikes a mine and sinks east of Gibraltar, losing nine crew members.

List of Facts for February 22

  • 1740 Military - Céléron de Blainville and force of Canadiens and Amerindians defeat a war party of Chickasaws near present day Memphis, Tennessee.
  • 1813 War of 1812 - Lt. Col. ‘Red George’ Macdonell c1779-1871 leads 400 Prescott regular militia and Glengarry Light Infantry in a pre-dawn raid on US Fort Ogdensburg across the frozen St. Lawrence; to retaliate for February 6 attack on Brockville; Ogdensburg, New York
  • 1825 Britain and Russia set inland boundaries of Alaska/BC at First mountain range and 141st meridian. London, England
  • 1838 William Lyon Mackenzie 1795-1861 abandons plan to attack Kingston from Hickory Island in the Thousand Islands. Kingston, Ontario
  • 1841 Reverend Robert Rundle arrives at Rocky Mountain House to minister to the Blackfoot; pioneer Methodist missionary. Rocky Mountain House, Alberta
  • 1851 James Morris 1798-1865 appointed the Province of Canada’s First Postmaster-General. Kingston, Ontario
  • 1851 The Bytown Packet newspaper changes its name to the Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1887 John Alexander Macdonald 1815-1891 wins federal election 126 seats to 89 for Edward Blake of the Liberals; majority cut to 37 seats in a House of 215.
  • 1893 Québec Legislature declares beer of not over 4% alcohol a “temperance drink”. Québec, Québec
  • 1900 Military - Canadian troops continue to fight South African Boers at the Battle of Paardeberg (February 18-27).
  • 1903 U.S. side of Niagara Falls runs short of water due to drought conditions.
  • 1914 British Columbia Smelting and Refining Company dissolved.
  • 1919 Estimated 100,000 people line the streets of Ottawa and gather at Notre Dame Cemetery for the state funeral of Sir Wilfrid Laurier; first elected to the House of Commons in 1874, he led the Liberal Party from 1887 to 1919, and was prime minister from 1896 to 1911. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1924 Long-distance telephone connection establish between Macleod, Alberta, and Toronto.
  • 1926 Charles Avery Dunning resigns as Premier of Saskatchewan to become Federal Minister of Railways. Regina, Saskatchewan
  • 1926 St. Theresa’s RC Church dedicated. Closed and demolished in 1964. Hillcrest, Alberta
  • 1943 Second World War - Royal Canadian Navy Flower Class corvette HMCS Weyburn strikes a mine and sinks east of Gibraltar; eight ship’s crew and 1 RN seaman are lost, including Lt Commander Thomas Golby; the vessel had previously seen action in the Battle of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Gibraltar
  • 1944 Women workers at McKenzie Seeds in Brandon go on strike for increased pay and improved working conditions. Brandon, Manitoba
  • 1945 Second World War - German U-Boat U-1004 torpedoes and sinks Royal Canadian Navy Flower Class corvette HMCS Trentonian near Falmouth; six of her ship’s company are lost. Falmouth, England
  • 1964 Montréal police seize millions of dollars worth of smuggled heroin. Montréal, Québec
  • 1966 District of Kootenay Boundary is incorporated. BC
  • 1968 Daniel Johnson 1915-1968 announces creation of Radio-Québec, a provincially owned radio and television network. Québec, Québec
  • 1969 FLQ terrorist bomb explodes at Liberal Party social club, injuring two people. Montréal, Québec
  • 1976 Joe Clark narrowly elected PC Party leader on 4th ballot; replaces Robert Stanfield; gets 1187 votes, to Claude Wagner’s 1112; Brian Mulroney, whose campaign was judged too slick, finishes third. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1977 Pierre Elliott Trudeau tells US Congress that Canada will remain united despite concerns about Québec separation; First speech given by Canadian Prime Minister to US Congress Washington, DC
  • 1984 Hockey - Anton & Peter Stastny score 8 points each in a game for the NHL Québec Nordiques; Czech brothers. Québec, Québec
  • 1984 Hockey - Wayne Gretzky scores 4 goals in a game for the second night in a row. Edmonton, Alberta
  • 1990 Environment - Grain carrier collides with Polish fishing vessel in Vancouver Harbour; spilling 40, 000 litres of diesel fuel. Vancouver, BC
  • 1990 Music - k.d. laing wins Grammy Award as top female country singer in the USA; Alberta native. Los Angeles, California
  • 1994 Health Canada project finds traces of cigarette smoke compounds in fetal hair; First biochemical proof that even offspring of non-smoking mothers are affected by passive smoke. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1994 Paul Martin tables his First Budget as Finance Minister; wants to cut deficit from $45 to 39 billion; cuts tobacco taxes to curb smuggling; announces four military bases to close, including Royal Roads in BC and Collège Militaire St-Jean in Québec. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1995 Bloc québécois leader Lucien Bouchard returns to the House of Commons where MPs give him a standing ovation; he had lost part of his leg to the so-called flesh-eating disease in late 1993. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1995 Lucienne Robillard appointed federal Minister of Labour; newly elected Liberal for Montréal riding. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1996 Brian Tobin leads the Newfoundland Liberal Party to victory in the provincial election; gains 37 out of 48 seats in the Newfoundland Legislature, increasing the majority previously enjoyed by Clyde Wells. Newfoundland
  • 1996 Glen Clark sworn in as Premier of British Columbia replacing Michael Harcourt; former provincial Employment and Investment Minister. Victoria, BC
  • 1998 Canadians take home record medal haul - 6 Golds, 5 Silver and 4 Bronze - as the 18th Winter Olympic games close at Nagano. Canada finishes out of the medals in hockey, in the First Olympic tourney in which professionals were admitted to play; Czech Republic, led by goaltender Dominique Hasek, wins the gold medal, the Russians take silver. Nagano, Japan
  • 2003 Opening of 2003 Canada Winter Games.
  • 2005 Military - Canada rejects a proposed missile defence plan with the United States.
  • 2006 Olympics - Kristina Groves wins silver in the women’s 1500m in speed skating. Turin, Italy
  • 2006 Olympics - Canada’s women’s speed skating team wins silver for women’s 3000m relay in short track speed skating. Turin, Italy
  • 2006 Olympics - Canadian Chandra Crawford wins gold in the Ladies Sprint for Cross Country Skiing. Turin, Italy
  • 2006 Olympics - Canadian Cindy Klassen wins gold in the Ladies 1500m in Speed Skating. Turin, Italy
  • 2009 Disaster - Spanish fishing vessel Monte Galineiro sinks off the coast of Newfoundland.
  • 2010 Olympics - Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir win the first Canadian figure skating gold medal in ice dancing at the 2010 Winter Olympics; first North American team to win the title, ending Europe’s 34-year long streak. Vancouver, BC