Highlights of the day

  • 1848 The “Great Administration” of Baldwin and LaFontaine achieves Responsible Government
  • 1935 Birth of the Bank of Canada

List of Facts for March 11

  • 1617 Louis Hebert c1575-1627 coaxed back to New France from Honfleur with wife Marie Rollet and three children. Honfleur, France
  • 1756 Louis-Joseph, Marquis de Montcalm appointed commander of French military forces in New France; he will embark for Quebec on April 3. Paris, France
  • 1835 George Kingsmill sets up First formal police force in Canada; High Constable of Toronto. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1848 James Bruce, Lord Elgin 1786-1857 calls on leaders of the Reform majority to form new Cabinet; victory for Responsible Government. Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine 1807-1864 in the picture is sworn in as Attorney-General in an all-Reform Executive Council; First French-Canadian prime minister; second Ministry with Robert Baldwin, known as ‘The Great Administration.’ Montréal, Québec
  • 1850 Richard Blanshard arrives at Fort Victoria to assume his duties; reads proclamation establishing the new colony of Vancouver Island, with himself as the First Governor. Victoria, BC
  • 1862 W.G. Cox is transferred to the Cariboo. J.C. Haynes becomes the Gold Commissioner and Customs Officer in the Okanagan. BC
  • 1865 Assembly of Canada votes 91-33 to proceed with Confederation. Québec, Québec
  • 1874 Police - NWMP Sub Constable John Nash dies at Fort Macleod; first member of the RCMP Honour Roll for those who have passed away in the line of duty. Fort Macleod, Alberta
  • 1879 Guelph incorporated as a city; settlement founded by John Galt. Guelph, Ontario
  • 1885 Leif Newry Fitzroy Crozier 1847-1901 warns Ottawa of danger of rebellion in Saskatchewan; NWMP Superintendent at Fort Carlton. Fort Carlton, Saskatchewan
  • 1886 First meeting of the Territorial Board of Education is held at Regina. Regina, Saskatchewan
  • 1892 James Naismith, from Almonte, Ontario, organizes the world’s First public game of his new invention - basketball; at the YMCA training college. Springfield, Massachusetts
  • 1904 Ottawa Silver 7 sweep Brandon Wheat Kings in 2 for the Stanley Cup. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1905 Ottawa Silver 7 beat Rat Portage (Kenora) Thistles for the Stanley Cup. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1905 Tipple and ancillary buildings at Coal Creek burn. Fire fighting efforts result in the flooding of No.3 which remained closed for 4 years.
  • 1912 Québec beats Moncton 9-3 on way to sweep Stanley Cup; First Stanley Cup game to be played in three 20-minute periods; formerly in 30-minute halves. Québec, Québec
  • 1916 Boswell Fruit Growers Association incorporated.
  • 1931 Province of Québec extends civil rights to women, but still withholds the right to vote. Québec, Québec
  • 1935 Bank of Canada starts operations under Governor Graham Towers; has mandate to issue currency and regulate money supply; government-owned central bank. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1941 In addition to the fine levied by the International Joint Commission in 1932, Consolidated Mining and Smelting pays a further compensation to Washington farmers for polluting the air.
  • 1943 W. A. Mackintosh chairs new Sub-Committee on Postwar Reconstruction; with Bob Bryce, Louis Rasminsky, J. J. Deutsch (EA), O. E. Skelton (Bank), Baldwin (PCO). Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1947 Ottawa-born Barbara Ann Scott gets a ticker-tape parade down Bay Street after winning the World Figure Skating Championship; a year later she wins Olympic Gold. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1949 Canada helps draft North Atlantic Security Treaty with Britain, USA, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Norway; leads to creation of NATO. Brussels, Belgium
  • 1961 Toronto Maple Leafs and Chicago Black Hawks run up NHL record 40 penalties, 20 each Toronto, Ontario
  • 1965 Mayor Bill Hawrelak of Edmonton is unseated by the Supreme Court. Edmonton, Alberta
  • 1965 The NHL admits six new teams and doubles in size.
  • 1978 Bobby Hull of the WHL Winnipeg Jets joins Gordie Howe by getting career point number 1, 000 in a game against the Québec Nordiques. Winnipeg, Manitoba
  • 1979 Marcel Dionne of the Los Angeles Kings scores his 50th goal of the season against Philadelphia Flyers.
  • 1981 US President Ronald Reagan visits Ottawa; US agrees to ease social security eligibility claims, for those who have worked in both countries. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1984 Magdalen Islands seal hunter damage helicopter chartered by International Fund for Animal Welfare protesters. Magdalen Islands, Quebec
  • 1984 Mike Riley Rink wins the 1984 Labatt Brier Championship. Manitoba
  • 1986 Elaine Janvier, a white woman, is elected chief of Cold Lake First Nation. Cold Lake, Alberta
  • 1986 Montrealer Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders scores his 50th goal of the season against Calgary Flames; becomes the First NHLer to score 50 goals in 9 straight seasons. Uniondale, New York
  • 1987 Prime Minister Brian Mulroney holds private meeting with the premiers to brief them on plans to seek a free-trade deal with the US; rejects demands for formal ratification by provinces. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1987 Wayne Gretzky of the LA Kings scores his 1, 500th NHL point. Los Angeles, California
  • 1990 Denis Savard of the Chicago Blackhawks scores his 1,000th point against St. Louis Blues.
  • 1990 The Oka crisis begins
  • 1991 Health Minister Perrin Beatty announces $275 million six year program to improve drinking water and sewage treatment on Indian reserves. Orillia, Ontario
  • 1991 Thomas Gordon Towers appointed lieutenant-governor of Alberta (to April 17th, 1996). Edmonton, Alberta
  • 1992 Environment Canada starts issuing weekly ozone warnings. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1995 Media - Globe and Mail journalist Gerald Hannon alleges that Julian Fantino’s Project Guardian child pornography investigation in London, Ontario is a deliberate attempt to harass the city’s gay community.
  • 1996 NHL Canadiens beat Dallas Stars 4-1 in the last game played in the 72-year-old Montreal Forum. Montreal, Quebec
  • 1997 Alberta Election - Ralph Klein’s PCs win an eighth consecutive majority.
  • 2002 Fire - Six children die when their home burns down in Quatsino, BC.
  • 2002 Hockey - Vancouver Canucks forward Todd Bertuzzi suspended without pay for remainder of regular NHL season and playoffs for injuring Steve Moore of the Colorado Avalanche. Vaancouver, BC
  • 2005 Sponsorship Scandal - Canadian government launches a $39 million lawsuit against Lafleur Communication Marketing, GroupAction, Groupe Everest and Le Groupe Polygone. Montréal, Québec
  • 2005 Aviation - Michel Leblanc’s low cost airline Jetsgo immediately ceases operations and files for bankruptcy protection. The airline had 14 MD-83s and 15 Fokker 100s, which were used to serve 29 scheduled destinations in North America. Halifax, Nova Scotia