Canadian History Roundup – Week of October 8, 2017

Gibbons, W. “Woman admiring autumn scene, Banff National Park, Alberta.” 1951. National Film Board of Canada. Library and Archives Canada. 4292835. Copyright expired.

The latest in blog posts, news, and podcasts from the world of Canadian history.

Missed last week’s roundup? Check it out here.

• Are you planning to apply to the AAIHS 2018 annual meeting? Here are some tips for putting together a proposal!
• This week’s most frequently used words in #envhist, according to Jessica DeWitt, are “PCBs,” “Rule,” and “Environmental.” And I think this is the coolest word cloud to date!
• All this week the UofA Faculty of Law faculty blog ran a series on the Indian Residential School Settlement, including
  • An introduction
  • The road to the IRSS
  • How survivors could receive compensation
  • And the difficulty of putting a monetary value on pain and suffering.
• Library and Archives Canada has recently acquired the archives of the Frederick Harris Music Company, a major Canadian music publisher. In their blog post on the new collection, they explore the bilingual history of “O Canada”.
• This week on Unwritten Histories we unveiled our latest feature, our collection of Calls for Papers! Accompanying the launch was a blog post all about CFPs, how they work, and where to find them!
• Janis Thiessen reflects on this year’s #Canada150 advertising blitz and the image of the “Imaginary Indian” in Canadian advertising both in the past and the present.
• Henry Yu spoke with the UBC Faculty of Arts about the recent Day of Learning event, dedicated to marking the 75^th anniversary of Japanese-Canadian internment.
• Scott Berthelette has written the latest blog post from Borealia on the subject of Indigenous agency in the mid-18^th century Hudson Bay. He argues that Indigenous peoples in this area were saavy traders who used imperial rivalries to their own advantage.
• Jason Blake has written a guest post for McGill-Queen’s University Press based on his new edited collection, The Same but Different: Hockey in Quebec. This post explores intersections between hockey and politics.
• Heritage Winnipeg reflects on the history and preservation of the Oak Book at the St. Regis Hotel, particularly in the context of a changing urban landscape.
• Tina Adcock is the organizing a new series for NiCHE that features interviews with environmental historians who are working outside of academia. The inaugural post in this series features an interview with Will Knight, current curator at Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation. I think this is a fantastic series and interview!
• Bill Waiser is back with another blog post this week, all about the 1927 storm at Lake Waskesiu, Saskatchewan.
• This week’s blog post from Instantanés is all about the history of the Acadian community in Montreal, following the Expulsion. The post also features some relevant documents from their collection, which are just amazing.
• Annabelle Babineau has written a new blog post for the Atlantic Loyalist Connections blog, part of their Lost Loyalist series. This post focuses on five Loyalist women who were largely lost to history.
• Samantha Cutrara is back with another post on her series looking at provincial history curricula. The focus in this post is on Ontario, and how the 2013 changes have been implemented.
• The CHA, and president Adele Perry, have published a letter of concern regarding the amendments to the Access to Information bill, particularly with respect to funding issues of access.
• Karen Balcom and Andrew Kloiber were profiled by McMaster for their work developing tools to improve how students learn online through the discipline of history.
• Karen Ryan has written the latest blog post from the Canadian Museum of History, reflecting on how the fact that Inuit knowledge resulted in the discovery of both the HMS Erebus and Terror was portrayed in the exhibition they developed, Death in the Ice. The exhibit is currently on display in Greenwich, and will be coming to Canada in March 2018.
• Retroactive profiled John Walter, fur trader and businessman, this week. Walter is mostly noted for the role he played in developing the city of Edmonton.
• The Indian and Cowboy Podcast network has just premiered a new podcast, Think Indigenous, all about Indigenous education. Super excited!
• Jessica Dunkin initiated a fabulous thread about images of canoes in advertising! I still think the lifesavers one is the best. So cool!
• The latest blog post from Acadiensis is by Michael Boudreau, who explores the history of legislation with respect to marijuana, both in Canada generally and New Brunswick more specifically.
• Joanne Hammond explains why it is so important that hunters from Simpcw First Nation in central BC were permitted to hunt in Jasper National Park in the traditional way.
• LAC continues with their Who Do We Think We Are series with a new post, featuring guest curator Carole Gerson. Gerson features Pauline Johnson’s poem, “Brant” and letters written by Lucy Maud Montgomery.
• The Dictionary of Canadian Biography’s latest biography is for Taotha/Peter Wesley, a Stoney leader and noted hunter, who spoke out for the rights of his people.
• There is a new online exhibit from Victoria University in the University of Toronto. The online exhibit focuses on literary and print culture in Canadian history.
• The Provincial Archives of Alberta has announced the acquisition of a new collection, the Normand Fontaine fonds, a Franco-Albertan radio personality. These documents are now available for consultation.
• See how the Kamloops museum is reframing history.
• The Canadian Historical Association has released a new post in their What Can You Do With A History Degree series. This latest features an interview with Ohan Stamboulian, cultural and events administrator for Witchurch-Stouffville.
• Also on Active History this week, Adam Coombs has written a fantastic response to a number of recent articles complaining that academic historians are useless.
• Stephen Bocking has shared the PowerPoint slides from his recent lecture on “perceptions of the Canadian environment.”
• CPAC has posted a speech that Paul Martin gave last month at LAC.
• Jonathan David shares his thoughts on the recent #askanarchivist day for Convergence, the official blog of the Association des archivistes du Québec.
• There is another new online exhibit launching this week, this time from the Canadian Society for Eighteenth Century Studies, the Northeast American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, the Thomas Fisher Rare Books Library at the University of Toronto, and students from the University of Toronto and McMaster University. The new exhibit, called “Cosmopolitanism in the Archive,” highlights various documents in the Fisher collection from the 18^th century. See it for yourself here.
• This week’s #TBT from the ROM features the opening of the 1971 exhibit, “Cloth Cultures.”
• The University of Alberta Faculty of Law faculty blog also profiled the recent “What Comes Next: Political Afterlives of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission,” which focused on the darker side of reconciliation, and reconciliation as a “mechanism of violence.”
• Graham Walker has written a guest post for Eve Lazarus this week, exploring the life and death of CPR Constable Thomas Sharpe.
• There is a new Community Stories online exhibition from the Virtual Museum of Canada. This latest one is all about the Verdun Auditorium.
• The  Calgary Gay History Project blog is back with week 2 of their series on Everett Klippert. This blog post focuses on his interrogation by the police.
• The Canadian Museum of History posted an image of a beautiful Inuit bow-drill, with what is believed to be inscribed illustrations from his life.
• Canadian History in the News
  • Calls for suggestions regarding the naming of a new bridge in Saskatoon revealed the need for improved education about Indigenous peoples and the TRC.
  • This settler/Indigenous family has created some wonderful new traditions for their take on Thanksgiving, called You’re Welcome Weekend!
  • Peter Stevens also wrote a great article for the Toronto Star about the nationalist origins of Thanksgiving.
  • Shawn Micallef wrote a fascinating piece for the Toronto Star this week about the cancelled Spadina Expressway.
    • And then he took a group of people on a tour to look for its “ghosts,” and wrote a Twitter essay about the experience.
  • Racist Halloween costumes are back in stock….
    • Although Walmart Canada has pulled them!
  • So apparently there are some people who think it’s a good idea to allow tourists to go snorkeling above the wreck of the HMS Erebus. Whyyyyyyy?
  • Canadian Geographic has posted several images taken by the late photographer George Hunter, following 70 years of chronicling Canadian history.
  • There was a great deal of news this week following the announcement of the settlement for Sixties Scoop survivors.
    • Anger is mounting after Métis survivors of the Sixties Scoop were left out of the new agreement.
    • Angela Sterritt’s latest Reconcile This column shows how the Sixties Scoop hasn’t gone away, and the striking similarities between the Sixties Scoop and the current treatment of Indigenous children by the BC child welfare system.
    • CBC spoke with Nina Segalowitz about her experiences as a survivor. Segalowitz argues that the monetary settlement misses the point.
  • Shirley Tillotson was on Power and Politics this week, talking about the history of tax reforms! If you watch the video linked here, she appears at 1:22:50.
  • Look, it’s another racist teaching tool!
  • Ellen Scheinberg and Jim Burant endeavour to find a charming house featured in a 1920 Lawren House painting called Toronto House. Believe it not, it’s still there!
  • Heritage Toronto has unveiled a new plaque commemorating a 1966 fight between Muhammad Ali and Canadian boxer, George Chuvalo.
  • There was a lot of news this week relating to last week’s ruling on the testimony of residential school survivors
    • Tim Fontaine thinks that this is a tragedy.
    • CBC profiled the lawyers who will be working to contact survivors to find out if they would like to have their testimony preserved.
    • They also spoke with Amanda Adrian, whose father Ted Quewezance was a residential school survivor, about how speaking the truth is helping to heal their family.
    • Even the Smithsonian Magazine covered the ruling.
    • And you can read the official ruling here.
  • Aylan Couchie and Ian Mosby were interviewed in response to a recent petition against Kūkŭm Kitchen, an Indigenous-owned restaurant that serves seal meat. They talked about the history of the anti-sealing movement and the role of food in Indigenous communities past and present.
  • Joanne Hammond was interviewed by the CBC about how to protect archaeological finds that have emerged with the dropping level of the Thompson River. This includes 1,000-year-old Indigenous artifacts.
  • There is a new report out that has collected traditional Indigenous knowledge about the Mackenzie Basin and how it has changed.
  • The University of Calgary has just received a major grant to help is preserve the largest music archive in the country. This is the collection that was donated to them from Universal Music Canada, mentioned in a previous roundup.
  • Controversy is swirling about the UBC apology to residential school survivors.
    • Find out about the APTN investigation into this, and why the apology was pushed back to an “undisclosed date,” in relation to a human rights complaint about the university’s support of John Furlong.
    • The Ubyssey’s coverage of this.
    • And a Twitter essay by the @UBCSexualAssault account.
  • Le Devoir reviews a new book on Claude Ryan.
  • Check out these cool images of suburban Toronto from 1945 to 1980.
  • Resurgo Place in Moncton is seeking stories from locals who provided assistance following the Halifax Explosion.
  • A new scientific study is out this year showing that the Beothuk were genetically dissimilar to a prehistoric Indigenous culture that lived in Newfoundland previously. This study is helping researchers to understand the ancient history and population movements of the area. This research was done in consultation with a number of Indigenous communities living in Newfoundland and Labrador.
  • The Vancouver Park Board has voted to rename Siwash Rock, and the new name will be decided with the full participation of the the Squamish, Musqueam, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations if they so desire.
    • Squamish First Nations Chief Ian Campbell has suggested Slhx̱í7lsh, which means “standing man” in the Squamish language and relates to the Squamish legend of the landmark. Also, probably the coolest part of this article is a video clip teaching people how to pronounce the word!
    • And Khelsilem has written a short Twitter essay explaining the linguistic history of Squamish, Musqueam, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations, and his view that the landmark should be renamed Slhx̱i7lsh / sɬx̌il̓əx, honouring both the Squamish and Halkomelem languages.
  • Jim Miller has a new book out on the history of residential schools and reconciliation, and he spoke with MBC Radio about the project.
  • Don’t be a drooper.
  • It’s all fun and games until someone finds a bomb from WW2.
  • Members of the Black community of Vancouver are working with the city to honour Hogan’s Alley.
  • Robbie Tookalook, who was instrumental in negotiating the 1975 James Bay Agreement, has died.
  • The Toronto Ward Museum has a new online exhibit, called “Block by Block.” See it for yourself here.
  • The Toronto Star looks back on the history of Sears Canada.
  • Find out about one budding history nerd (that’s a good thing!) who won the Canada’s History of Kids Young Citizen Program for his work on a documentary about the Klondike Gold Rush.
  • There is a new app that offers a digital walking tour of Regina’s Warehouse District.
  • The Indigenous Peace Monument at Decew House Heritage Park in Thorold has just been unveiled.
  • Mennonite Church Canada, Canadian Mennonite University, and the Centre for Transnational Mennonite Studies will be working together to preserve Mennonite history.
  • Remember the Nova Scotia Archives community albums project from the summer? Well, they recently spoke with The Chronicle Herald about how they did it.
  • This week one of the Jeopardy categories was “The Inuit,” as suggested by Natan Obed, president of the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. Can someone explain to me what the deal is with muskox? I mean, their fur makes lovely yarn, but I do not understand the obsession.
  • Shawn Micallef also had a piece in the Star this week about Toronto’s architectural style: historical pastiche. He needs to come and see Richmond, where I’ve seen Spanish-inspired villas, Southern plantations, and English manor homes built one next to the other. The name of the villa, no joke is, “Casa del sol.”
  • Khelsilem and Jean Barman were on CBC’s BC Almanac, speaking on the subject of renaming places in BC.
  • Fernando Arce wrote a piece for The Walrus on the work of First Nations communities to rename monuments, streets, and other places in Canada.
    • Robert Jago wrote a really important response on Twitter.
  • The Star has published an excerpt from Adam Shoalt’s latest book, A History of Canada in Ten Maps, which focuses on Samuel de Champlain.
  • CBC remembers the 1997 accident at Les Éboulements.
  • Find out about the Sunshine Valley Tashme Museum and their work remembering the Japanese-Canadian internment camp that once stood in the area.
• Better Late than Never
  • The Vancouver Archives has acquired some materials from music promoter Hugh Pickett, including his personal files and scrapbooks. They are trying to raise money to digitize the documents to make them available to the public.
  • There is a new book out in Germany about how Hitler was inspired to create concentration camps based on the treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada, particularly in reserves and residential schools. Warning: the title of the article is problematic.
  • Last week the ROM launched their new digital collection, making a significant part of their collection (10,000 objects) publicly available online for the first time.
  • Iron Mountain and CyArk are working together to create a 3-d image of Fort York to preserve it for future generations.
• Calls for Papers
  • Fulbright Canada, the Centre for the Study of Canada at the State University of New York College at Plattsburg, and the University of Hawai’i at Manoa have issued a call for papers for their upcoming Canada Colloquium series. This year’s colloquium will focus on Indigenous peoples, with a particular focus on the Arctic, the North, and Hawai’i. Proposals are due November 15^th.
  • The Society for Historians of the Early American Republic has issued a CFP for their 2018 annual meeting. This year’s meeting will focus on “approaches to the history and culture of the early American republic, c. 1776-1861.” Proposals are due December 1^st.

That’s all for this week! It’s a bit quiet, mostly due to Thanksgiving, but there seem to be lots of cool new online exhibits! I hope you enjoyed this week’s roundup. If you did, please considering sharing it on the social media platform of your choice. And don’t forget to check back on Tuesday for a brand new blog post. It’s time for our regular list of Best New Articles from the previous month! See you then!

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