About "History"

From Canada’s early First Nations and Inuit cultures to European exploration, Confederation, women’s suffrage, wartime and beyond.

Illustration: Ashley Mackenzie/Can Geo

Illustration: Ashley Mackenzie/Can Geo
Shoalts: What lurks beyond the flicker of the firelight?
An explorer unravels the story of an early 20th century haunting in the isolated foothills of Labrador’s Mealy Mountains
Fishermen hauling up cod in a net

Hauling up cod in a trap. By modelling more than 500 years of cod catch data, researchers showed Canada had an opportunity in the 1980s to avoid the total collapse of cod stocks. (Photo: Photo: Derek Keats/Flickr; licensed under CC-BY-2.0)

Photo: Derek Keats/Flickr (licensed under CC BY 2.0)
Study of 500 years of cod catch data shows collapse could have been avoided
Canada missed a chance to rebuild northern cod stocks in the 1980s, highlighting the importance of taking a long view of fisheries management, researchers say
Soft sunrise colours over Niagara Falls

A natural wonder? Niagara Falls as it appears today has actually been heavily engineered to hide power generation infrastructure behind a tourist-friendly façade. (Photo: Stuart Hendrie/Can Geo Photo Club)

Photo: Stuart Hendrie/Can Geo Photo Club
Niagara Falls is actually a marvel of engineering
A book by environmental historian Daniel Macfarlane reveals the decades of technological feats and cross-border politics that went into “fixing” one of North America’s most important natural sites

Map: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division

Image: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division
Going to Klondyke: The 19th-century game that brought the gold rush into American homes
Published in the New York Journal as a fanciful full-page map, Going to Klondyke encouraged everyday newspaper readers to try their luck at gold prospecting in the Yukon
Photo: Bert terHart
One year on, adventurer Bert terHart on his monumental world circumnavigation and future plans
Inspired by 18th century explorers, the serial entrepreneur and adventurer sailed non-stop around the world using just a sextant, navigational log tables, and good old pen and paper
An LDD moth pictured on a green leaf

It was formerly known as the "gypsy moth." The Entomological Society of America recently announced it will use this species' scientific name until a new common name is chosen. (Photo: imarsman/Creative Commons of Canada, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) 

LDD moth
What’s in a name? Problematic names in the world of wildlife
Wildlife names that could use a rebrand
Map of treaties 1 and 2

Treaties 1 and 2, 1871. (Map: Chris Brackley/Can Geo; trading post, mission and transportation route data based on Plate 17, Historical Atlas of Canada, Vol. 2)

Map: Chris Brackley/Can Geo; trading post, mission and transportation route data based on Plate 17, Historical Atlas of Canada, Vol. 2
Treaties 1 and 2: reflecting on the 150th anniversary
This year marks a century and a half since the first numbered treaties were signed
University of Toronto old medical building

The old medical building, which opened in 1903, was home to Frederick Banting’s laboratory. (Photo: Courtesy Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto)

Photo: Courtesy Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto
Diabetes breakthrough: the discovery of insulin
A century ago, the medical school building at the University of Toronto was the site of a momentous scientific breakthrough
four inuit women stand on the shore showcasing their tattoos

A family of two generations comes together to showcase their traditional tattoos. Left to right: Jacqueline Lafrance, Tammy Omilgoetok, Bessie Pihuak Omilgoetok and Geneviève Lafrance.

Photo: Denise Peterson
Kakiniit: The art of Inuit tattooing
Inuit tattoos, or kakiniit, were once banned. Now they are worn with pride.
Dundas street sign with stop light and stop sign

Toronto City Council have voted to rename Dundas Street — one of many place name changes in Canada. (Photo: george socka/iStock)

Photo: george socka/iStock
Renaming places: how Canada is reexamining the map
The history behind the Dundas name change and how Canadians are reckoning with place name changes across the country — from streets to provinces
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