On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1977 - Parti Quebecois government proposes the Charter of the French Language as Bill One in the National Assembly; to make French thee working language in Quebec and limit the use of English.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1983 - First flight of Skyship 500 at Toronto Airport; can carry 10 people; uses non-flammable helium; first Canadian-built airship.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1967 - House of Commons passes Act unifying the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force into one unit, the Canadian Armed Forces.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1985 - Supreme Court of Canada ruling allows Sunday shopping in most provinces.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1906 - Alberta Legislature sets the provincial speed limit at 10 mph in the city and 20 mph in the country.

On This Day In Canadian History....

1534 - Jacques Cartier sets sail on first voyage with two ships; commissioned by François I to find passage to Asia and 'lands where there is a great quantity of gold'; makes crossing to Newfoundland in just 20 days; explores Strait of Belle Isle, which he hoped was the beginning of a river leading to China; says of the coast, 'I believe that this was the land God gave to Cain'; returns Sept. 5.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1907 - Six Nations Onondaga marathon runner Tom Longboat wins the Boston marathon in a time of 2:24:24

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1763 - Marie-Josephte Corriveau hanged near the Plains of Abraham for murdering her 2nd husband Louis Dodier, who apparently beat her; the corpse of the celebrated murderess is hung for a month in an iron cage at Lauzon by the Pointe-Levy for passers-by to see.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1967 - Lester Pearson announces creation of the Order of Canada, effective July 1; to honour outstanding citizens for service to Canada or humanity at large. The honour will be granted by the Governor General, and new Governor General Roland Michener will be first to hold the Order.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1542 - Jean-François de La Roque de Roberval sets sail with three ships and 200 convicts to found a colony on the St. Lawrence. Appointed France's first viceroy in Canada, Sieur de Roberval explores upriver as far as Montreal, searching for the legendary kingdom of the Saguenay; the expedition is a failure and the survivors return home in 1543.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1984 - Montreal fans welcome Pete Rose in his first game as an Expo; he hits a double - his 4,000th career hit - against his former teammates, the Philadelphia Phillies; only National League player to reach this milestone since Ty Cobb got 4,109 total hits with American League teams Detroit and Philadelphia.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1876 - Government creates the new District of Keewatin out of northern Manitoba and north-western Ontario.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1785 - John Johnson helps draw up a petition for the United Empire Loyalists, asking for a separate province, with freehold land tenure and British Common Law; origin of Upper Canada and the Province of Ontario.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1947 - Montreal Royals of the International League sell their star player Jackie Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers; appears in uniform for the Dodgers the next day, the first black player to break the colour barrier in major league baseball.

On This Day In Canadian History....  

1869 - HBC shareholders accept terms of Rupert's Land Act of 1868; Hudson Bay Company cedes its territory to Canada.

On This Day In Canadian History....  

1965 - Leonard S. Marchand appointed Special Assistant to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration; first aboriginal Canadian appointed to Cabinet staff; he became a senator in 1984 

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1971 - Gentilly Nuclear Power Station starts service near Trois-Rivières, Quebec; world's first reactor fueled by natural uranium, cooled by ordinary water.

On This Day In Canadian History....  

1893 - Opening of the new Ontario Legislature in Queen's Park; built on the site of a lunatic asylum.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1669 - Louis XIV orders permanent militia established in New France.

On This Day In Canadian History.... 

1968 - Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau creates Canada's first modern lottery, to help pay $250 million deficit from Expo '67; first such lottery in Canada.