The Story of Canada

This a companion site to The Story of Canada SubStack - a chronological retelling of the history of Canada from the time of John Cabot (1497) to the Confederation of Canada (1867).

The Story of Canada

I publish articles to my Substack approximately once a month. From time to time I publish to this site articles related to (or even unrelated to) my Substack.

Access to The Story of Canada is by subscription only where I offer subscribers complete access to well-researched articles (4,000 words min) where you will:

Learn about the early explorers such as Cartier, Frobisher, Champlain who unexpectedly encountered a vast territory and unlimited riches stretching from the high Arctic to Spanish Florida
Learn about the Indigenous peoples who inhabited these territories and how the early European explorers interacted with them
Learn why the Northwest Passage was a false hope (at the time)
Learn what defined Canada in the 16th and early 17th Century
And much more

To subscribe to The Story of Canada, see here.

Why does Canada have so many great writers?

Canada has has produced some world renowned authors. Think Margaret Atwood, Alice Munroe, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Yann Martel, Leonard Cohen, Northrop Frye, Malcolm Gladwell. So, what is it about Canada that produces good writers? I’ve been told that Canadians are excellent writers. If there ever was an overstatement this certainly is one of them. Yet Canada has produced some world renowned authors. Think Margaret Atwood, Alice Munroe, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Yann Martel, Leonard Cohen, Northrop Frye and Malcolm Gladwell. I could go on. So, what is it about Canada that produces good writers? ...

John Ware, Canada’s Legendary Cowboy (1845-1905)

This Article is dedicated to Nettie Ware (1893-1989) Note: A previous version of this article was provided to Oxford University Press Canada for use in their Canadian high school textbook Inside Track 1. “A man of unquestioned honesty and agreeable nature…[who] boasted the rare distinction of never having been thrown from a horse. At roughriding and roping he was an expert’ (Turner, 1950, pg. 461). John and Mildred (Lewis) Ware, circa 1898 (source: Glenbow Museum) “a man of unquestioned honesty and agreeable nature…[who] boasted the rare distinction of never having been thrown from a horse. At roughriding and roping he was an expert’’ (Turner, 1950, pg. 461). ...

29. Champlain and his mentor King Henry IV

Samuel de Champlain learned how to successfully lead from his mentor King Heny IV, the king of France from 1553 to 1610. Henry IV King of France (1553 — 1610). Henry IV, King of France from 1553 to 1610, shared much in common with the People of Saintonge. Both were cheerful and optimistic. They loved life. They were ambitious. They were full of energy and were comfortable with both Protestantism and Catholicism. This was reflected in the name given to the French monarch - le Bon Roi Henri, the Good King Henry. His reign ended the exhausting war between these religions. Never again would France suffer a civil war like the Wars of Religion, until the horrific death toll of the French Revolution. Sadly, Henry would be assassinated in 1610 by an extremist Catholic. ...