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Canadian Events of the 1900s

February 20, 1900Birth of Graham Spry, broadcasting pioneer.
April 19, 1900Birth of Roland Michener, who became a lawyer, politician and Governor-General of Canada.
1900The world’s first wireless spoken message via radio is transmitted by Reginald Fessenden.
June 3, 1900Birth of Gordon Sinclair, journalist, writer and television commentator.
June 21, 1900Birth of Edward S. Rogers, Sr., inventor and radio pioneer.
July 5, 1900Sergeant Arthur Richardson of Strathcona’s Horse, earns Victoria Cross for gallantry in Second Boer War.
1900Sergeant Edward Holland of the Royal Canadian Dragoons, earns Victoria Cross for gallantry in the Second Boer War.
January 12, 1901Birth of painter Jack Humphrey.
January 29, 1901Birth of E. P. Taylor, a business tycoon and breeder of race horses.
1901Karl Benz’s creation of the first petrol-powered car becomes a marketed Mercedes automobile.
April 15, 1901Birth of Thomas Ricketts, a soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross in 1918.
December 12, 1901First transatlantic radio message received at St. Jon’s, Newfoundland by Guglielmo Marconi.
April 20, 1902Birth of Elizabeth Goudie, writer.
May 24, 1902Celebration of first Victoria Day in honour of the late Queen.
1902The first movie theatre in Canada opens in Vancouver.
June 19, 1902Birth of Guy Lombardo, bandleader and violinist.
1902The Good brothers build the Le Roy, the first truly Canadian produced vehicle.
July 15, 1902Birth of Donald Creighton, historian and writer.
August 10, 1902Birth of Norma Shearer actress and Academy Award winner.
November 21, 1902Birth of Foster Hewitt, radio pioneer in broadcasting sports events. He is especially recalled for his Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts.
February 22, 1903Birth of Morley Callaghan, novelist, writer and television personality.
February 25, 1903Birth of King Clancy, ice hockey player.
1903Silver, as well as cobalt and nickel are discovered at Cobalt, Ontario.
April 29, 1903Landslide at Frank, Alberta in the Crowsnest Pass.
July 2, 1903Death of Oliver Mowat, who had been the third Premier of Ontario and Lieutenant Governor of Ontario.
April 30, 1903Death of Emily Stowe the first practicing female doctor in Canada.
January 4, 1904Birth of Pegi Nicol MacLead, artist.
April 19, 1904Deemed the Great Toronto Fire, it destroyed much of the city’s downtown area, but killed no one.
June 24, 1904The North-West Mounted Police becomes the Royal North-West Mounted Police.
August 17, 1904Gordon McGregor, founds the Walkerville Wagon Works at Walkerville, Ontario. The company invested in Henry Ford’s new automobile, manufacturing it in Canada.
September 14, 1904Birth of Frank Amyot, canoeist and Olympic gold medalist.
September 10, 1904An American, Bill Miner, is behind Canada’s first-ever train robbery.
1904Canada wins a gold medal in soccer at the Olympic Games in St. Louis.
September 29, 1904Birth of Robert Legget, civil engineer, historian and non-fiction writer. He established the National Building Code.
January 28, 1905Birth of Ellen Fairclough. She became the first female member of the Canadian Cabinet.
March 27, 1905Birth of Elsie MacGill, first female aircraft designer in the world.
August 1, 1905Birth of Helen Hogg-Priestley, astronomer.
September 1, 1905The Autonomy Act is passed, thereby creating Saskatchewan and Alberta as provinces within Confederation.
November 1, 1905Birth of Paul-Émile Borduas, painter.
November 24, 1905Canadian Northern Railway completed as far as Edmonton.
February 23, 1906Tommy Burns, first Canadian boxing heavyweight champion.
May 7, 1906Ontario Hydro was created.
1906The first two-way spoken message transmission takes place under the guidance of Reginald Fessenden.
May 15, 1906Birth of Robert Methven Petrie, astronomer.
June 11, 1906Death of Hector Louis Langevin, a lawyer, politician and Father of Confederation.
December 16, 1906Birth of Barbara Kent, in Gadsby, Alberta. She was a Canadian actress prominent in silent films and early talking pictures.
January 31, 1907Death of Timothy Eaton, businessman and founder of the Eaton store.
1907The National Council for Women voices the demand, “equal pay for equal work”.
April 16, 1907Birth of Joseph Armand Bombardier, inventor and founder of Bombardier Inc.
1907Tom Longboat, an Onondaga from the Six Nations and a world runner, wins the Boston Marathon in record time.
July 6, 1907Birth of George Stanley, historian and designer of the present day Canadian flag.
1907Use of the first rotary telephone in the town of Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia.
1907Founding of the McLaughlin Car Company and the beginning of production of the McLaughlin Buicks.
November 21, 1907Birth of Christie Harris, author of children’s books such as Mouse Woman and the Vanished Princesses and The Raven’s Cry.
January 2, 1908Opening of the Royal Canadian Mint.
February 7, 1908Birth of Lela Brooks, in Toronto. She became a speed skater and ultimately set 17 world records.
March 7, 1908Establishment of the University of British Columbia.
April 7, 1908Birth, in Toronto, of Percy Faith, band leader, composer and conductor.
May 19, 1908Birth in Vancouver, of athlete Percy Williams.
September 23, 1908Opening of the University of Alberta.
1908Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery is published.
December 23, 1908Birth of Yousuf Karsh, photographer, born in the city of Mardin, in the eastern Ottoman Empire. He came to Canada in 1924.
February 23, 1909John McCurdy makes the first powered flight in Canada aboard the Silver Dart.
March 22, 1909Birth of author Gabrielle Roy in Saint Boniface, Manitoba.
July 13, 1909Gold discovered in Cochrane, Ontario.
October 13, 1909Establishment of the Ontario Provincial Police.
October 19, 1909Birth of Robert Beatty at Hamilton, Ontario. He became an actor whose many credits include parts in 2001: A Space Odyssey; Where Eagles Dare; Doctor Who: The Tenth Planet; The New Avengers.
November 14, 1909Death of Joshua Slocum, Nova Scotia born first man to sail single-handedly around the world.
December 4, 1909The first Grey Cup ever awarded was won by the University of Toronto.
1909Leon’s Furniture Store opens at Welland, Ontario.

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