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Canadian Life 100 Years Ago. In early 1900s, Canada was made up of only seven provinces (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Manitoba & PEI). Canada encouraged waves of immigrants to come and populate the land to the West
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In early 1900s, Canada was made up of only seven provinces • (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Manitoba & PEI)
Canada encouraged waves of immigrants to come and populate the land to the West • Immigrants are people from other countries who come to live in another country (Canada)
Eventually (in 1905) Saskatchewan and Alberta also joined into Canada
By 1900, the population of Canada was 5 200 000 (5 million 2 hundred thousand) • Toronto, Montreal and Halifax were the largest cities
Edmonton, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Regina were all still small pioneer cities (rural cities) • Most people made their living as farmers and completing hard manual labour
Farming was the main job in 1900 • Also, logging, the railways and fishing were other popular jobs • Construction jobs were available in the newly expanding cities and on the railways.
Automobiles were very rare and people did not need drivers licenses nor speed limits, stop signs or traffic lights.
Local communities were very important as people often stayed close to home. • Life and activities revolved around such things as: the town band, local baseball or hockey teams and the Church.
Communication - there were few telephones, no radios and no television. • Most people did not even have access to newspapers or any news from around the world.
People provided their own entertainment including sing-alongs, dancing, listening to bands, and family gatherings. • Nights out would include watching local plays or concerts in the church halls. • Families grew their own food – there were no supermarkets
The Suffragette movement became popular in 1912 – this was women fighting for the right to vote • Having political rights made women more equal in the law and society in general
Working Conditions in the 1900s — Canada’s Industrial Revolution • Factories began replacing the agriculturalindustries • Most factory jobs involved hard labour, long hours, low pay… • To save $ companies hired women and children • Lighting and ventilation in factories were poor, work areas were dirty, machinery was dangerous.
There was no job security & unemployment was common • This allowed employers to pay lower wages and threaten workers if they didn’t work hard. • Employers worked hard to stop any attempts at creating labour unions. • Job instability was complicated by the huge flow of immigrants. Many were desperate for work.