Curious Canadian History

Picture a quiet harbour on the southern tip of Vancouver Island. Calm waters. Towering forests. It seems peaceful enough—but beneath that surface lies a story that helped shape Canada's Pacific coast. Long before warships lined the docks, Indigenous peoples lived and thrived here. Then came explorers, empires, sailors, and soldiers, each leaving their mark on what would become Esquimalt Harbour. H...

In October of 2006 Jess Larochelle from Ontario was guarding an observation post near the Afghanistan village of Pashmul when dozens of Taliban insurgents attacked Jess’ position. The ensuing battle is almost unbelievable in what Jess did and how he did it. Bruce Moncour is a veteran of Afghanistan and for years has been leading the charge, through his organization Valour in the Presence of the En...

Moe Norman was a Canadian golf legend widely regarded as one of the greatest ball strikers in golf history. Born in Kitchener, Ontario, in 1929, Norman became famous for his remarkable accuracy, consistency, and unique single-plane swing technique. During his career he won more than 50 Canadian tournaments, including several Canadian PGA Championships. Although he struggled to adapt socially to th...

The Canadian government has a long history of regulation, exploitation, and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and two-spirit (LGBTQ2) people. One of the most painful chapters in this history is the “LGBT Purge,” a term that refers to the expulsion of LGBTQ2 service members and employees from the Canadian Armed Forces, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and federal public service b...

John A. Macdonald stands as one of the most influential and controversial figures in Canadian history, a political architect whose vision helped bring a nation into being. The first Prime Minister of Canada. His rise through colonial politics, his central role in Confederation and his leadership in the first decades of this country’s existence shaped the nation we understand today in so many ways....

John A. Macdonald stands as one of the most influential and controversial figures in Canadian history, a political architect whose vision helped bring a nation into being. The first Prime Minister of Canada. His rise through colonial politics, his central role in Confederation and his leadership in the first decades of this country’s existence shaped the nation we understand today in so many ways....

Prince Edward Island is often imagined as a quiet, pastoral place—rolling fields, red sand beaches, and small communities shaped by the rhythms of the sea. But beneath that picturesque surface lies a history that is far more complex, contested, and revealing than its postcard image suggests. Today we trace parts of that story. From its earliest days as Mi’kmaq territory, through European contact a...

In this CCH special episode, we bring together two expert historians for a gripping confrontation of perspectives, examining—and challenging—the significance of two defining Canadian battles of the Second World War: D-Day Phase One and the Battle of the Scheldt. These were not just moments on a battlefield, but crucibles of chaos, courage, and consequence, where the fate of thousands—and the traje...

In the heart of the Red River Settlement, a vibrant Métis community forged a distinct identity shaped by kinship, trade, and resistance. The latter half of the 19th century was a time of profound upheaval, when the Red River Resistance challenged Canadian expansion into the region. Yet history is not always what it seems. Alongside real leaders and lived struggles, one figure—long woven into the s...

Born free in a slaveholding nation and unafraid to confront it, Mary Ann Shadd Cary carved out a life defined by intellect, defiance, and relentless public action. A teacher, lawyer, and the first Black woman in North America to publish a newspaper, she challenged both American slavery and Canadian complacency. Through the pages of The Provincial Freeman , she argued for self-reliance, integration...

In the 17th century, across an ocean and a continent, the will of Louis XIV stretched deep into New France. This episode examines how an absolutist monarchy governed a fragile colonial frontier. How did royal officials impose order on distant settlements along the St. Lawrence? What roles did intendants, governors, and bishops play in enforcing law, regulating trade, and structuring society? From...

The Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970) produced widespread famine, particularly in Biafra, prompting an unprecedented humanitarian response from abroad. Canadian churches helped found CANAIRELIEF, an ecumenical coalition that raised funds, mobilized volunteers, and supported clandestine airlifts of food and medical supplies. Motivated by moral urgency and graphic media coverage, these churches sought...

Names like Auschwitz, Dachau, and Bergen Belsen immediately bring to mind the horrors of the Nazi concentration camp system. At the liberation of Bergen Belsen in particular, Canadian forces contributed medical staff, engineers, and relief supplies to Allied efforts after that camp was liberated and in the dramatic weeks that followed. They helped treat survivors, bury the dead, and restore sanita...

In this episode, we step back in time with the Canadian Time Machine podcast to explore the 50th anniversary of the beaver becoming an official national symbol. For more than 50 years, this small but mighty animal has shaped rivers, driven trade, and quietly transformed the land. Wildlife ecologist Dr. Glynnis Hood and Jan Kingshott, director of animal welfare at Aspen Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, t...

Cigarette smoking in Canada is a fascinating look at how consumer products, social rituals, and corporate misinformation interact. While widespread cigarette use began in the 1930s it was in the 1950s where a causal link between smoking and lung cancer surfaced in medical journals and mainstream media. Yet the best years for the Canadian cigarette industry were still to come, as per capita cigaret...

The Jesuit  Relations , a series of annual reports produced between 1632 and 1673 detailing the experiences of Society of Jesus missionaries in what is now Eastern Canada, have long been an influential source on the history of New France and encounters between European settlers and Indigenous Peoples. The question of what exactly the Relations are, and who had a hand in composing the versions...

Recently our very own David Borys had the pleasure of having a long chat with Angus Wallace of The WW2 Podcast to explore Canada's military legacy from confederation to the Second World War. Angus and David start at the very beginning with Canada’s military (or lack there-of) in 1867 and trace its development through the next near-century all the way to the start of the Second World War. They then...

Our very own David Borys was flattered when recently he was made a fellow at the CDA (Conference of Defence Associations) Institute, Canada's leading think tank on defence and security issues. The Institute immediately put David to work interviewing Canadian veterans as part of a Remembrance Day special series titled "Remembrance in their Own Words." CCH felt like sharing one of those episodes. In...

During the course of the Second World War nearly 22,000 Japanese-Canadians were uprooted and forcible interned by the government of Canada. More than half of those had been born in Canada, thousands more were naturalized British subjects. Despite no shred of evidence that the population posed any threat to the Canadian nation at war the internment continued until after the war in the Pacific had e...

On October 26th news broke of the passing of Canadian historian Tim Cook. Tim was a leading voice in the field of Canadian military history and the chief historian and director of research at the Canadian War museum. He is someone I personally have known for most of my academic career and he has been a mentor at times for me during a variety of ups and downs throughout my career. In August I had t...

In British Columbia, land acknowledgements often refer to “unceded territory.” Yet many people remain uncertain about the history behind these words or their implications for the future of the province. B.C. has a long history of injustice toward First Nations where government officials refused to negotiate treaties and instead coerced First Nations onto small and scattered reserves while granting...

The Sacred Band of Thebes was an elite military unit of 300 highly trained heavy infantry soldiers (hoplites), famously composed of 150 pairs of male lovers. Formed in the 4th century BCE the Thebans, who came from a uniquely gay-tolerant society, believed that soldiers would fight more ferociously to protect their partners and to avoid showing cowardice in front of them. They were not wrong. The...

What is it called when the Canadian Armed Forces go about purchasing something? It’s called procurement. While most Canadians probably understand that the CAF goes through some process to buy new equipment very few truly understand how deeply complex the process actually is. Defence procurement involves several federal agencies and several different stages. Recently, the Canadian government has an...

Illustration has been an integral part of human history. Particularly before the advent of media such as photography, film, television, and now the Internet, illustrations in all their variety had been the primary visual way to convey history. The comic book, which emerged in its modern form in the 1930s, was another form of visual entertainment that gave readers, especially children, a form of es...

After punk found commercial success in the ’90s, with bands like Green Day, the Offspring, and Blink-182, a new wave of punk bands emerged, each embodying the DIY spirit of the movement in their own way. While Southern California remained the spiritual home of punk rock in the early 2000s, an unexpected influx of eager punks from Canada took the world by storm, changing the genre forever.   T...