Storytime Tapestry E-zine

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Welcome to Fascinating Facts and Eductional Trivia

A Hartson Dowd Column

November 21, 2007

THE BEAVER was our FIRST National Emblem.  It was used as such from 1673 until 1821 when the merging of the Hudson's Bay and North West Companies diverted the Fur Trade from the St. Lawrence to Hudson Bay - Then the MAPLE LEAF found favour with influential organizations and it was formerly accepted by the Canadian Government at the time of Confederation.

THE VETERAN ON OUR TEN DOLLAR BILL

If you have a Canadian $10 bill, look at the back right side of the bill.

• You will see an old veteran standing at attention near the Ottawa war memorial.
• His name is Robert Metcalfe and he died last month at the age of 90. That he managed to live to that age is rather remarkable, given what happened in the   Second World War.
• Born in England, he one of the 400,000 members of the British Expeditionary Force sent to the mainland where they found themselves facing the new German warfare technique - the Blitzkrieg.
• He was treating a wounded comrade when he was hit in the legs by shrapnel. Enroute to hospital, his ambulance came under fire from a German tank, which then miraculously ceased fire.
• Evacuated from Dunkirk on HMS Grenade, two of the sister ships with them were sunk.
• Recovered, he was sent to allied campaigns in north Africa and Italy.
• Enroute his ship was chased by the German battleship Bismarck. 
• In North Africa he served under General Montgomery against the Desert Fox, Rommel
• Sent into the Italian campaign, he met his future wife, a lieutenant and physiotherapist in a Canadian hospital.
• They were married in the morning by the mayor of the Italian town, and again in the afternoon by a British padre. 
• After the war they settled in Chatham where he went into politics and became the warden (chairman) of the county.

     At the age of 80 he wrote a book about his experiences and on his retirement he and his wife moved to Ottawa. One day out of the blue he received a call from a government official asking him to go downtown for a photo op. He wasn't told what the photo was for or why they chose him.

     "He had no idea he would be on the bill," his daughter said.

And now you know the rest of the story of the old veteran on the $10 bill.

" TWO BITS "

( 25 cents )

The Spanish "Piece of Eight" was often cut into 8 pieces.

To provide change.

Each piece was worth 12 1/2 cents.

Hence Two Bits equalled 25 - cents.

The SOVEREIGNTY of the ISLANDS in the ARCTIC - A curious happening of today is so many people going around like chickens with severed heads wondering about sovereignty rights in the Arctic Archipelago - The facts are: In the session of the Parliament of CANADA in 1878, an address to the Queen (Victoria) was passed by representing that doubts existed regarding the North Easterly boundaries of the Northwest Territories and Rupert's Land transferred to CANADA by order of her majesty in Council of June 23, 1870, and that it was expedient that the Right Of Canada to all of British North America and the island adjacent thereto (not including New Foundland) should be placed belong question.  ACCORDINGLY an IMPERIAL ORDER-IN-COUNCIL, dated September 1, 1880, was passed transferring the whole of the Arctic Archipelago to CANADA.   Baffin Island in the Arctic is Canada's largest Island.

DEAD MAN HERE - A Cryptic Message carved by a trapper named Shaback and nailed to the door of his shack on the Caribou River, in the Yukon Territory - He had been without food for 43 days and it was over a year before another trapper found his remains.  This was in 1947 and it illustrates that even down to this space age CANADA'S NORTH IS STILL REMOTE.

LUMBERING got its start in 1765, when Wm. Davidson settled on the banks of the MIRAMICHI RIVER in New Brunswick. CANADA - he sold masts to the Royal Navy (100 feet high, 3 feet in diameter) at $680.00 each.

BLOOD MONEY was paid to Indian Allies of both the French Colony of Quebec and the English Colonies in New England, each side vying with the other for the largest number of scalps or captives.  The average price paid by the French in 1692 for a New Englander or his scalp was $15.00

Accidental HOMICIDE Happens in Canada, all too frequently, about this time of the year, when some trigger happy gunmen roam the woods - -  A standard explanatory excuse being "I thought it was a deer" - - - -

The AREA of Canada's Artic Regions is the same as that on all the moon's surface.

The GANG RANCH.  In the Chilcotin Area of British Columbia, CANADA, thought to be the world's largest, covers 2,5000,000 Acres.

The LONGEST undersea cable in the world runs from Port Alberni, on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, CANADA to Aukland, New Zealand.

Sir JOHN A. MACDONALD the man who did more than any other to bring about Canadian Confederation, had he lived in any other country - - His BIRTHDAY {January 11th} would be appropriately celebrated --- BUT FEW CANADIANS KNOW THIS IS HIS BIRTHDAY.

Sometimes known as the Douglas Spruce, the Douglas Fir is neither Spruce nor Fir =  It is a PINE Tree.

More SNOW falls on CANADA in a Winter than any other country  in the WORLD.

A Ten Gallon "COWBOY" Hat....holds only 3 quarts.  Unofficial Origin of the Mounties' Stetson Hat - although not issued by the force, the men often acquired Cowboy Hats for use on patrol since the official hat provided scant protection from the HOT Prairie sun.

The FIRST permanent White Settlement in America, North of Mexico was PORT ROYAL built in 1605 by DeMONTS, from plans drawn up by Champlain.  Exact Replicas of the Original Buildings of Port Royal (Later Annapolis Royal. N.S.), erected in 1605 by Champlain DeMonts, now stand in PORT ROYAL NATIONAL PARK.  As in the original habitation All Timbers Are Pinned Together Without Nails or Spikes.  Besides being the site of the Oldest Permanent White Settlement in America (North of Mexico) Annapolis Royal has the distinction of being the most war-scarred Town on the Continent - It was taken by force 5 times by the British - 1613,1628,1654,1690 and 1710 - It was abandoned or restored to the French 4 times:-1613,1632,1667,1697.   It was unsuccessfully attacked by the British 3 times:- 1704 and twice in 1707.  It was unsuccfully attacked by French and Amerinds twice in 1744.  It was taken, sacked, abandoned twice - once by pirates in 1690 and by the U.S. Revolutionary Forces in 1781.

The FIRST recorded LETTER from the New World to the OLD was written by Captain John Rut.  It was dated August 3, 1527 St. John's Newfoundland, and was written to King Henry V111.

The World's First NATIONAL ATLAS - Canada, the second biggest county on Earth, with Immense and Greatly varied Geography led the way in 1906 by producing the World's FIRST NATIONAL ATLAS.

The First FLYING EXHIBITION in the Western Hemisphere with a Paid Admission for Spectators was held in 1909 at Scarborough Beach, near TORONTO, CANADA.  The American pilot, Charles Willard had learned to fly the single seater plane, with his instructor running alongside the plane shouting instruction - the HOLLERING "TAKE HER UP."

The JETLINER - - - The FIRST Commercial Jet Transport to fly in the Western Hemisphere.  It was built in TORONTO, CANADA and took to the sky in August, 1949.

The DAY NIAGARA FALLS STOPPED RUNNING - March 29, 1848, The Inconceivable Happened -- The mighty Cascades of Niagara ceased to flow.  The everlasting roar of the great falls was silenced almost 30 hours.  High winds and unusually heavy ice flows had dammed the outlet of Lake Erie shutting off the flow into the river above the falls until a wind shift and a breaking up of the jamb once more released it.

JOHN McINTOSH - in 1796 planted an Apple orchard in Dundas County, Ontario, CANADA.  The seeds weren't reliable and the resulting growth made this quite plain - only one tree showed promise - Careful crossing and grafting brought other trees along - and today every McIntosh Apple grown can be traced back to the seeds and grafts of that lone tree that John McIntosh nurtured to bring forth the World Famous APPLE named after him.

SPEEDY RECITATIONS - A Court Penalty in CANADA until as late as 1835 was Branding.  The Convicted Man had a red-hot iron shaped like a crown design applied to the palm of his hand.  The Branding Iron was held there for as long as it took for the CULPRIT to RECITE "God Save the Queen," three times.  PERJURY was punishable in French CANADA by Branding the Perjurer upon the Tongue.

WASAGA BEACH . . .  on the shores of Georgian Bay in Ontario, Canada is the Largest Freshwater Sand Strip in the World.  The SHIP that became an Island - The schooner NANCY was originally a trading ship.  During the war of 1812-14 she was appropriated by the Royal Navy and outfitted for war.  In a naval battle with American ships on Georgian Bay  she was run aground and burned.  Silt and Sand gathered around the charred hulk and formed what is now NANCY ISLAND at WASAGA BEACH, Ontario,

G-WHIZ Gustave and Geraldine Simard of Chicoutimi-Nord, Quebec, CANADA - Named their 15 Children:  Girard, Gloria, Ghislaine, Genevieve, Ginette, Ghislain, Gabriel, Gemma, Gerardine, Gervais, Guylaine, Gerald, Guillaume, Gina, and Guy,

The first CIRCUS in the West played in Winnipeg, Manitoba, CANADA in 1878 - this particular show went bankrupt here and disbanded.  The first CIRCUS to tour areas of CANADA that were populated was Ricett's of London England (COMPLETE with WILD ANIMALS and CLOWNS).  It gave its premiere performance at Quebec in 1798. 

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, CANADA - previously called GASTOWN was almost entirely levelled by fire the year it was incorporated - 1886.

XMAS HOLLY grown in CANADA is produced only in British Columbia.

The PIG that almost caused a War - An American Settler on the Island of San Juan, off the coast of British Columbia, CANADA, shared the island with the Hudson's Bay Company.  When the pig he owned invaded the Bay's territory the company promptly confiscated it for bacon.  The UNITED STATES rose in wrath and WAR was Adverted when the Island was ceded to the U.S.A.

The RINGED SEAL found in CANADA'S ARTIC is the smallest Pinniped* in the World.  The Average Adult length 4 feet 6 inches.  Possibly they are the longest livers too - one found on the Southwest Coast of Baffin Island, in 1954, was 43 years OLD.............* Seals, Sea Lions and Walruses.  The PENGUIN a dweller of the Antarctic can live in the tropics BUT is never found in the Arctic.

The Rarest CANADIAN Stamp is the "Two-Cent Green Large Queen" - issued in 1868/

The MAN was ALMOST BURIED ALIVE - after discovering a pass in the CANADIAN Rocky Mountains in the Summer or 1858 Dr. James Hector was exploring it, when a couple of horses became unruly.  While trying to quiet one Dr. Hector was kicked in the chest and knocked unconscious.  So badly injured was he that his men thought him dead and dug his grave - LUCKILY He moved his arm before burial took place, and in a few days was well enough to name the route - What Else - 'THE KICKING HORSE PASS'.

The CASHEW NUT consumed as a tid-bit by many Canadian families is a Member of the POISON IVY Family.

The FIRST Lighthouse in CANADA was established at LOUISBORG,  Cape Breton Island in 1734.

EMMY - The Ships Cat of the C.P.R. Liner the Empress of Ireland, had made many trips on the Empress until May 28,     1914 when she left the ship as it prepared to cast off from Quebec City, CANADA bound for England.  Nothing would induce her to go aboard again, even the fact she was leaving a litter of kittens.  During that night, the Empress was rammed by another ship in dense fog on the St-Lawrence River near Rimouski- AND SHE SANK WITH A LOSS OF OVER A THOUSAND LIVES.

MIGHTY METEOR - Somewhere about 200,000 years ago a Meteor weighing several thousand Tons and travelling at 36,000 Miles an hour crashed obliquely on the face of what is now called SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA - It ploughed out an Astrobleme 8 1/2 miles across near Deep Bay, and it's the biggest Meteor Crater in the World.

The FIRST GLASS WINDOWS in CANADA were fitted in 1869 into the home of the High Ranking Longueuil Family who lived in Montreal.

OOLIKAN FISH were used by Native People and Early Settlers of British Columbia, CANADA...as CANDLES.

ANNUAL RAINFALL at Ocean Falls, British Columbia, CANADA averages 160 inches.

First GOLD was discovered in Canada by a woman named Madame Gilbert - this was in 1823 and it happened while she was washing clothes in a stream flowing into the Chaudiere River.  The MOST VALUABLE shovelful of GOLD ORE dug during the Caribou Gold Rush in 1863 contained a glittering 96 ounces of GOLD - worth $10,000 or so at today's rate of exchange.

The CANADIAN RIVER rises in New Mexico, flows through Texas and Oklahoma to Arkansas, BUT DOES NOT COME NEAR CANADA.

The longest continuous border in the world is between Canada and the United States of America - extending 3,987 miles.

OCCUPIED FARM LAND though less that 8% of CANADA'S total land Ares....exceeds 170,000,000 acres.

CANADA Geese fly only North and South .....they never migrate laterally.

LUCY MAUDE MONTGOMERY the Prince Edward Island, CANADA Schoolteacher who wrote Canada's Best Seller, ANNE of GREEN GABLES.  Published in 1908.  It had been turned down by 4 publishers and after a period of time elapsed she sent it to the 5th, who paid her $500 and it was an instant success.  All in All SHE turned out 23 books including 8 sequels to Anne.

The TICKLE BAY MONSTER - the largest SQUID on record was captured in Tickle Bay, Newfoundland, CANADA in 1878 - - it Measured 55 feet overall - Tentacles 35 feet - - Head, Body 20 feet.  And it weighed 8 1/4 Tons.

The ELONGATED FOOTBALL originated in CANADA and was introduce to the U.S.A. when a team from McGill University played against Harvard in 1847.

JOHN BAKER, a bonded servant of Robert Gray,  (Upper Canada's First Solicitor General) came to CANADA in 1792.  He died in Cornwall, Ontario, CANADA in 1871, aged 105 years - The Last Surviving Person to Have Been a Slave.

The Pioneer ACADIAN Feast was "GARTEAU: - a Huge, Rich, Flaky Crusted Pie containing RABBITS, BIRDS and PORK.

CANADIANS eat more than 5,000,000 pounds of Christmas Cake each year,

ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL who invented the Telephone in CANADA - went on to build the First Airplane to be flown in the British Empire- - He also pioneered in HYDROFOIL BOATS -  Many people think of these as being of fairly recent conception but at Baddeck, Nova Scotia, CANADA in 1918 Bell had designed a 60-foot Hydrofoil Vessel that attained a record speed of 71 miles per hour.

A place where the first settlers were BLACK.  Beautiful Salt Spring Island lies off the east coast of Vancouver Island, between Victoria and Nanaimo, British Columbia, CANADA.  To this Eden in the late 1850s came its first settlers, but with a difference.  THESE PIONEERS WERE BLACK - and they came from Southern parts of the U.S.A. to escape the conditions of terror imposed on them by white people in the land of their birth.

The BIGGEST ROUNDUP in the history of the WEST took place at Fort Macleod, Alberta, CANADA in 1885 - 100 cowboys, 16 chuck-wagon and 500 saddle horses were used to round-up more than 60,000 head of cattle.

PILE O'BONES was the first name given to REGINA, Manitoba, CANADA because millions of Buffalo bones were piled here, by the railroad tracks, for shipment to sugar refineries in the east.

DISTANCE was calculated by the Canadians of Quebec, in pioneer days by the length of time required to smoke a pipe-full of tobacco - each pipe-full averaged three-quarters of a mile.

Hartson S. Dowd        

hsdowd@telus.net