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Western Immigration to Canada
Section A
The nation of Canada was being populated throughout the mid-1870s by an immigrant population of agricultural settlers. They established themselves in the west, and small towns sprang up around the prairies through 1870s. Meanwhile, rural settlements were the true focus of the federal government’s attention. A western rural settlement was the goal, as it would provide homesteads for the sons and daughters of eastern farmers. At this time, eastern agricultural land was quickly becoming less plentiful as the populations there grew. Fortunately, eastern farmers and politicians also regarded western Canada to be a great location for expanding Canada’s agricultural output with its huge expanses of unpopulated land, particularly as a means to support the wheat production for east Canadian markets.
Section B
The federal government made plans to take control of land in the west of Canada, in the hopes that this would help population and agricultural output grow. In 1870, the Dominion of Canada bought Rupert’s Land from the Hudson’s Bay Company, and two years later, the federal government enacted the Dominion Lands Act. Settlers were able to acquire 160 acres of free land as part of this act, but only if a few conditions were met. Settlers who paid a $10.00 registration fee were then required to remain on their land for at least three years, while also improving it slightly. The Canadian government then formed a Mounted Police Force in the following year of 1873. These Mounties traveled west to make sure the area was secured for incoming settlers. By 1876, the NWMP were established in the west. Significant posts were Swan River, Fort Saskatchewan, Fort Calgary, Fort Walsh and Fort Macleod. Eastern-Canadian settlers, along with some European and American immigrants, flocked to these early posts in Canada’s west, particularly to the area of Manitoba.
Section C
In order to effectively protect Canadian territory, as well as reach their secondary goal of integrating British Columbia into the rest of the country, the best way the government could think of was to import large numbers of eastern Canadian and British settlers. They began building a transcontinental railway to connect the eastern and western expanses of Canada. With the help of the railway, western Canada would be able to sustain the growing urban industrial population of the east with food, the trade-off being that eastern Canadian manufactured goods would be able to reach the eastern part of the country.
Section D
Winnipeg became the urban center of western Canada throughout this time. Prior to year 1900, Winnipeg’s grew due to factors such as land speculation, more available housing, as well as Winnipeg becoming a major stop along the CPR as mandated by the federal government. The latter decision resulted in a period of rapid development from years 1881-1883, transforming small settlements such as Portage la Prairie and Brandon into towns, in addition to a significant boost to the population size of Manitoba. Before long, Winnipeg was at the junction between three transcontinental railway lines where thousands of employees worked in rail yards. Winnipeg had also become an important processor of agricultural products for the entire area surrounding it.
Section E
Throughout this early period, most of those who settled in Winnipeg and the countryside around it were English-speaking, Protestant settlers from either Ontario or the British Isles. These pioneers settled Winnipeg with British-Ontarian traditions. This system of belief came to define that society socially, politically, and economically. However, the population did not remain ethnically homogenous for very long as more immigrants from foreign lands began to arrive. Many immigrants came from Austria-Hungary and Ukraine, thus influencing the ethnic makeup of the settler populations in British settlements, older First Nation Metis, and Selkirk. Eastern Canadians and British immigrants settling in the west gave an advantage to the 49th parallel, keeping it safe against potential threats of American take-over if the Minnesota legislature had passed a resolution allowing the annexation of the Red River district. As of 1870, The Red River was the most essential settlement of the Canadian prairie. 11,963 residents lived there, with 9,700 who were Metis and 575 who were First Nations. Nearby Minnesota already had a larger population with over 100,000 residents.
Section F
However, not everyone who settled in western Canada in the 1880s was inclined to stay in the area. During the 1870s and 1880s, an economic depression suppressed the value of Canada’s most important exports, dissuading many from settling permanently in the West. Canada had to compete with other countries for immigrants to choose to move there, with competitors such as Brazil, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Many immigrants, as well as thousands of Canadians, were drawn to the appeal of the American frontier. Before 1891, Canada has been referred to as “a huge demographic railway station,” or, “a place where thousands of men, women, and children were in constant transit, and where the number of departures invariably exceeded that of arrivals.”
Section G
In 1891, eastern Canada had many urban centers which brought along with them the troubles of city life. At the turn of the century, the economic centers of Toronto and Montreal already had electricity and telephones in the cities’ wealthiest areas, while the poorest areas, such as the district known as ‘the Ward’ in Toronto, could have been characterized as slum-like. Farm animals roamed wild, as privy buckets were dumped into yards and streets; these were the urban slums. The social reformers of the time thought that a rural lifestyle would allow people to be healthier, more moral, and more charitable, than they would be in an urban lifestyle. Social reformers valued fresh air, hard work, and wide open spaces to “Canadianize’” incoming immigrants. Farm work and agriculture were seen as especially appropriate in pursuit of a more family-oriented way of life, as opposed to the bachelor-oriented world found in cities. In fact, agriculture had a vital role in shaping the Canadian economy of 1891, with one third of the workforce at that time working on farms.
Section H
The Canadian government advertised the appeals of Canada to potential migrants abroad in a few different ways. The government proposed giving away land to farmers either for free or for subsidized prices. In addition to this, agents and/or agencies were established in order to bring in migrants from overseas. Assisted passage from abroad, as well as cash bonuses and commissions to agents and settlers advertised on pamphlets enticed even more immigrants into Canada. But most powerful of all were the letters home written by immigrants who had already arrived in Canada. Trusted friends and family members wrote exaggerated words describing the “wonder of the new world.” Those who had already come to Canada likely hoped these embellished accounts would placate any worried family and friends from back home. Over-the-top stories telling of good fortune and happiness were often the most successful in encouraging others to come.
Reading Passage Vocabulary
Section A
The nation of Canada was being populated throughout the mid-1870s by an immigrant population of agricultural settlers. They established themselves in the west, and small towns sprang up around the prairies through 1870s. Meanwhile, rural settlements were the true focus of the federal government’s attention. A western rural settlement was the goal, as it would provide homesteads for the sons and daughters of eastern farmers. At this time, eastern agricultural land was quickly becoming less plentiful as the populations there grew. Fortunately, eastern farmers and politicians also regarded western Canada to be a great location for expanding Canada’s agricultural output with its huge expanses of unpopulated land, particularly as a means to support the wheat production for east Canadian markets.
Section B
The federal government made plans to take control of land in the west of Canada, in the hopes that this would help population and agricultural output grow. In 1870, the Dominion of Canada bought Rupert’s Land from the Hudson’s Bay Company, and two years later, the federal government enacted the Dominion Lands Act. Settlers were able to acquire 160 acres of free land as part of this act, but only if a few conditions were met. Settlers who paid a $10.00 registration fee were then required to remain on their land for at least three years, while also improving it slightly. The Canadian government then formed a Mounted Police Force in the following year of 1873. These Mounties traveled west to make sure the area was secured for incoming settlers. By 1876, the NWMP were established in the west. Significant posts were Swan River, Fort Saskatchewan, Fort Calgary, Fort Walsh and Fort Macleod. Eastern-Canadian settlers, along with some European and American immigrants, flocked to these early posts in Canada’s west, particularly to the area of Manitoba.
Section C
In order to effectively protect Canadian territory, as well as reach their secondary goal of integrating British Columbia into the rest of the country, the best way the government could think of was to import large numbers of eastern Canadian and British settlers. They began building a transcontinental railway to connect the eastern and western expanses of Canada. With the help of the railway, western Canada would be able to sustain the growing urban industrial population of the east with food, the trade-off being that eastern Canadian manufactured goods would be able to reach the eastern part of the country.
Section D
Winnipeg became the urban center of western Canada throughout this time. Prior to year 1900, Winnipeg’s grew due to factors such as land speculation, more available housing, as well as Winnipeg becoming a major stop along the CPR as mandated by the federal government. The latter decision resulted in a period of rapid development from years 1881-1883, transforming small settlements such as Portage la Prairie and Brandon into towns, in addition to a significant boost to the population size of Manitoba. Before long, Winnipeg was at the junction between three transcontinental railway lines where thousands of employees worked in rail yards. Winnipeg had also become an important processor of agricultural products for the entire area surrounding it.
Section E
Throughout this early period, most of those who settled in Winnipeg and the countryside around it were English-speaking, Protestant settlers from either Ontario or the British Isles. These pioneers settled Winnipeg with British-Ontarian traditions. This system of belief came to define that society socially, politically, and economically. However, the population did not remain ethnically homogenous for very long as more immigrants from foreign lands began to arrive. Many immigrants came from Austria-Hungary and Ukraine, thus influencing the ethnic makeup of the settler populations in British settlements, older First Nation Metis, and Selkirk. Eastern Canadians and British immigrants settling in the west gave an advantage to the 49th parallel, keeping it safe against potential threats of American take-over if the Minnesota legislature had passed a resolution allowing the annexation of the Red River district. As of 1870, The Red River was the most essential settlement of the Canadian prairie. 11,963 residents lived there, with 9,700 who were Metis and 575 who were First Nations. Nearby Minnesota already had a larger population with over 100,000 residents.
Section F
However, not everyone who settled in western Canada in the 1880s was inclined to stay in the area. During the 1870s and 1880s, an economic depression suppressed the value of Canada’s most important exports, dissuading many from settling permanently in the West. Canada had to compete with other countries for immigrants to choose to move there, with competitors such as Brazil, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Many immigrants, as well as thousands of Canadians, were drawn to the appeal of the American frontier. Before 1891, Canada has been referred to as “a huge demographic railway station,” or, “a place where thousands of men, women, and children were in constant transit, and where the number of departures invariably exceeded that of arrivals.”
Section G
In 1891, eastern Canada had many urban centers which brought along with them the troubles of city life. At the turn of the century, the economic centers of Toronto and Montreal already had electricity and telephones in the cities’ wealthiest areas, while the poorest areas, such as the district known as ‘the Ward’ in Toronto, could have been characterized as slum-like. Farm animals roamed wild, as privy buckets were dumped into yards and streets; these were the urban slums. The social reformers of the time thought that a rural lifestyle would allow people to be healthier, more moral, and more charitable, than they would be in an urban lifestyle. Social reformers valued fresh air, hard work, and wide open spaces to “Canadianize’” incoming immigrants. Farm work and agriculture were seen as especially appropriate in pursuit of a more family-oriented way of life, as opposed to the bachelor-oriented world found in cities. In fact, agriculture had a vital role in shaping the Canadian economy of 1891, with one third of the workforce at that time working on farms.
Section H
The Canadian government advertised the appeals of Canada to potential migrants abroad in a few different ways. The government proposed giving away land to farmers either for free or for subsidized prices. In addition to this, agents and/or agencies were established in order to bring in migrants from overseas. Assisted passage from abroad, as well as cash bonuses and commissions to agents and settlers advertised on pamphlets enticed even more immigrants into Canada. But most powerful of all were the letters home written by immigrants who had already arrived in Canada. Trusted friends and family members wrote exaggerated words describing the “wonder of the new world.” Those who had already come to Canada likely hoped these embellished accounts would placate any worried family and friends from back home. Over-the-top stories telling of good fortune and happiness were often the most successful in encouraging others to come.