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Events Before British North America Act
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Railway Transportation
The creation of railways changed transportation and trades forever. Railways connected different regions together, and transported coal as well as other materials. Champlain and Saint Lawrence Railroad was the first working railway in Canada. -
Act of Union
This union occurred when upper and lower Canada decided to unite as a single province. This eventually lead to the creation of the Canadian responsible government. Both parts of Canada could contain equal representatives within the assembly. -
Manifest Destiny
Manifest Destiny refers to Canadian and American expansion. Both countries shared interest in expanding to the west. This led to many problems for Indigenous peoples down the road, struggling to keep their land. -
Corn Laws/Act
The Corn Laws removed tariffs on British grains. The Canada Corn Act let Canadian wheat be sold at British markets. These laws made Britain untouchable to the opposition. -
Reciprocity Treaty
The treaty reduced American tariffs, ultimately increasing trades in the U.S. This triggered the building of U.S railways to made trading easier. The treaty was renewed after the Civil War, and American and British tensions increased. -
American Civil War
The Civil War was caused by a battle regarding the opinions of slavery. The antislavery Republican party gained popularity, creating a large division in the public. This war was between the U.S union and the southern states, and lasted four years with the union coming out on top. -
St. Alban's Raids
A small group of Canadian soldiers raided St. Albans, robbing three banks and killed a civilian in the process. An American soldier hunted down a few of the individuals but gave them up to authorities within Canada. The group did not serve a lot of time behind bars. -
Charlottetown Conference
The Canadians were invited to be apart of the conference regarding the union of Nova Scotia, PEI, Newfoundland, and New Brunswick. John A. Macdonald, George Brown, and George-Étienne Cartier hosted this conference and sent a message to Charlottetown requesting the union. This turned more into a party rather than a conference. -
Quebec Conference
During this conference the unification of Canada becoming one province continued. The split of power between the two separate governments was discussed in Quebec City. An even scale was determined, where both governments had control of separate things. -
Fenian Raids
Irish people, called the Fenians, created an organization to fight Canada for Irish freedom. The Fenians had multiple small armed riots around Canada. Many deaths were caused by these raids.