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This article is from our Toronto Feature series. Features from past programs are not updated.

This article is from our Toronto Feature series. Features from past programs are not updated.

During the fur trade in Canada, items of European manufacture (historically referred to in the literature as Indian trade goods) were traded with Indigenous peoples for furs. These items include, for example, metal objects, weapons and glass beads. (See also Trade Silver.) In various ways, however, cultural exchanges went both ways. Some Europeans, namely the voyageurs, adopted various Indigenous technologies and clothing during the fur trade, including the use of moccasins, buckskin pants and hats, and snowshoes.

The Anti-Slavery Society of Canada was formed in Canada West (now Ontario) in 1851 to promote the global abolition of slavery and provide relief to African American refugees seeking freedom in Canada. Led by influential residents of the province from Black and White communities alike, the society was active until the early 1860s. It helped shape a sympathetic view of the abolitionist cause of the northern United States in the decade leading up to the American Civil War.

The Black Cross Nurses (BCN) is an auxiliary group intended for female members of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). The BCN was modeled on the nurses of the Red Cross. Its first chapter was launched in Philadelphia in May 1920. Under the leadership of Henrietta Vinton Davis, the BCN quickly became one of the UNIA’s most popular and iconic auxiliary groups. Offering a safe and inviting place for the Black community, UNIA halls became important cultural hubs in many cities and towns across Canada, where BCN divisions were also established. Although they were not professionally trained nurses, members of the BCN were expected to provide care and advice on matters of health and hygiene.

Gifts of silver were presented and traded to Indigenous peoples in Canada by European fur traders. Trade silver was made by silversmiths in Quebec City, Montreal, London and various American cities, including New York, Philadelphia and Detroit. (See also Fur Trade in Canada and Trade Goods of the Fur Trade.)

The Lunar New Year — also known as the Spring Festival, Chinese New Year, Tet for Vietnamese Canadians, or Solnal for Korean Canadians — is celebrated in Canada and several other countries. It is one of the largest celebrations for Canada’s Chinese population, it is also celebrated by Canadians from Vietnam, Korea and Southeast Asia. Although it is not a statutory holiday in Canada, many Asian Canadian businesses are closed or have reduced hours for the occasion. Since 1 June 2016, this celebration has been recognized as an official holiday in Canada.

The Dorset Palaeo-Inuit emerged at some point around 2,800 years ago (ca. 800 to 500 BCE). They persisted until 600 to 700 years ago (ca. 1300 to 1400 CE). Archaeologists generally separate this roughly 2,000-year period into three periods or traditions. These periods are called the Early Dorset (ca. 800 BCE to 1 CE), Middle Dorset (ca. 1 to 500 CE) and Late Dorset (ca. 500 to 1300-1400 CE). The timing and causes of their disappearance are still debated. However, it occurred only a few centuries after the arrival of the early Inuit (Thule). Early Inuit were culturally and genetically distinct from the Dorset (see also Geographical Distribution of the Dorset Culture).

While there is significant debate regarding the validity of the Early-Middle-Late periods, there are a number of notable changes that should be considered. In any case, the Dorset period marks a significant shift from the lifeways of their Pre-Dorset ancestors.

Early Inuit groups from northern Alaska moved into the Eastern North American Arctic (i.e., Canada and Greenland) around 800 years ago (ca. 1200 CE). In roughly a century, some of these early Inuit groups rapidly migrated across what’s now the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Greenland. By roughly the 15th century CE, early Inuit groups lived throughout the Eastern Arctic. The early Inuit are distinct from the Dorset and Pre-Dorset. Although where they lived slightly changed throughout time, these early Inuit represent the direct ancestors of Inuit today.