Browse "History"

Alexander Begg, writer, historian (b at Québec City 19 July 1839; d at Victoria 6 Sept 1897). Educated at St John's, Québec City and Aberdeen, Scotland, Begg was trading in manufactured goods at the Red River Colony in 1867.

Anna Brownell Jameson, née Murphy, writer, feminist, art historian (b at Dublin, Ire 17 May 1794; d at London, Eng 17 Mar 1860). Anna spent her early adulthood as a governess in England, in 1825 publishing A Lady's Diary

Barbara Cass-Beggs (b Cass, m Beggs). Teacher, folksong collector, singer, b Nottingham, England, 10 Nov 1904, d Ottawa 13 Sep 1990; ARCM 1927, LRAM 1928. She studied voice, piano, pedagogy, and composition at the RCM, where her teachers were Basil Allchin, Percy Buck, C.C.

Olive Patricia Dickason (née Williamson), CM, Métis journalist, historian, university professor, author (born 6 March 1920 in Winnipeg, MB; died 12 March 2011 in Ottawa, ON). Dickason was the first scholar in Canada to receive a PhD in Indigenous history. Her ground-breaking research and books about Indigenous and Métis history and culture transformed how Canadians perceive the origin of their country and Indigenous peoples. Dickason’s work inspired a new generation of scholars, helping to launch Indigenous studies as an area of scholarly research. She received an Order of Canada in recognition of her achievements.

Pitikwahanapiwiyin (Poundmaker), Cree chief (born circa 1842 in central SK; died 4 July 1886 in Blackfoot Crossing, AB). Remembered as a great leader, Pitikwahanapiwiyin strove to protect the interests of his people during the negotiation of Treaty 6. Considered a peacemaker, he did not take up arms in the North-West Rebellion (also known as the North-West Resistance). However, a young and militant faction of his band did participate in the conflict, resulting in Pitikwahanapiwiyin’s arrest and imprisonment for treason. His legacy as a peacemaker lives on among many Cree peoples, including the Poundmaker Cree Nation in Saskatchewan.