Canadian

 More today of the large scale photos of scenes from across the country.

It was time to get going. The path away from the Canadian History Hall features more of the light inlay over mirrors works of places and activities from around the country. This is the monument of Louis Riel, the Metis leader and founder of Manitoba.

Here we have a passenger train crossing the Rockies in British Columbia.

A statue of Terry Fox is found in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The license plate of the Northwest Territories is in the shape of a polar bear.

The Lions Gate Bridge is in British Columbia.

Here we see Province House in Prince Edward Island.

And this is the dramatic landscape of Cape Spear in Newfoundland and Labrador. Tomorrow we'll finish off this visit.

The Transcontinental Railroad

 One of the famous photographs of Canadian history- the driving of the last spike in British Columbia, and the completion of the transcontinental railroad- the Canadian Pacific Railway.

A rifle and a buffalo robe are displayed here.

The transcontinental railroad was one of the biggest projects in the history of the country, particularly so for the challenge that the landscapes of the West posed.

Sir Sanford Fleming was a Canadian railway engineer who earned his place in history with his proposal of standard time- dividing the world up into 24 standard time zones. The concept was eventually adopted around the world.

1885 saw open conflict in the west, as the Metis pushed back against the Canadian government.

It would end with the trial and execution of one of the Metis leaders, Louis Riel, seen here in the prisoner's box during his trial. The display case includes his shackles. Today he is considered the founder of Manitoba, and a Father of Confederation.

Charles Edenshaw was a Haida chief who became a prolific artist over the course of his long life. These are some of his works.

With the indigenous peoples brought in line by Canadian military forces, the subject of settling the West became one of the objectives of the Canadian government.

The Museum Sanctuary

 Picking up where I left off yesterday, this photograph is from the trial of Metis leader Louis Riel, who stands at centre right. Back then he was deemed a traitor to the country. Today he is deemed a Father of Confederation and the founder of Manitoba.

These are works by the Haida artist Charles Edenshaw.

The federal government went to work on settling the west as new provinces were incorporated. 

Here we have a treasure of the Museum. St. Onuphrius is a consecrated Ukrainian Catholic Church that resides here, but was first built in Alberta over a century ago.

A video display inside looks at what this church still means to its parishioners. It still hosts religious services today.

The Country Moves West

We start today with a painting. Canoe Manned By Voyageurs Passing A Waterfall is an 1869 work by Frances Anne Hopkins. Fur trading voyageurs made extensive journeys into the West and North, interacting with indigenous peoples, long before most Canadians were even thinking of the concept.

A nearby railing looks over the side and down into a lower area. On the wall here are four works of art by the Dene artist Alex Janvier, collectively The Seasons.

White fur traders had a long tradition of living among First Nations peoples and integrating themselves into the tribe as opposed to the reverse. This would lead to the rise of a people who thought of themselves as their own distinctive culture- the Metis.

The federal government had its eyes looking west to become fully transcontinental in the  years after Confederation. Regardless of who was already out there. This would lead to conflict with indigenous peoples.

These are the moccasins of Chief Crowfood, a Blackfoot who advocated for peace.

The idea of building a transcontinental railroad to span the coasts took shape.

Here we have a theodolite and a sample rail.

One of the legacies of that era for the world at large is the concept of standard time. It was Sanford Fleming, a railway engineer, who proposed a system of dividing up the world into time zones to facilitate ease of travel.

One of the indigenous leaders who stood up to the federal government was Louis Riel, who led armed resistance by the Metis, and would end up arrested, tried, and executed.

These were the cuffs used to bind him during his trial.