brf's ad

mam's ad

kan's ad

After the First World War ended in 1918, the Canadian government had high hopes that the newly-created Department of Immigration and Colonization would attract large numbers of British agricultural immigrants. And large numbers did arrive, despite the fact that the only free government land still available was in areas remote from railways (unless the immigrant was a Soldier Settler).
There were new incentives, however, for farmers to emigrate from over-populated Britain. The British government offered subsidized travel to many parts of the Empire, including Canada. Plenty of good arable land was still for sale in the Canadian west, much of it owned by the two national railways, the Canadian Pacific Railway and the newly-formed Canadian National Railways. Both national companies advertised extensively in Britain, and offered their own inducements to would-be settlers.
While the Canadian government supported the railways' initiatives, attracting immigrants to the prairies was no longer the only priority. Agricultural immigrants were needed in every part of Canada.

shs's ad

Encouraging British and European immigrants to settle on the prairies was part of Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald's plan to establish Canadian sovereignty over the newly-acquired North-West Territories. Stretching from Ontario's border to British Columbia, (still a British colony), the Territories were transferred to Canada by the Hudson's Bay Company in 1869. Settlement was an urgent matter, and so was a railway to carry settlers west. There was already talk in the mid-western United States of expanding north of the border. Sir John's promise of a trans-Canada railway persuaded British Columbia to enter Confederation in 1871.

air's ad

Encouraging British and European immigrants to settle on the prairies was part of Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald's plan to establish Canadian sovereignty over the newly-acquired North-West Territories. Stretching from Ontario's border to British Columbia, (still a British colony), the Territories were transferred to Canada by the Hudson's Bay Company in 1869. Settlement was an urgent matter, and so was a railway to carry settlers west. There was already talk in the mid-western United States of expanding north of the border. Sir John's promise of a trans-Canada railway persuaded British Columbia to enter Confederation in 1871.
The Canadian Pacific Railway, so necessary to opening up the Territories to large-scale settlement, was a massive project that took many years to finance. Surveying prairie land for railway-building and white settlement signalled displacement to Native people and Metis, and an end to their traditional way of life. 1885, the year the CPR was completed, was also the year of the second Metis uprising, and the execution of its leader, Louis Riel

aac's ad

The landscape, climate and culture were all new to them.
One of the major difficulties many of these farmers faced was arriving in a country where nothing was familiarre
So too were the hard cold winters.
http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.html

syh's ad

http://www.civilization.ca/hist/advertis/ads2-01e.html While it was described as the frontier of golden opportunity, the Canadian West was often conversely portrayed as uninhabitable, cold and barren.
http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page02_e.html

There were many reasons for Canada's limited success in attracting settlers. Among them was the fact that the American West still proved more appealing to the majority of potential immigrants. In fact, many of the immigrants who originally arrived in Western Canada during this period often eventually headed south into the United States. There they could take advantage of a more advanced economy and a more efficient transportation system. While immigrants interested in farming came by the thousands during the Sifton years, there were many that arrived with no interest in working the land. These men and women stayed in the cities or joined work camps throughout the country. Others tried farming, but found it too difficult, too expensive or too unpredictable. More than a third of all farmers gave up their homesteads within three years.
One of the major difficulties many of these farmers faced was arriving in a country where nothing was familiar. The landscape, climate and culture were all new to them. Most left countries where they were surrounded by trees and rolling hills. The vast, flat, sparsely wooded Canadian plains consequently was a shock to them. So too were the hard cold winters. Many arrived without the ability to speak either English or French, and with different religious, cultural and political experiences than those shared by Anglo-Saxon Canadians.

jek

It’s all a setup!!!! To con you into going to Canada
It’s dried up land for miles and miles, you can’t make
As good as crops as they say and you get nothing.
There’s no market no store you can’t even see your
Neighbors from where you are. You can also catch a
Disease called scurvy witch is lack of vitamin C. While immigrants interested in farming came by the thousands during the Sifton years, there were many that arrived with no interest in working the land. These men and women stayed in the cities or joined work camps throughout the country. Others tried farming, but found it too difficult, too expensive or too unpredictable. More than a third of all farmers gave up their homesteads within three years.
One of the major difficulties many of these farmers faced was arriving in a country where nothing was familiar. The landscape, climate and culture were all new to them. Most left countries where they were surrounded by trees and rolling hills. The vast, flat, sparsely wooded Canadian plains consequently was a shock to them. So too were the hard cold winters. Many arrived without the ability to speak either English or French, and with different religious, cultural and political experiences than those shared by Anglo-Saxon Canadians. Some families, including the Citizens, solved some of these problems by traveling further north into the parkland. Here, surrounded by trees, they often settled close to family and friends from their country of origin. The trade-off was that the land they settled was usually less fertile and harder to farm than the Prairie's grassland soil. While immigrants interested in farming came by the thousands during the Sifton years, there were many that arrived with no interest in working the land. These men and women stayed in the cities or joined work camps throughout the country. Others tried farming, but found it too difficult, too expensive or too unpredictable. More than a third of all farmers gave up their homesteads within three years. One of the major difficulties many of these farmers faced was arriving in a country where nothing was familiar. The landscape, climate and culture were all new to them. Most left countries where they were surrounded by trees and rolling hills. The vast, flat, sparsely wooded Canadian plain consequently was a shock to them. So too were the hard cold winters. Many arrived without the ability to speak either English or French, and with different religious, cultural and political experiences than those shared by Anglo-Saxon Canadians. Some families, including the Citizens, solved some of these problems by traveling further north into the parkland. Here, surrounded by trees, they often settled close to family and friends from their country of origin. The trade-off was that the land they settled was usually less fertile and harder to farm than the Prairie's grassland soil. The majority of the new immigrants did choose to settle in the grasslands. Once they had selected their homestead section, their first challenge was to build a home quickly using the material available to them. In those areas where wood was scarce, many created this first house out of piled up sod cut from the ground. Once this was accomplished, they had to begin breaking up the land in order to plant their crops. This long, wearying work was made easier for those who could afford tools, machines and animals. Not all could. Even if these farm families successfully built their homesteads and planted their crops, there were always factors beyond their control that could determine their success or failure. Drought, dust storms, hail, floods, frost, and blizzards were just some of the natural disasters a farming family might face.

zac's

job's

Mas's ad

The Hard Ships of the West

http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.html
Eking out a living, however, was never easy. They arrived with little money, few possessions and no ability to speak English. The land they chose was marginal, and the Canadian environment unpredictable. Despite these challenges they persevered. But they were just two out of hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Eastern and Western Europe, Scandinavia, Britain, and America who arrived in the Canadian West between 1896 and 1914. In isolation, their individual stories may be of interest only to their ancestors.
http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page02_e.html
In the meantime, the Canadian government began its push to settle the Prairies by introducing a new initiative aimed at attracting settlers. In 1872, the Dominion Lands Act was passed, granting 160 acres (647 497 m2) free to potential settlers so long as they met a number of conditions. These included building a dwelling, planting crops and living on the land for at least three years. Despite such incentives, a disappointingly low number of immigrants arrived before the late 1890s. The largest group to take advantage of the opportunities the new region had to offer was from Ontario. After Confederation, Ontarians arrived in Manitoba in such large numbers that Winnipeg was often referred to, tongue in cheek, as Ontario West.
http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page03_e.html
The majority of the new immigrants did choose to settle in the grasslands. Once they had selected their homestead section, their first challenge was to build a home quickly using the material available to them. In those areas where wood was scarce, many created this first house out of piled up sod cut from the ground. Once this was accomplished, they had to begin breaking up the land in order to plant their crops. This long, wearying work was made easier for those who could afford tools, machines and animals. Not all could. Even if these farm families successfully built their homesteads and planted their crops, there were always factors beyond their control that could determine their success or failure. Drought, dust storms, hail, floods, frost, and blizzards were just some of the natural disasters a farming family might face.

The Hard Ship Of The West

The Hard Ships of the West

http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.html
Eking out a living, however, was never easy. They arrived with little money, few possessions and no ability to speak English. The land they chose was marginal, and the Canadian environment unpredictable. Despite these challenges they persevered. But they were just two out of hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Eastern and Western Europe, Scandinavia, Britain, and America who arrived in the Canadian West between 1896 and 1914. In isolation, their individual stories may be of interest only to their ancestors.
http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page02_e.html
In the meantime, the Canadian government began its push to settle the Prairies by introducing a new initiative aimed at attracting settlers. In 1872, the Dominion Lands Act was passed, granting 160 acres (647 497 m2) free to potential settlers so long as they met a number of conditions. These included building a dwelling, planting crops and living on the land for at least three years. Despite such incentives, a disappointingly low number of immigrants arrived before the late 1890s. The largest group to take advantage of the opportunities the new region had to offer was from Ontario. After Confederation, Ontarians arrived in Manitoba in such large numbers that Winnipeg was often referred to, tongue in cheek, as Ontario West.
http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page03_e.html
The majority of the new immigrants did choose to settle in the grasslands. Once they had selected their homestead section, their first challenge was to build a home quickly using the material available to them. In those areas where wood was scarce, many created this first house out of piled up sod cut from the ground. Once this was accomplished, they had to begin breaking up the land in order to plant their crops. This long, wearying work was made easier for those who could afford tools, machines and animals. Not all could. Even if these farm families successfully built their homesteads and planted their crops, there were always factors beyond their control that could determine their success or failure. Drought, dust storms, hail, floods, frost, and blizzards were just some of the natural disasters a farming family might face.

sha's ad

What The West Is Really Like
http://www.civilization.ca/hist/advertis/ads2-01e.html
In the 1870s and 1880s, the Allan Line of Steamers spent more money on advertising for immigrants to Canada than did the new federal government, it was said. But steamships could only bring immigrants so far.
A railway was urgently needed to take passengers west to settle the vast area of the North-West Territories recently acquired by the Canadian government. The Americans had a national railway network in place by 1869.
http://www.civilization.ca/hist/advertis/ads2-02e.html
The 1886 edition of What Settlers Say made no reference to the 1885 Metis uprising, or to Canadian Indians. But in a parallel publication, What Women Say Of The Canadian North-West, settlers' wives were asked "Do you experience any fear of the Indians?" According to the Canadian Pacific Railway, a majority said "no", "none", "never did" etc.
http://www.civilization.ca/hist/advertis/ads2-03e.html
The government offered a cash bonus of $10 to every farmer who settled on a free 160-acre homestead within six months of leaving Britain. Additional bonuses of $5. were offered to wives and family members over the age of 12, if they accompanied the homesteader. (Settlers had to farm and live on a homestead for six months a year over three years before they could claim title to their land).

jej's ad

http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.htmlhttp://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.html

kym's ad

The Hardship of Settlers of The West


http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page02_e.html
In 1872, the Dominion Lands Act was passed, granting 160 acres (647 497 m2) free to potential settlers so long as they met a number of conditions. These included building a dwelling, planting crops and living on the land for at least three years. Despite such incentives, a disappointingly low number of immigrants arrived before the late 1890s.

One of the major difficulties many of these farmers faced was arriving in a country where nothing was familiar. The landscape, climate and culture were all new to them. Most left countries where they were surrounded by trees and rolling hills. The vast, flat, sparsely wooded Canadian plains consequently was a shock to them. So too were the hard cold winters. Many arrived without the ability to speak either English or French, and with different religious, cultural and political experiences than those shared by Anglo-Saxon Canadians.
Some families, including the Kitzans, solved some of these problems by travelling further north into the parkland. Here, surrounded by trees, they often settled close to family and friends from their country of origin. The trade-off was that the land they settled was usually less fertile and harder to farm than the Prairie's grassland soil.

http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page03_e.html
Even if these farm families successfully built their homesteads and planted their crops, there were always factors beyond their control that could determine their success or failure. Drought, dust storms, hail, floods, frost, and blizzards were just some of the natural disasters a farming family might face.

Asv's ad

I got my information from the internet on Mrs. Heschuk's website. If I saw a poster to come to Canada, and it showed good things about Canada, I would because it would sound like a nice place, until I find out that the poster lied and I had to go through all the bad stuff that happens there.

Keb's ad

I got my information off of the sheets that we got during class. I think that if I was one of the people that lived somewhere different and wanted to come here, I would think about what kind of things that might be there.

jea's ad

http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.html
The vast territory was hard to live in. In those areas where wood was scarce. It was hard to make crops because of drought, dust storms, hail, floods, frost, and blizzards were just some of the natural disasters a farming family might face. It was to leave their homes because of ambushes or wild animals.
http://manitobia.ca/cocoon/launch/en/themes/bom
One of the major difficulties many of these farmers faced was arriving in a country where nothing was familiar. The landscape, climate and culture were all new to them. Most left countries where they were surrounded by trees and rolling hills. The vast, flat, sparsely wooded Canadian plains consequently were a shock to them. So too were the hard cold winters. Many arrived without the ability to speak either English or French, and with different religious, cultural and political experiences than those shared by Anglo-Saxon Canadians.

rik's ad

http://www.civilization.ca/hist/advertis/ads2-01e.html

In the 1870s and 1880s, the Allan Line of Steamers spent more money on advertising for immigrants to Canada.
But steamships could only bring immigrants so far.
A railway was urgently needed to take passengers west to settle the vast area of the North-West Territories
Recently acquired by the Canadian government.
The Americans had a national railway network in place by 1869.

http://www.civilization.ca/educat/oracle/modules/ckitzan/page01_e.html
Nicholas Kitzan came to Canada from Bukovyna, now part of Ukraine, to make enough money to bring his family to
the New World.
The Canadian government began its push to settle the Prairies by introducing a new initiative aimed at attracting settlers.

Sample Ad - Heschuk

Here is an ad that I created by modifying one of the advertisements that I found at the "Last Best West" site. I used the banner off one of the other advertisements, then I used information from the Last Best West site as well as from the article about hardships faced by the early settlers.

Research and Advertising Project

Background

Encouraging British and European immigrants to settle on the prairies was part of Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald's plan to establish Canadian sovereignty over the newly-acquired North-West Territories. Stretching from Ontario's border to British Columbia, (still a British colony), the Territories were transferred to Canada by the Hudson's Bay Company in 1869. Settlement was an urgent matter, and so was a railway to carry settlers west. There was already talk in the mid-western United States of expanding north of the border.

The Canadian Pacific Railway, so necessary to opening up the Territories to large-scale settlement, was a massive project that took many years to finance. Surveying prairie land for railway-building and white settlement signaled displacement to Native people and Metis, and an end to their traditional way of life.

Research and Persuasive Writing Project

While the government was concerned with promoting the settlement of western Canada, you can imagine that if the Native people and Métis had the same resources as the Canadian government in 1870, they would have been painting a much more somber picture of the life that awaited the settlers of western Canada. In fact, the “picture” that the advertising painted of Canada West was much rosier than what the reality turned out to be for most of the settlers.

Research the hardships that the settlers of western Canada would have endured during the early settlement of the North-West Territories of the 1870s. Then use this information to paint the “real” picture of settling in the west. Use the government’s advertising as models and create your own advertisements to convince the would-be settlers to “stay home” and not venture west. Use images and facts to persuade the potential settlers to not move west and take over the aboriginal and Métis land.