1918 in Canada

Events from the year 1918 in Canada.

Incumbents

Crown

• Monarch – George V<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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Federal government

• Governor General – Victor Cavendish, 9th Duke of Devonshire
• Prime Minister – Robert Borden
• Chief Justice – Charles Fitzpatrick (Quebec) (until 21 October) then Louis Henry Davies (Prince Edward Island) (from 23 October)
• Parliament – 13th (from 16 March)

Provincial governments

Lieutenant governors

• Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – Robert Brett
• Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – Francis Stillman Barnard
• Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – James Albert Manning Aikins
• Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – William Pugsley
• Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – MacCallum Grant
• Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – John Strathearn Hendrie
• Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Augustine Colin Macdonald
• Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Pierre-Évariste Leblanc (until October 18) then Charles Fitzpatrick (from October 21)
• Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Richard Stuart Lake

Premiers

• Premier of Alberta – Charles Stewart
• Premier of British Columbia – Harlan Brewster (until March 1) then John Oliver (from March 6)
• Premier of Manitoba – Tobias Norris
• Premier of New Brunswick – Walter Foster
• Premier of Nova Scotia – George Henry Murray
• Premier of Ontario – William Hearst
• Premier of Prince Edward Island – Aubin Arsenault
• Premier of Quebec – Lomer Gouin
• Premier of Saskatchewan – William Melville Martin

Territorial governments

Commissioners

• Commissioner of Yukon – George Norris Williams (acting) (until April 1)
• Gold Commissioner of Yukon – George P. MacKenzie (from April 1)
• Commissioner of Northwest Territories – Frederick D. White (until September 27) then William Wallace Cory

Events

• March 1 – Harlan Brewster, premier of British Columbia, dies in office
• March 6 – John Oliver becomes premier of British Columbia
• March 28 – April 1 – In the Easter Riots in Quebec City, the Militia suppress anti-conscription protesters. Four civilians are killed.
• March 30 – C Squadron of Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) conducts a cavalry charge against the Germans at Moreuil Wood. The squadron suffers atrocious casualties, but the action is one of the keys of halting the German advance in Operation Michael. Lieutenant Gordon Flowerdew will be awarded the Victoria Cross posthumously.
• April 21 – Canadian Captain Roy Brown (209 Squadron, RAF) supposedly shoots down the famed Red Baron. More accepted theories credit either Sergeant Cedric Popkin (Australian 24th Machine Gun Company), Gunner Snowy Evans or Gunner Robert Buie (both of 53rd Battery, 14th Field Artillery Brigade, RAA) with the kill.
• May 24 – Canadian women (except status Indians) obtain the right to vote in federal elections (even if they did not yet have the right to vote in provincial elections); some limited women's suffrage had been granted the year earlier. Status Indians gained federal suffrage in 1960.<ref>Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women. http://criaw-icref.ca/millenium Template:Webarchive</ref>
• August 2 – The Vancouver general strike, the first general strike in Canada, triggered by the killing of Ginger Goodwin by police.
• August 8 – World War I: At the Battle of Amiens superior Canadian gunners assist a great allied breakthrough (also called Canada's 100 Days)
• August 26 – September 3 – Battle of Arras, 1918
• September – Canadian forces arrive in northern Russia to assist the White movement against the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War
• September 2–3 – Battle of Drocourt-Quéant Line
• September 9–12 – Battle of the Hindenburg Line
• September 27 – October 2 – Battle of Canal du Nord
• October 8–9 – Battle of Cambrai (1918)
• October 10 – Two squadrons of the Canadian Light Horse charge the enemy at Iwuy, northeast of Cambrai. This was the last combat charge in the history of Canadian cavalry.
• October 26 – The Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Force arrives in Vladivostok to aid the White movement in the Russian Civil War
• November 1–2 – Battle of Valenciennes
• November 11 – The Armistice goes into effect, ending combat on the Western Front. Over 600 000 Canadians fought in Europe: 70 000 were killed and 173 000 were wounded.
• December 4 – The lead elements of the Canadian Corps enter Germany.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• December 13 – The Canadian Corps parades across bridges over the Rhine, the 1st Division at South Bridge (Cologne) and the 2nd Division at Bonn.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Canadians participate in the Occupation of the Rhineland until gradually withdrawn starting in January 1919.

Full date unknown

• The Statistics Act is passed, creating the Dominion Bureau of Statistics
• Canada demands and receives – over the initial opposition of Britain, France and the USA – the right to participate in the Versailles Peace Conference and in the League of Nations.

Arts and literature

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Sport

• March 30 – The Toronto Hockey Club win their first and only Stanley Cup by defeating the Vancouver Millionaires 3 game to 2. All games were played at Toronto's Arena Gardens

Births

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January to June

• January 12 – Mike Laffin, politician and dentist (d. 2019)
• February 6 – Louis Dudek, poet, literary critic and publisher (d.2001)
• February 13 – Ross Whicher, politician and businessman (d.2002)
• February 22 – Sid Abel, ice hockey player and coach (d.2000)
• February 27 – Marcel Bourbonnais, politician (d.1996)
• March 15 – William McIntyre, Canadian Puisne Justice (d. 2009)
• April 2 – Marion Bryden, politician (d.2013)
• April 16 – Murray Westgate, actor (d. 2018)
• April 23 – Margaret Avison, poet (d.2007)
• May 1 – Raymond Mailloux, politician (d. 1995)
• May 15 – Saul Laskin, politician and 1st Mayor of Thunder Bay (d.2008)
• May 15 – Joseph Wiseman, actor (d. 2009)
• May 28 – Johnny Wayne, comedian and comedy writer (d.1990)
• June 10 – Barry Morse, actor (d.2008)
• June 23 – Madeleine Parent, labour activist, feminist, aboriginal rights activist (d. 2012)

July to December

• July 15 – Bertram Brockhouse, physicist, shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1994 (d.2003)
• July 18 – Nelson Mandela, one of only two honorary Canadian citizens
• August 5 – Betty Oliphant, ballet mistress, co-founder of the National Ballet School of Canada (d.2004)
• October 19 – Toddy Kehoe, politician and disability rights activist (d.2024)
• October 25 – Bobby Gimby, orchestra leader, trumpeter and singer-songwriter (d.1998)
• October 27 – Gérard Tremblay, Canadian Roman Catholic bishop (d.2019)
• November 13 – George Grant, philosopher, teacher and political commentator (d.1988)
• November 17 – Prosper Boulanger, politician and businessman (d.2002)
• November 19 – Lloyd Crouse, businessman, politician and Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia (d.2007)
• December 20 – Jean Marchand, trade unionist and politician (d.1988)
• December 30 – Al Purdy, poet (d.2000)

Deaths

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• January 1 – Anson Dodge, lumber dealer and politician (b.1834)

File:John McCrae in uniform circa 1914.jpg

John McCrae in uniform, circa 1914

• January 28 – John McCrae, poet, physician, author, artist and soldier (b.1872)
• March 1 – Harlan Carey Brewster, politician and Premier of British Columbia (b.1870)
• March 21 – Henry Joseph Walker, politician and merchant (b.1849)
• April 9 – Charles Fleetford Sise, businessman (b.1834)
• August 18 – Henry Norwest, sniper in World War I (b.1884)
• September 21 — Emily Julian McManus poet, author, and educator (b.1865)
• October 11 – Wallace Lloyd Algie, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1891)
• October 18 – Pierre-Évariste Leblanc, politician and Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (b.1853)
• November 11 – George Lawrence Price, last Commonwealth casualty of World War I (b.1898)

Historical documents

Federal vote goes to women who are British subjects (by birth or marriage) and not disqualified by "race, blood or original nationality"<ref>"An Act to confer the Electoral Franchise upon Women" House of Commons; Copies of All House of Commons Bills Introduced during the Session 1918, PDF pg. 22, Library of Parliament. Access 4 June 2023</ref>

British prime minister Lloyd George details British war aims, including liberation and self-determination of nations<ref>"Labor Men Hear Lloyd George on British War Aims" The (Calgary) Morning Albertan (January 7, 1918), No. 261, pg. 1. Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

What Quebec wants is respect from "Anglo-Canadians" for French language, Roman Catholicism and French traditions and ideals (like love of Canada)<ref>What Quebec Wants; Reply of La Presse to a Question from Ontario (1918), pgs. 14–17. Accessed 16 May 2022</ref>

Ontario women recruited for summer work in food production<ref>Trades and Labour Branch, Department of Public Works, "Women's Work on the Land; How You May Assist in Food Production this Summer". Accessed 18 March 2020</ref>

Saskatchewan Victoria Cross winner Hugh Cairns cited for "most conspicuous bravery<ref>"Awarded The Victoria Cross; 472168 Sergeant Hugh Cairns, D.C.M.[....]" Accessed 17 March 2020 http://scaa.usask.ca/gallery/war/memorials.html (scroll down to Cairns)</ref>

His brother describes presentation of Victoria Cross to George Pearkes, "looking a very fine soldier indeed"<ref>Letter of W.A. Pearkes (June 22, 1918). Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

Account of Canadian cavalry action resulting in Victoria Cross award for Gordon Flowerdew<ref>"Lieutenant Gordon Muriel Flowerdew, Lord Strathcona's Horse" Thirty Canadian V.Cs., pgs. 94-6. Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

Shot-down pilot describes jumping from his falling plane despite bullet wounds and burns<ref>Letter of Alan Arnett McLeod (April 2, 1918). Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

Canadian soldier describes his psychological strain<ref>Letter of Don Mackenzie (June 29, 1918). Accessed 17 March 2020 https://archives.queensu.ca/exhibits/archival-resources-teachers/archival-look-world-war-i/warfare-wwi (scroll down to "Wilma" and click on page images)</ref>

Folksy Canadian enjoys leave in Paris, despite street crime<ref>Letter of Jack Malcolm Brown (January 3, 1918). Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

Soldier appreciates "toothsomeness" of Christmas treats after living on hardtack and bully beef<ref>Letter of Joseph McCartney (January 22, 1918). Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

U.S. soldier newspaper salutes Canadian forces, but confuses Victoria Day and Dominion Day<ref>"Hail, Canada!" The Stars and Stripes (May 24, 1918), pg. 4, and "Canada's Own Day," The Stars and Stripes (June 28, 1918), pg. 4. Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

Saint John Housewives' League and War Gardens Association exhibit their prowess and patriotism in competitive exhibitions<ref>Exhibition pamphlets. Accessed 18 March 2020 http://website.nbm-mnb.ca/MOP/english/ww1/dosearch.asp?browse=8&results=50&all=true (scroll down to "War Gardens")</ref>

Rundown of Canada's war effort in military manpower and materiel, food and fuel control, volunteer and women's roles, and veteran rehabilitation<ref>Canada's War Effort; 1914–1918 (1918). (See also 1918 film on manufacture of artillery shells in Ontario) Accessed 15 May 2022</ref>

Photos: Saanich-based Muggins the Red Cross Dog poses with military personnel in his fundraising campaign that brought in thousands of dollars<ref>Occupations-Military Personnel Muggins (Red Cross Dog) Collection, Saanich Archives. Accessed 3 July 2022</ref>

Ontario health board's tips and myths regarding influenza<ref>Ontario Provincial Board of Health, "Influenza Precautions; Warning to Health Authorities". Accessed 18 March 2020</ref>

Various Montreal community groups aid fight against influenza<ref>S. Boucher, MD, "The Epidemic of Influenza," The Canadian Medical Association Journal (December 1918), pgs. 1090-1. Accessed 17 March 2020</ref>

Death notice for Mi'kmaq grand chief John Denny Jr. and inauguration of new grand chief Gabriel Sylliboy on Cape Breton Island<ref>Helen Sylliboy (translation), "Message on the Death of Chief John Denny" and "September 1918" Accessed 18 March 2020</ref>

United Farm Women of Ontario get their male counterparts to work with them<ref>"Chapter V; The United Farm Women" The Challenge of Agriculture; The Story of the United Farmers of Ontario (1921), pgs. 115-27. Accessed 18 March 2020</ref>

United Farmers of Ontario protest undemocratic wartime government practices<ref>"Appendix; The Remonstrance" The Challenge of Agriculture; The Story of the United Farmers of Ontario (1921), pgs. 193-6. Accessed 18 March 2020</ref>

Basic English manual is aimed at foreign-born adults of "industrial class"<ref>George Elmore Reaman, "Preface" English for New Canadians (1919), pg. 7. Accessed 18 March 2020</ref>

Labour lawyer comments at length on deteriorating worker-management relations in Winnipeg<ref>Letter of Thomas Murray (May 28, 1918). Accessed 19 March 2020</ref>

Journalist says people in central Canada have no more influence on government than Westerners do (and perhaps less)<ref>Bernard K. Sandwell, "West, East and the Government" Westing (1918), pgs. 14–15. Accessed 19 March 2020</ref>

Vilhjalmur Stefansson speaks on difficulties of his Arctic explorations, and overcoming them<ref>Vilh Jalmur [sic] Stefansson, "The Canadian Arctic Region" The Empire Club of Canada Addresses, pgs. 364-79. Accessed 19 March 2020</ref>

University of Manitoba convocation speaker addresses optimism<ref>Robert Law, "Optimism" (May 10, 1918). Accessed 19 March 2020</ref>

Wilfrid Laurier comments on Louis Hémon's novel Maria Chapdelaine<ref>Oscar Douglas Skelton, Life and Letters of Sir Wilfrid Laurier; Volume II (1921), pgs. 552-3. Accessed 19 March 2020</ref>