Witness to Yesterday (The Champlain Society Podcast on Canadian History)

By The Champlain SocietyHistory

Witness to Yesterday (The Champlain Society Podcast on Canadian History) episodes

January 20, 2022 The War Measures Act in Canada
Patrice Dutil discusses the uses of the War Measures Act in twentieth century Canada with Xavier Gelinas, the curator of political history at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau and the co-author of Lost Liberties: The War Measures Act, published by the Canadian Museum of History. The discussion examines the origins of this legislation and its application during the First World War, the Second World War and during the October Crisis of 1970. The motivations of the various governments are examined as are the chief victims of the WMA: relatively new immigrants, Japanese Canadians during 1942-45 and dissidents. The WMA is also considered for what it reveals about Canadian political culture. Finally, the difficulties in rendering judgment are explored. This podcast was produced by Jessica Schmidt.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
43 min
January 13, 2022 The Psychedelic world of Hollywood Hospital
In this podcast episode, Greg Marchildon interviews Erika Dyck on the book she co-authored with Jesse Donaldson on an unusual chapter in Canada’s medical history. Entitled The Acid Room: The Psychedelic Trials and Tribulations of Hollywood Hospital, this book was published by Vancouver’s Anvil Press in 2021. This is a history of a private hospital in greater Vancouver which specialized in treatments for alcoholism, trauma and other conditions using LSD, mescalin and other psychotropic substances from the late 1950s until it shut down in the early 1970s. Erika Dyck is professor of History and Canada Research Chair in the History of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
33 min
December 16, 2021 Mackenzie King and the Three Amigos
Patrice Dutil and Neville Thompson examine a critical moment in Canadian diplomatic history when Prime Minister Mackenzie King worked closely with Winston Churchill and Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the Second World War. Thompson, professor emeritus at Western University, is the author of The Third Man: Churchill, Roosevelt, Mackenzie King and the Untold Friendships that Won WWII (Sutherland House). They reflect on the relations King entertained over many years with Churchill and Roosevelt and discuss the importance of personal friendships in the making of foreign relations. They also discuss the evolution of history writing in Canada as well as the impact of a long writing and research career on how historical events are perceived. This podcast was produced by Jessica Schmidt.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
52 min
December 16, 2021 The Canada-US border: a history of a fluid and unstable boundary
In this podcast episode, Greg Marchildon interviews Benjamin Hoy, the author of A Line of Blood and Dirt: Creating the Canada-United States Border across Indigenous Lands. Published by Oxford University Press in 2021, Hoy’s book is a history of the infrastructure, policies, and personnel that were put in place over the past three centuries to create a boundary between the United States and British North America and, subsequently, Canada after 1867. Hoy also examines the impact of this boundary on Indigenous peoples who lived on either side of this border, or on both sides simultaneously. A transnational historian and a dual citizen of both Canada and the United States, Benjamin Hoy is an Associate Professor of History at the University of Saskatchewan.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
36 min
December 09, 2021 The Iconic Massey Hall in Toronto
Patrice Dutil discusses the history and symbolism of Massey Hall in Toronto with David McPherson, the author of Massey Hall (Dundurn Press). Together they examine the origins of the building as a gift to the city from Hart Massey and its evolution as an iconic building with a unique significance in the entertainment and social history of Toronto. Many key events are reviewed as well as its architectural transitions as it sought to respond to the city’s needs. Among the artists mentioned are Nana Mouskouri, the Mendelsohn Choir, the Toronto Symphony, and the famous Jazz concert of May 1953, The podcast was produced by Jessica Schmidt.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
36 min
December 02, 2021 The Ambition and Vision of Joey Smallwood
Greg Marchildon interviews Peter Neary, the co-author (with Melvin Baker) of Joseph Roberts Smallwood: Masthead Newfoundlander, 1900-1949, published by McGill-Queen’s University Press in 2021.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
37 min
November 26, 2021 The 1921 Election, 100 years later
Patrice Dutil discusses the nature and impact of the federal election which took place on 6 December 1921 with Raymond Blake of the University of Regina. The 1921 election was a turning point in the history of Canadian politics for many reasons. It was the first election when all women in the country were entitled to vote. It was the first of many contests between a young Mackenzie King as Liberal leader and Arthur Meighen, the Conservative Prime Minister of Canada. Mostly, it is remembered as the election when a third party was established as the Progressives led by Thomas Crerar took 58 of 235 seats in the House of Commons. The King Liberals were elected with a bare majority but would plant the seeds of a dynasty that would last 37 years. The podcast was produced by Jessica Schmidt.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
39 min
November 18, 2021 The Pre-History of Multiculturalism in Canada
In this podcast episode, Greg Marchildon interviews Daniel Meister, the author of The Racial Mosaic: A Pre-History of Canadian Multiculturalism published by McGill-Queen’s University Press in 2021. This book recounts the history of the concept of multiculturalism in the decades before the establishment of multiculturalism as an official policy of the Government of Canada in 1971. Meister examines this intellectual history through the thinking of three influential individuals: Watson Kirkconnell, Robert England, and John Murray Gibbon. In the process, they explore concepts such as scientific racism, citizenship and folk culture. A recent PhD graduate of the history department at Queen’s University, Daniel Meister is currently an independent historian based in Halifax.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
32 min
November 10, 2021 The Canadian Army and Civilians in Europe 1944-45
Patrice Dutil talks with David A. Borys about how the Canadian Army looked after the civilian population it encountered in the wake of its pursuit of the Nazi army in 1944-45. Borys is the author of is Civilians at the Sharp End: First Canadian Army Civil Affairs in Northwest Europe published by McGill-Queens University Press. The origins of the Civilian Affairs branch are explored as are the relief efforts in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and in Germany. How the branch managed famine, public administration, the restoration of law and order, as well as dealing with underground operations in France and in the Netherlands as well as the military government in Germany where denazification are discussed. This podcast was produced by Jessica Schmidt.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: https://bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
31 min
November 04, 2021 The History of the Rowell-Sirois Commission and the Reshaping of Canadian Federalism
In this podcast episode, Greg Marchildon interviews Barry Ferguson on his new book, co-authored with fellow historian Robert Wardhaugh. The Rowell-Sirois Commission and the Remaking of Canadian Federalism was published by the University of British Columbia Press in 2021. This interview examines the origins of this significant Royal Commission, the way in which it was run by its staff, its tenuous relationship with some of the provinces and especially Premier Mitch Hepburn of Ontario and Premier Maurice Duplessis of Quebec. A member of the Department of History at the University of Manitoba for many years, Professor Ferguson has recently retired and lives on Vancouver Island. His co-author is Professor of History at Western University.
If you like our work, please consider supporting it: bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.
32 min

About Witness to Yesterday (The Champlain Society Podcast on Canadian History)

From the publisher's feed

Immerse yourself in Canada’s history! Witness to Yesterday episodes take listeners on a journey to document a time in Canada’s past and explore the people behind it, its significance, and its…