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

Nicole O’Byrne speaks with Donald Savoie about his book Louis J. Robichaud. Louis J. Robichaud, the first elected Acadian premier of New Brunswick, transformed an inward-looking province with an ingrained aversion to change into a vibrant modern society now home to strong political, administrative, and educational institutions. Donald Savoie draws a portrait of adroit political leadership and of a man who, recognizing his province’s need for modernization, rose unwaveringly to the demands of office and ushered in profound and enduring change for Acadians and for all New Brunswickers.

In a timely biography informed by a long friendship between fellow Acadians, Savoie contrasts the challenges of governing New Brunswick in the 1960s with those faced by governments and political leaders today to better understand the magnitude of Robichaud’s accomplishments over a ten-year span. Leading a province with a long history of intolerance towards minority groups, notably Acadians, Robichaud’s Liberal government confronted the dominant Anglo-Protestant political class and introduced reforms that included the Official Languages Act, broader access to education for francophones, the establishment of the Université de Moncton, and initiatives in regional and natural resource development, health care, and equitable public services across the province’s disparately funded urban and rural counties. Seismic changes at the time, these reforms are now woven into the social fabric of New Brunswick.

Informative and lively, Louis J. Robichaud argues convincingly that while the premier’s achievements can be viewed as specific to his era, his political fortitude and vision are a model for politicians, legislators, and civil servants today.

Donald J. Savoie holds the Clément-Cormier Research Chair in Economic Development at the Donald J. Savoie Institute. He is the author of numerous books including Speaking Truth to Canadians about Their Public Service.

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.

Larry Ostola speaks with Craig Baird about his new book Canada’s Main Street. Much has been written about the Canadian Pacific Railway, the first major transportation network that bound Canada coast to coast, but almost nothing about The Trans-Canada Highway, even though more people use it regularly, it’s at least as vital to the nation’s business, and its story is every bit as fascinating as the CPR’s.

Prior to the Second World War, only an adventurer would have driven cross-country on Canada’s haphazard network of highways, gravel roads, single lanes paths, open fields, and ferries. An act of Parliament in 1949 kicked off the ambitious building of a modern two-lane coast-to-coast highway. Stretching from Victoria to St. John’s and winding through the diverse cultures, landscapes, and history of all ten provinces, the Trans-Canada opened in 1960 and has been a centerpiece of the Canadian experience ever since—the route of countless road trips, holidays, migrations, and, of course, Terry Fox’s magnificent Marathon of Hope.

Now, for the first time, Craig Baird, host of Canadian History Ehx, the number one history podcast in Canada, tells the epic story of the Trans-Canada from conception to completion. Canada’s Main Street is an absorbing tale of the political intrigue, budgetary disasters, and heroic innovation that created our 7000-kilometre national lifeline.

Craig Baird is the creator and host of Canadian History Ehx, a podcast that delves into Canada's history to tell the story of the good, the bad and the weird of our history. Currently the top Canadian history podcast in Canada, he can also be heard across Canada each weekend talking about Canada's history on the Corus Radio Network. If he isn't writing about Canada's history, and sharing our nation's stories online, he is visiting historical locations and traveling to second-hand book stores to build his research library. He currently lives in Edmonton.

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.

Larry Ostola speaks with Brendan Kelly about his book Habs Nation. The history of the Montreal Canadiens is about more than just hockey. It’s also the story of how hockey’s most winning team has always skated hand-in-hand with its home province of Quebec.

Brendan Kelly takes a fresh look at the ups and downs of the Habs since the heyday of the “Flying Frenchmen” in the 50s, 60s and 70s and shows how the history of the team mirrors the tumultuous changes in Quebec over the past decades. Why was it that from 1955, year of the “Rocket Richard Riot,” until 1995, year of Quebec’s second referendum, the Canadiens won 17 Stanley Cups?

Kelly talks with former Canadiens greats like Serge Savard and Bob Gainey, journalists, politicians, filmmakers and even Lord of the Rings star Viggo Mortensen, maybe the Canadiens’ most famous fan—telling the tale of the team’s unique bond with its fans. One surprising conclusion is that when the team’s roster was at its most Québécois, the team had its greatest success on the ice. Since Montreal’s last Quebec superstar, Patrick Roy, was unceremoniously booted out of town, the franchise has failed to win a Stanley Cup and has rarely been amongst the NHL’s elite squads.

Brendan Kelly, born in Glasgow, raised in Montreal and a fan of the Canadiens for longer than he can remember, was one of the founders of the late great alternative weekly the Montreal Mirror. He worked at the Montreal Daily News in the late 80s and had a weekly music column on CBC Radio for over 30 years. His Montreal Gazette column “What the Puck” is a controversial contrarian hot take on the Canadiens that elicits much hate and even more love. He has written for the Gazette since 1996. He also contributes frequently to various Radio-Canada cultural shows.

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.

Larry Ostola speaks with Sylvain Charlebois about his book, Poutine Nation. Poutine Nation traces the evolution of poutine from its origins in rural Quebec to its status as a global phenomenon. Though it was once dismissed as lowbrow junk food, poutine has now earned a place in fine dining, fast food chains, and global pop culture.

Through a mix of history, cultural analysis, and personal anecdotes, Poutine Nation examines the social and economic forces behind food trends, exploring why some dishes fade into obscurity while others, like poutine, become beloved worldwide.

With a keen eye for detail and a touch of humour, leading food scientist Dr. Sylvain Charlebois investigates poutine’s role in Quebec’s cultural identity, its place in Canada’s culinary landscape, and the politics surrounding its success. He also explores the evolution of food trends, the psychology of taste, and the ways in which poutine’s global popularity reflects broader changes in how we eat and connect through food.

Sylvain Charlebois is a professor of management and the director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University. He is a co-host of The Food Professor podcast.

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.

James Stewart (J.D.M.) speaks with Ed Conroy about his book, ImagiNation: The Golden Age of Toronto Kids' TV.

Featuring over one hundred children’s programs broadcast between 1950 and 2000, ImagiNation is a memory-filled trip for anyone who spent their weekdays after school or Saturday mornings staring at the idiot box. The story of each Toronto-produced series is covered — from inception through production to broadcast — along with the tales of local stations and the people who made it all happen.

Ed Conroy is a cultural historian, writer, producer, archivist, and vintage video sleuth. He is the founder of Retrontario.com and his writing on Canadian pop culture and history has appeared in the Toronto Star, Toronto Life, blogTO, The Canadian Encyclopedia Blog, and YTV.com. He has appeared on CTV, TVOntario, CBC TV & Radio, Zoomer TV & Radio, and is a regular guest and occasional host on Newstalk 1010.

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.

Image Credit: Dundurn Press

James Stewart (J.D.M.) speaks with Peter MacLeod and Richard Johnson about their book, Democracy’s Second Act: Why Politics Needs the Public.

Democracy’s Second Act is a smart, story-driven blueprint for how democracies can move beyond gridlock and cynicism by giving ordinary citizens real power between elections. Drawing on vivid case studies from Ireland, Canada, France, and beyond, MacLeod and Johnson show how new democratic institutions are already revitalizing politics and creating fresh opportunities for reform-minded leaders. Lively, hopeful, and grounded in practice as well as theory, it’s perfect for readers who are looking for clear, engaging ideas about how democracy can evolve.

Peter MacLeod is the founder and principal of MASS LBP, where for nearly two decades he has been at the forefront of democratic innovation championing a new style of politics rooted in deliberation and shared power. A trusted advisor to governments at all levels, he is one of Canada’s leading voices on democracy, civic trust, and active citizenship.

Richard Johnson is a former journalist and current policy director at MASS LBP. His writing has appeared in The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, The Walrus, Reader’s Digest, This Magazine, The New Quarterly, and many others. A former Fellow in Literary Journalism at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, he was also a longtime writer for the award-winning podcast Trailblazers, with Walter Isaacson.

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.

Larry Ostola speaks with Barbara Messamore about her book Times of Transformation. Times of Transformation positions the watershed 1921 federal election in the context of activist efforts and the revolutionary mood in the years following the Great War. New Liberal leader William Lyon Mackenzie King, who went on to become Canada’s longest-serving prime minister, came to power, with his party capturing every Quebec seat. The 1921 election brought many Canadian firsts: the first post-Confederation minority government, the first time women were eligible to vote on terms equal to men, and the first effective fracturing of the two-party system, with the establishment of a federal Labour party and the dramatic rise of the Progressives.

In her engaging, in-depth account, Barbara Messamore shows how these changes had been brewing at the activist level even before the end of the war. The Progressive party owed its success to the increasing politicization of farmers and the importance of tariff policy, freight rates, and grain prices to the western voting base. Suffrage came after a decades-long battle for political rights for women. Labour strikes swept the nation in the post–Great War era, and a new national Labour party gained Commons representation. The 1921 election in Canada was a manifestation of long-building forces for change that embodied the global zeitgeist of postwar disillusionment and hope.

Barbara Messamore’s detailed exploration of this turning point election will appeal to those interested in history, biography, and the evolution of Canadian democracy

Barbara J. Messamore is a professor of history and department chair at the University of the Fraser Valley. She is the author of Canada’s Governors General, 1847–1878 and coauthor of Narrating a Nation: Canadian History Post-Confederation and Conflict and Compromise: Pre-Confederation Canada. She cofounded and edited the Journal of Historical Biography and is president of the Institute for the Study of the Crown in Canada.

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.

Nicole O’Byrne speaks with Adam Dodek about his book Constitutional Challengers. Behind every great constitutional case, there is a person with a fascinating story.

The Supreme Court decides some of the biggest issues in Canadian society: Do Canadians have the right to assisted suicide? Should same-sex couples be allowed to marry? How far does freedom of religion or freedom of expression go?

In Constitutional Challengers, Adam Dodek has gathered together twenty-six of the most significant constitutional cases, including five major decisions concerning Indigenous rights. Behind every one of these cases is a person who had a problem to solve and ended up entangled in the Canadian judicial system.

Some of these people became crusaders — people who campaigned for a cause and set out to change other people’s views and create broader social change. These individuals, such as sex-workers' rights advocate Terri-Jean Bedford and abortion provider Dr. Henry Morgentaler, are villains to some and heroes to others. But most of the people behind the biggest legal decisions weren’t trying to champion a cause; they were just trying to achieve a result that became much bigger than themselves. They were along for the ride — often a long and convoluted one — in the Canadian justice system. It’s within their journeys, often overlooked by the media, that the true victories and life-altering costs of standing up for one’s beliefs can be found

Adam Dodek is a professor and the former dean of the University of Ottawa Common Law Section. He teaches and writes about the Canadian Constitution and the Supreme Court of Canada. He has worked at the supreme Courts of both Canada and Israel, as well as the US Court of Appeals. Adam lives in Ottawa.

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.

Image Credit: Dundurn Press

Larry Ostola speaks with Dan Black about his book Oceans of Fate. The remarkable story of how one ship — doomed by war — intersected lives and crossed into history.

Completed in 1913 for Canadian Pacific, the Empress of Asia plied the oceans for nearly 30 years. Built for long-haul ocean travel during peace-time, she saw wartime service as an armed merchant cruiser and troopship before Japanese dive-bombers destroyed her in 1942.

Through the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression, she brought continents and people together, delivering mail and multimillion-dollar consignments of silk. As a luxurious passenger liner, she was a “Greyhound of the Pacific,” braving epic storms and smashing transpacific speed records. From stokehold to bridge, steerage to first-class staterooms, she steamed with a kaleidoscope of lives, including courageous and recalcitrant crew, immigrants and refugees seeking a better life or relief from disaster, drug smugglers, weapons dealers, and the idle and not-so-idle rich.

This is the dramatic story of how that one ship and the lives of those on board intersected during a tumultuous period of world history, culminating in her sinking off Singapore in the Second World War.

Dan Black is the former editor of Legion Magazine, and author or co-author of three previous books, including Harry Livingstone’s Forgotten Men: Canadians and the Chinese Labour Corps in the First World War, published 2019. He lives near Ottawa.

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.

Nicole O’Byrne speaks with Colin Coates about his book, Political Culture in Louis XIV’s Canada. In Louis XIV’s New France, colonial authorities attempted to reproduce French regal authority in novel ways, often by performing typical metropolitan political rituals. When these practices were transposed into the St Lawrence Valley settlements, where a small French population lived alongside a substantial Indigenous presence, they took on new meanings.

The colony of Canada replicated many features of the developing French absolutist state. Yet while the king likely knew more about his colony than he did about most parts of metropolitan France, this transatlantic setting imposed new constraints on absolutist authority, from the challenges of distance to an Indigenous population that largely lived outside European norms. Political Culture in Louis XIV’s Canada examines royal power as it was represented in ritual (ceremonial entrances, Te Deums, processions), in rhetoric (political disputes over cabals and factions), and in objects (portraits, royal busts, currency, buildings, maps, and censuses).

Colin M. Coates is professor of Canadian studies and history at York University and author of The Metamorphoses of Landscape and Community in Early Quebec.

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.