🏛️ Chapter 3: Canada's History
3.4.7 Moving Westward
2 paragraphs · 3 questions
An economic boom ran through the 1890s and the early 1900s. Canada's economy expanded in those years, and industry took a much bigger place in it. Newcomers poured in as well: one million came from Britain and one million from the United States. This was also the era of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, who took office as the first prime minister of French-Canadian origin since Confederation. He urged people to settle in the West. Look at a $5 bill and you will see his portrait.
Key Facts
- An economic boom ran through the 1890s and early 1900s
- One million newcomers came from Britain and one million from the United States
- Laurier was the first prime minister of French-Canadian origin since Confederation
- Laurier urged people to settle in the West; the $5 bill carries his portrait
The railway made settlement of the West possible. Before 1914 it carried 170,000 Ukrainians and 115,000 Poles to the prairies, along with tens of thousands of people from Germany, France, Norway and Sweden. These newcomers broke the land and built a thriving agricultural sector where there had been almost no farms before.
Key Facts
- The railway made western settlement possible
- 170,000 Ukrainians and 115,000 Poles settled in the West before 1914
- Tens of thousands also came from Germany, France, Norway and Sweden
- Settlers built a thriving agricultural sector on the prairies
Test yourself on this topic
3 practice questions from “Moving Westward”, each with the answer explained.
- What is Sir Wilfrid Laurier remembered for?
- Whose portrait appears on the $5 bill?
- About how many Ukrainians settled in the West before 1914?
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