nPostednDecember 31, 2013
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n Onnthis date in 1857, Queen Victoria selected a small logging town asncapital of Canada.
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nIncan just picture her announcing that Ottawa would be the new capital,nand larger cities such as Quebec City, Toronto, and Montreal lookingnat one another and saying, “What? Who? Why?”
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nYounknow, if cities could talk!
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nActually,nCanada then (and to some extent now) was a little bit like twondifferent countries. In Canada East (once called “Lower Canada”),nthe French-speaking people were primarily Catholic and conservative.nIn Canada West, (once called “Upper Canada”), thenEnglish-speaking people were primarily Protestant and reformist.
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nIfnQueen Victoria had chosen Quebec City or Montreal as capital of thenentire nation, the people of Ontario (Canada West) would have beennquite unhappy. If she had chosen Toronto, of course, the people ofnQuebec (Canada East) would’ve been unhappy. Ottawa was on the bordernbetween the two regions and was therefore a compromise.
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nAlso,nMontreal and Toronto were quite close to the U.S. border. The War ofn1812 had shown that they were vulnerable to American attack—andnOttawa was some 70 kilometers (more than 40 miles) away, and (at thatntime) surrounded by dense-and-protective forest. Still, Ottawa couldneasily be reached via the Ottawa River and a canal.
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| Ottawa sculptor John Ceprano stacks up rocks each summer to create an interesting sculpture. |
n(Bynthe way… Even as recently as 1840, people spoke of the Canadas, plural. It was in 1841 that Lowernand Upper Canada were united in the Province of Canada.)
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nFunnthings about Ottawa
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nAnn old jail (the county gaol) has been made into hotel.
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Theren is a Cold War Museum with the real bunker-for-Canada’s-government,n preserved from the 1960s. There is a blast tunnel, the primen minister’s secret hideout, and a war room.n
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nOttawan has a thriving “Chinatown,” with Vietnamese, Korean, and Thain restaurants as well as (of course) Chinese restaurants. And anothern neighborhood is called Little Italy!
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nSupremen Court justices, members of Parliament, and lawyers take part in ann annual “Lawyer Play” to raise funds for the Great Canadiann Theatre Company.
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nAlsonon this date:
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Thenlast day of the year
Thenlast day of the year
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nAnniversarynof a New Year’s Eve party inside an iguanodon
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nAnniversarynof a New Year’s Eve party inside an iguanodon
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Anniversarynof a window tax in England
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Anniversarynof a window tax in Englandn
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nPlannahead:
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nChecknout my Pinterest pages on:
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- Historicaln anniversaries in December
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nJanuaryn birthdays
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