Highlights of the day

  • 1719 Michel-Philippe Isabeau starts to build the Fortress of Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island.

List of Facts for March 7

  • 1604 Settlement - Pierre de Monts, Samuel de Champlain and Sieur de Poutrincourt leave Havre-de-Grace for Acadia; Poutrincourt wants to relocate his family to New France and establish a settlement; François Gravé du Pont sails three days earlier. Le Havre, France
  • 1657 Aboriginal - King Louis XIV prohibits sale of liquor to Indians in New France. Paris, France
  • 1719 Military - Michel-Philippe Isabeau starts to build Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island; engineer under director of fortifications Jean-François de Verville, who recommended the site in 1716. The fortress takes 25 years to build . Louisbourg, Nova Scotia
  • 1778 Exploration - Captain James Cook reaches the shore of present-day Oregon in HMS Resolution and HMS Discovery; a gale pushes him northwest toward Nootka Bay on Vancouver Island, which he believed to be the mainland. He passes Juan de Fuca Strait without realizing it led inland - a midshipman on the Discovery, George Vancouver, will sail into the strait 15 years later and show that the land Cook was now approaching was, in fact, an island.
  • 1800 Urban - Philemon Wright founds Wrightstown, which he later renames Hull, after the birthplace of his parents in England; Wright led a group of 5 families and 33 labourers from Woburn, Massachusetts to the Ottawa Valley; their colony does not thrive until the building of the Rideau Canal and development of the timber trade. Gatineau, Québec
  • 1842 Education - Founding of Queen’s University; First in Ontario. Kingston, Ontario
  • 1866 Military - Minister of Militia George-Étienne Cartier puts 10,000 militia on alert after Fenians hold meeting in New York and threaten invasion; as precaution against anticipated attacks on St. Patrick’s Day. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1867 Rail - New Brunswick legislature rejects Confederation; angling for better terms, and the Intercolonial Railway. Fredericton, New Brunswick
  • 1878 Finance - Toronto Stock Exchange incorporates; Ontario charter confirms TSE organization; rate scale is 1/2% for stocks and debentures; 1/4% if over $2,000. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1878 Education - Université de Montréal chartered. Montréal, Québec
  • 1878 Education - University of Western Ontario chartered. London, Ontario
  • 1896 Aboriginal - US president Grover Cleveland signs the bill dissolving the northern half of the Colville Indian Reservation in Washington State. Washington, DC
  • 1900 Boer War - Canadian Volunteers engage Boers in artillery fight at Poplar Grove. Poplar Grove, South Africa
  • 1900 Hockey - Montreal Shamrocks win the Stanley Cup. Montréal, Québec
  • 1907 Justice - Judicature Act, which establishes a Supreme Court of Saskatchewan, is introduced to the Saskatchewan Legislature and passes the next day. Regina, Saskatchewan
  • 1908 Education - The University of British Columbia is founded as a branch of McGill University. Vancouver, BC
  • 1919 Rail - Government appoints receiver for bankrupt Grand Trunk Pacific Railway. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1921 Hockey - Cy Dennehy of the Ottawa Senators scores six goals in a 12-5 victory over the Hamilton Tigers. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1927 Rail - Columbia and Kootenay Railway and Transportation Company dissolved and removed from the BC Registry of Companies. Victoria, BC
  • 1928 Transport - CPR launches steamboat Granthall (164 tons) at Nelson; retired in 1958. Nelson, BC
  • 1939 Music - Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians record their signature tune, Auld Lang Syne, for the First time, on Decca Records; Lombardo born in London, Ontario. New York, New York
  • 1940 Hockey - Montréal Canadiens lose NHL record tying 15th straight game at home. Montréal, Québec
  • 1945 Second World War - Allied forces to cross the Rhine River south of Cologne, and take the city. Cologne, Germany
  • 1954 Hockey - Canada loses to Russia 7-2 in International Ice Hockey final; Russia’s First World Ice Hockey tournament. Stockholm, Sweden
  • 1963 Terrorism - FLQ starts campaign of violence by hurling Molotov cocktails at three Canadian Army armories. Québec
  • 1965 Religion - Roman Catholic churches in Canada celebrate Mass in the English or French vernacular for the First time; due to the reforms of Vatican II. Canada
  • 1968 Military - Canadian External Affairs Minister Paul Martin, Sr. says Canada will participate with the US in developing airborne radar system to replace DEW Line. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1969 Terrorism - Pierre-Paul Geoffroy pleads guilty to 129 charges of placing bombs, conspiracy, theft and possession of dynamite; FLQ member connected to 31 Montréal-area bombings. Montréal, Québec
  • 1970 Astronomy - Total solar eclipse passes over the Maritimes.
  • 1972 Environment - Norah Michener gives 13 sq km to Northwest Territories for game reserve; to establish Norah Willis Michener Game Preserve; wife of Governor General Roland Michener. NWT
  • 1974 Aboriginal - Ottawa starts 5-year plan to build 50,000 housing units for rural and native families; payments geared to incomes. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1977 Mining - Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan acquires second mine; provincial ownership of potash industry now 20%. Saskatchewan
  • 1986 Hockey - Edmonton Oilers Wayne Gretzky breaks own NHL season record with 136th assist. Edmonton, Alberta
  • 1990 Energy - British Gas bids $1.1 billion for Consumers Gas from Reichmann family. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1990 Figure Skating - Lloyd Eisler & Isabelle Brasseur win Silver Medal in Pairs figure skating at World Figure Skating Championships. Halifax, Nova Scotia
  • 1990 Aboriginal - Nova Scotia Court of Appeal rules Nova Scotia Micmacs have constitutional right to hunt and fish for food as long as they obey conservation guidelines. Nova Scotia
  • 1991 Space - Industry Minister Benoît Bouchard awards Spar Aerospace $195m to design Mobile Servicing System for Freedom space station; $1.2b over next ten years; 11 companies involved. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1998 Curling - Labatt Brier opens in Winnipeg; Ontario will win the tourney, defeating Québec 7-4 on March 15, 1998. Winnipeg, Manitoba
  • 2002 Aboriginal - James K. Bartleman installed as Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. Toronto, Ontario