Highlights of the day

  • 1880 Globe editor George Brown shot by ex-employee George Bennett; dies of wounds.
  • 1958 The Great Zura takes the CF-105 Avro Arrow for its first flight.

List of Facts for March 25

  • 1584 Exploration - Walter Raleigh renews Humphrey Gilbert’s patent to explore North America. London, England
  • 1752 Charles de Longueuil appointed Intendant of New France after death of La Jonquière. Québec, Québec
  • 1776 American Revolutionary War - American invaders win skirmish at St. Pierre. St-Pierr, Québec
  • 1805 Farming - Lower Canada Assembly passes an act to preserve apple trees; also First Canadian legislation for the control of farm pests. Montréal, Québec
  • 1807 Human Rights - King George III proclaims the Act for the Abolition of the Slave Trade in the British Empire; the abolition campaign had been led by British MP William Wilberforce. London, England
  • 1815 War of 1812 - BNA Governor George Prevost informs the Lower Canada Assembly that the Prince Regent (later George IV) has ordered him to England, to answer charges relating to the Battle of Lake Champlain and the navy. Quebec, Quebec
  • 1820 Banking - Incorporation of the Bank of New Brunswick at Saint John, New Brunswick. Fredericton, New Brunswick
  • 1839 Aroostook War - Truce called in damaging Aroostook lumber war over New Brunswick boundary with Maine; later agreement between Lord Ashburton and Daniel Webster. Aroostook, New Brunswick
  • 1853 Human Rights - Medoia - Samuel Ward & Mary Ann Shadd publish First edition of The Provincial Freeman, a newspaper for the 40,000 blacks who had fled slavery in the southern US. Windsor, Ontario
  • 1862 Religion - John Lewis elected First Anglican Bishop of Ontario. Kingston, Ontario
  • 1880 Crime - Globe editor George Brown shot in his office by George Bennett, a disgruntled ex-employee; Brown pushed the gun down so Bennett only shot him in the leg, but the wound turned gangrenous, and 7 weeks later on May 9, 1880, Brown died; Bennett was hanged for murder. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1884 Justice - Ainsworths’ appeal of Bluebell decision commences in Victoria before Matthew Begbie, H.P.P. Crease & George Walkem. Victoria, BC
  • 1884 Education - Victoria College in Toronto becomes Victoria University. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1886 Labour - Ontario Legislature passes Workman’s Compensation Act; First Act of its kind in Canada. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1889 Mining - Crow’s Nest Coal and Mineral Company incorporated in British Columbia: trustees; Colonel Baker, Wm. and Peter Creake Fernie, Edwd. Bray and J. Despard Pemberton. Capitalization, $2 million. Victoria, BC
  • 1893 Crime - Religion - Toronto cab driver fined for driving on Sunday; $2 or 10 days in jail. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1897 Second session of the 8th Parliament of Canada meets; until June 29, 1897. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1903 Alaska Boundary - Anglo-American Convention decides to define the Alaska-Canada border as it is today; US President Theodore Roosevelt had threatened to send in troops if the boundary was not fixed the way the US wanted. Left out of the talks, Canada ended up with no seaports in northern BC or the Yukon, and the resulting anti-British sentiment led to the founding of the Department of External Affairs in 1909. Washington, DC
  • 1907 Hockey - Montreal Wanderers lose to Kenora Thistles but win the Stanley Cup by outscoring them 12-8 in the 2 game series. Montréal, Québec
  • 1913 Urban - Red Deer becomes the sixth city in Alberta. Red Deer, Alberta
  • 1924 Hockey - NHL Montréal Canadiens sweep the Calgary Tigers of the Western Canada Hockey League in the second of two games for the Stanley Cup. Montréal, Québec
  • 1926 Environment - Canadian National Parks Association passes a resolution opposing the attempt of the Alberta government to control the natural resources in Rocky Mountain Park, Jasper Park and Waterton Lakes Park. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1926 Politics - T.C. Norris resigns as leader of the Liberal party in Manitoba; served as Premier from 1915-1922. Winnipeg, Manitoba
  • 1929 Mining - Fire discovered in a collapsed roadway in the No.1 East mine at Coal Creek. Coal Creek, BC
  • 1936 Hockey - Detroit Red Wings finally beat the Montréal Maroons 1-0 after midnight in the NHL’s longest game, 2 hours, 56 minutes and 30 seconds; the game began on March 24, 1936. Detroit, Michigan
  • 1937 Hockey - Lionel Conacher misses on the First Stanley Cup penalty shot. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1955 State Visit - Mario Scelba Prime Minister of Italy visits Ottawa. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1957 State Visit - Louis St. Laurent starts two-day meeting with British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. Bermuda
  • 1958 Aviation - Crowd of 14,000 Avro employees cheer maiden flight of supersonic fighter the AVRO CF-105 Arrow at Malton Airport; one of world’s most advanced airplanes at the time; cancelled five months later. Toronto, Ontario
  • 1965 Crime - RCMP seize $25 million worth of pure heroin in Montreal. Montréal, Québec
  • 1967 Roland Michener installed as Governor General of Canada, replacing the late Georges Vanier; serves until 1974. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1972 Hockey - Bobby Hull joins Gordie Howe, becoming the second NHL player to score 600 career goals. Chicago, Illinois
  • 1976 Justice - Law Reform Commission asks Parliament to amend the Criminal Code regarding several crimes; abortion, indecency, bigamy, incest, obscenity, gambling. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1980 Hockey - Pierre Larouche of the Montréal Canadiens scores his 50th goal of the season against Chicago Blackhawks. Montréal, Québec
  • 1982 Chiuldren - Colin Rankin and Gregory Rankin born; North America’s First test-tube twins. Oakville, Ontario
  • 1982 Constitution - The Canada Bill to patriate the BNA Act gets final approval in the House of Lords. London, England
  • 1982 Hockey - Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers bags two goals and two assists against the Calgary Flames, becoming the First in the NHL to score 200 points in a season. Edmonton, Alberta
  • 1986 Figure Skating - Brian Boitano of the US wins his second World Figure Skating Championship Mens gold, in spite of Canadian Kurt Browning’s quadruple jump, the First ever landed in competition. Geneva, Switzerland
  • 1991 Environment - Commons Environment Committee urges 20% cut in carbon dioxide emissions; to help combat global warming. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1992 Energy - Federal government says it will lift restrictions on foreign ownership in Canada’s oil and gas industry. Ottawa, Ontario
  • 1995 Music - The Tragically Hip debut on NBC’s Saturday Night Live, introduced by another Kingston, Ontario, native, actor Dan Aykroyd; the band perform Grace, Too, and Nautical Disaster from their album Day for Night; two days later the Hip win two Juno Awards for entertainer and group of the year. New York, New York
  • 1996 Figure Skating - Edmonton hosts the World Figure Skating Championships; Ice Dance won by Gritshuk & Platov of Russia, the Pairs by Eltsova & Bushkov of Russia, the Ladies by Michelle Kwan of the USA, and the Men’s by Todd Eldredge of the USA. Edmonton, Alberta
  • 1996 Politics - Jean Chrétien’s Liberal Party wins five federal by-elections, against one for the Bloc Québecois; restores Liberals to 177 seats and confirms the BQ as the Official Opposition. Canada
  • 2000 Politics - Reform Party of Canada members vote overwhelmingly to dissolve and join a new conservative political party called the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance Party of Canada.
  • 2004 Justice - religion - Supreme Court of Canada rules 9-0 in not holding the Canadian Roman Catholic Church responsible for the sexual abuse of altar boys by Newfoundland priest Kevin Bennett. Ottawa, Ontario