June 10

Highlights of the day

1650 Jesuits abandon Île Saint-Joseph, their last mission in Huronia.
1791 Constitutional Act creates Upper Canada & Lower Canada, each with its own assembly.
1859 Anson Northrup from Moorhead, Minnesota, the first Red River steamboat to reach Fort Garry.
1942 German U-boat sinks 2 ships near Anticosti Island; Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence begins.

List of Facts for June 10

1527 Royal Navy captain John Rut, sent by King Henry VIII, leaves on the Mary Guildford and the Samson on an expedition to find a passage to Asia; Samson lost at sea. Gravesend, England
1611 Pierre Biard writes First recorded letter sent to France from the new world; Jesuit missionary at Port Royal. Annapolis, Nova Scotia
1650 Jesuits abandon Île Saint-Joseph, their last mission in Huronia, established in 1623; return to Québec carrying the bleached bones of two martyrs, Fathers Jean de Brébeuf and Jérôme Lalement, who had been tortured and killed by the Iroquois; Hurons also flee to Québec, and settle at Lorette. Midland, Ontario
1785 First Acadian families arrive in the Madawaska region to settle along the rich land of the upper Saint John River. New Brunswick
1791 British Parliament passes the Constitutional Act to meet the demands of the Loyalists and give the inhabitants of Québec the same rights as other British subjects in North America; the Act divides the province of Québec into two new provinces: Lower Canada and Upper Canada; provides for an appointed legislative council and an elected legislative assembly, gives power over taxation given to the assembly, and gives the Governor power to withhold assent to bills passed by the legislative council and assembly. The act also declares that the Catholic faith should continue to be respected, but makes provisions for lands (clergy reserves) to be set aside to support the Protestant clergy in each province. In Lower Canada, dual legal systems will develop, with British criminal law coexisting with French civil law. The Act gets Royal Assent June 19. London, England
1817 Samuel Smith appointed administrator of Upper Canada; serves from June 11, 1817 to August 13, 1818. Toronto, Ontario
1838 Short Hills Raid - James Morrow leads a 26 man rebel raiding party across the Niagara River, intending to get the Six Nations Iroquois to rise up in rebellion; party includes Alexander McLeod and John James McNulty, active in the insurrection at Montgomery’s Tavern in 1837; Jacob Beemer, indicted for participation in Duncombe’s Rising; Samuel Chandler of Pelham and Benjamin Wait of Willoughby who had joined Mackenzie on Navy Island; they assemble at Schlosser, NY, and cross to Grand Island where they are supplied with weapons and ammunition, then land near Chippawa, Ontario in Willoughby Township; led by Samuel Chandler, who had a list of over 500 sympathizers on the Canadian side, they divide into several smaller groups, and begin their march to the Short Hills (Fonthill), attacking St. Johns, in Pelham Township en route. Pelham, Ontario
1839 William Lyon Mackenzie sentenced to eighteen months in jail for violating US neutrality laws. Canandaigua, New York
1842 First Sisters of Mercy arrive in Newfoundland. St. John’s, Newfoundland
1842 William Lyon Mackenzie moves his family to New York to try and start a printing business. New York, New York
1850 Fredericton and Saint John Electric Telegraph Company incorporated. Saint John, New Brunswick
1857 Assembly of Canada passes bill bringing in the American decimal (dollar) system of currency; to go into effect midnight, December 31, 1857. Kingston, Ontario
1857 Trois-Rivières incorporated as a city. Trois-Rivières, Québec
1857 St. Hyacinthe incorporated as a city. St-Hyacinthe, Québec
1859 Transport - The Anson Northrup, a sternwheeler from Moorhead, Minnesota, named for her captain, becomes the first steamboat to reach Fort Garry; wins prize money offered by the St. Paul Chamber of Commerce to the first person to institute steamboat travel on the Red River. Winnipeg, Manitoba
1869 Frederick Seymour dies; born Belfast, Ireland, September 6, 1820; 1864 succeeded James Douglas as second Governor of the Colony of British Columbia 1864-66, and the first Governor of the United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia from 1866-69. Bella Coola, BC
1871 Lady Selkirk dies; widow of Red River colonizer Lord Selkirk. Scotland
1876 J.F. Allison appointed Justice of the Peace in Yale District. Yale, BC
1878 Fort Rod Hill built to protect Esquimalt in the event of a war with Russia. Victoria, BC
1883 CPR rails laid to the South Saskatchewan River at what is today Medicine Hat, Alberta.
1884 Louis Riel leaves his teaching post to return to Canada to lead what was to become the North West Rebellion. Montana
1901 Fire in Michel, BC, destroys much of the residential district.
1925 United Church of Canada holds First services across Canada under its new name; merger of Methodist, Presbyterian and Congregationalist churches; a few congregations refuse to accept the change and continue under their old names.
1930 Founding of the Winnipeg Rugby Football Club; today’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Winnipeg, Manitoba
1937 Robert Laird Borden dies at age 83; Canada’s 8th Prime Minister; June 26 1854, Grand Pré, Nova Scotia; called to Nova Scotia Bar in 1878; Leader of the Opposition 1901-1911; 1901-1920 Conservative Party Leader; 1911-1917 Prime Minister; 1917-1920 led Union Government (coalition of pro-conscription Liberals and Conservatives). Ottawa, Ontario
1940 Second World War - Canada declares war on Italy; the same day, Italy declares war on France and Britain; Second World War. Ottawa, Ontario
1940 Defence Minister Norman Rogers killed in a plane crash.
1941 Henry Wise Wood dies; farmer, farm leader; President of the United Farmers of Alberta from 1916-1931. Alberta
1942 Second World War - Prime Minister Mackenzie King justifies his wartime policy by stating that the best approach is: Conscription if necessary but not necessarily conscription. Ottawa, Ontario June 10 - Second World War - The Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence begins this night and the following morning between the Royal Canadian Navy and German U-Boats, as U-553 torpedoes British freighter Nicoya and Dutch freighter Leto a few kilometres off Anticosti Island; the U-boat was seeking calmer waters in the Gulf of St. Lawrence after experiencing engine trouble near Halifax, Nova Scotia; the war is now less than 600 km from Quebec City. Anticosti Island, Québec
1947 US President Harry Truman starts two-day visit to Ottawa; First president to pay a state visit to Canada. Ottawa, Ontario
1957 Federal Election - John Diefenbaker wins a minority in the 23rd Canadian federal election with 40.9% of popular vote; takes 112 seats to 105 for Louis St. Laurent’s Liberals; 25 CCF; 19 Social Credit; 4 others; PM to 1963; First Conservative victory in 27 years. June 10 - Federal Election -Douglas Jung elected in Vancouver Centre; Canada’s first Chinese-Canadian MP. Vancouver, BC
1965 Lal Bahadur Shastri Prime Minister of India arrives in Ottawa for a five-day visit. Ottawa, Ontario
1966 CPR signs deal with National Harbours Board to end 30-year argument over Vancouver waterfront; enables development of waterfront. Vancouver, BC
1966 Music - Halifax folk rocker Denny Doherty and his group The Mamas and the Papas win a gold record for their hit single, Monday, Monday. New York, New York
1967 Music - Bob Dylan and The Band start recording the long un-released sessions that will become known as the basement tapes. Woodstock, New York
1971 Parliament creates new Department of the Environment under a Minister of State; Canada also agrees in principle on a joint attack with the U.S. on pollution in the Great Lakes. Ottawa, Ontario
1972 New Brunswick jockey Ron Turcotte win the 104th Belmont Stakes aboard Riva Ridge in 2:28. New York, New York
1976 Energy - Ottawa raises export price of natural gas to the US by 21%. Ottawa, Ontario
1979 Energy, Mines, and Resources dismantles Project Lorex, or the Lomonsov Ridge Experiment; scientific station set up on the Arctic ice to study a submarine ocean range had drifted 240 km across the North Pole since April; Gov. Gen. Ed Schreyer, Prince Charles and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau made scuba dives from the project. Nunavut
1981 Energy - Dome Petroleum buys Hudson’s Bay Oil and Gas. Calgary, Alberta
1982 CFL Montréal Concordes lose to Toronto in their First game; football team will later revert to former name, the Alouettes, but eventually fold. Montréal, Québec
1984 Pierre Trudeau returns to Canada after tour of D-Day battlefields in Europe and 3-day Western summit in London. Ottawa, Ontario
1985 Media - Toronto financier Conrad Black acquires 14% of The Daily Telegraph newspaper for $17 million; will later win control. London, England
1988 Music - Vancouver Symphony Orchestra rescued by a $5 million aid package from Ottawa, BC and the city; suspended operations six months earlier due to a $2.5 million debt. Vancouver, BC
1990 Frank McKenna passes Meech Lake Accord in his provincial legislature after concerns are addressed in a compromise meeting. Fredericton, New Brunswick
1991 David Croll dies at 91; MPP 1934, MP 1945; Senator 1955; chaired committees on aging, credit and poverty; immigrated from Russia in 1905. Ottawa, Ontario
1992 International Court of Arbitration gives France control zone of 24 nautical miles around St-Pierre-Miquelon; plus 10.5 mile corridor from sea; only 18% of what France wanted. New York, New York
1993 Nunavut Act becomes law. Nunavut
1993 Vulcan, Alberta, unveils its Star Ship FX6-1995-A monument overlooking highway 23; inspired by the original USS Enterprise of Star Trek, it was built built by the Vulcan Association of Science and Trek (V.A.S.T). Vulcan, Alberta
1996 Québec government reintroduces the Office québécois de la langue française to police various language laws and regulations. Québec, Québec
1996 Hockey - Colorado Avalanche goalie Patrick Roy makes 63 saves for his third post season shutout, and Uwe Krupp scores at 4:31 of the third overtime, as the Avs beat the Florida Panthers 1-0 in triple overtime to take their First Stanley Cup with a four-game sweep; third longest game in Stanley Cup finals history. Miami, Florida
1998 One person is killed by an explosion at an Irving Oil refinery. Saint John, New Brunswick
1999 Reform Party announces that 65% of its members have voted to look at developing a new right-of-centre political party, dubbed the United Alternative; will become the Canadian Alliance Party. Ottawa, Ontario
2003 The Ontario Court of Appeal rules that the ban on same-sex marriage is illegal, and marriages begin immediately. Toronto, Ontario
2004 Elections Canada’s Chief Electoral Officer Jean-Pierre Kingsley announces changes to allow televised results of upcoming election without delay after closing of local polling stations. Ottawa, Ontario