Who really discovered the Northwest Passage?

Gotta love the latest issue of Canada’s History. Check out the portrait of Arctic explorer John Rae by contemporary artist David Seguin. The question they asked me was: Who discovered the Northwest Passage? Editor Mark Reid writes that, in answering that question, I have “set the record straight” and sorted “the contenders from the pretenders,…

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Ten thumbs up at Canada’s History

We had ten thumbs up at Canada’s History magazine. But that classic photo ended up on someone else’s camera. Here, as you can see, we registered four. Mark Reid, editor of Canada’s History, and Our Hero are signaling joy and satisfaction. Today’s the day The Book turns up in bookstores: Oct. 15 = Pub Date…

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Canada’s Celtic Connection . . . .

That’s the headline on my column in the latest issue (August-September) of Canada’s History magazine. The piece touches on JFK, the “coffin ships” that brought so many immigrants to Canada, and the new statue in Londonderry that matches one in Halifax harbour. It begins as follows: Some years ago, while driving with friends in Canada,…

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Anglo-a-no-no: Enough, already!

From Canada’s History magazine By Ken McGoogan  The “Anglos” made headlines again this autumn. The Quebec election made it inevitable: how would the “Anglos” vote? Could the “Anglos” make a difference? As it turns out, the answer was a qualified yes: the separatist Parti Quebecois was held to a minority victory. Meanwhile, I found myself…

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