One in four Canadians don’t know Sir John A. Macdonald

One in four Canadians can’t identify Sir John A. Macdonald as the first prime minister of Canada, according to a new poll commissioned by Historica Canada.

The poll, conducted by Ipsos Reid, shows Canadians don’t know their history as well as Historica would hope. Twenty-eight per cent of Canadians don’t know the year of confederation, and 44 per cent don’t know Canada turns 150 years old in 2017.

But Historica president Andrew Wilson-Smith says the results aren’t as discouraging as they might seem.

“We’ve found that Canadians might not necessarily be aware of specific dates, but when asked if they’ll attend a 150 year anniversary event, they’re very into the idea,” he says. “The passion is there, and the appreciation is there, and though the focus on dates isn’t necessarily there, what counts is the spirit behind it.”

In an interesting tidbit of data, Albertans and Ontarians beat the national average for knowing the year of confederation, with 90 and 75 per cent respectively. Only four provinces in the country have mandatory Canadian history classes in their curriculum, meaning there are large swathes of the country with very different takes on the same history.

“For example, Quebec teaches a lot of Quebec history, which is very different in focus than in other parts of the country,” says Wilson-Smith. “There is quite a lot of study into what they still call the ‘conquest’, when Britain defeated France in what was then called British North America.

“We don’t learn about national figures nationally.”

However, that’s not to say Canadians are totally lost when it comes to their history. In 2008, 42 per cent of Canadians couldn’t identify Sir John A. Macdonald as Canada’s first prime minister.

Wilson-Smith attributes the rise to two heritage minute videos released this year on the subject, and the government’s focus on promoting Canadian history. He also notes these kinds of numbers tend to rise around an anniversary like, for example, Sir John A. Macdonald’s 200th birthday, and they don’t fall back down.

“Once you’re aware, you don’t forget it too much,” he says. “We’re building from a stronger base now, and in that regard, the numbers are encouraging.”

[Logo courtesy Historica Canada]

Historica Canada also provided a quiz to test Canadians’ knowledge of their prime ministers. How much do you know?

Questions:

1. Which Prime Minister served for the shortest amount of time, just 69 days?
2. In 1951, which Prime Minister became the first to live at 24 Sussex Drive?
3. Who is the only Prime Minister since 1951 not to live at 24 Sussex Drive?
4. Who was the first Prime Minister born in Canada?
5. While vacationing in Barbados, which future Prime Minister saw former Prime Minister John Diefenbaker struggling in the ocean and pulled him to shore?
6. Which Prime Minister refused the offer of knighthood three times, making him the only one of the first eight Prime Ministers not to be knighted?
7. In the 1926 federal election, what future Prime Minister lost the Prince Albert seat to Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King?
8. Which Prime Minister died of a heart attack at Britain’s Windsor Castle shortly after meeting with Queen Victoria?
9. The father of which Prime Minister served as a cabinet minister in four different Liberal governments?
10. Which Prime Minister initially favoured a flag design with three maple leafs and blue bars instead of red?
11. Which Prime Minister introduced income tax to Canada, meant to be a temporary measure?
12. Who was the youngest person to become Canadian Prime Minister at age 39?
13. Which Prime Minister presided over the creation of Canada’s Navy, a move that contributed to his defeat in the next election?
14. Which Prime Minister competed on the Reach for the Top television quiz show with his Toronto high school?
15. Who was the only Prime Minister born in New Brunswick (although he represented an Alberta riding)?
16. Which Prime Minister at one point owned the Belleville Intelligencer, a newspaper that opened in 1834 and still operates today?
17. Which future Prime Minister acted as a student advisor to Prime Minister John Diefenbaker?
18. Who was the first Prime Minister born after Confederation?
19. Who was Prime Minister when Canada was appointed its first woman governor-general, Jeanne Sauvé?
20. “The Farm,” the official residence of the Speaker of the House of Commons, was owned by which former Prime Minister (and is where that Prime Minister died)?
21. Which Prime Minister shares a birthday with Sir John A. on January 11?

Answers:

1. Sir Charles Tupper
2. Louis St. Laurent
3. Kim Campbell
4. Sir John Abbott
5. John Turner
6. Alexander Mackenzie
7. John Diefenbaker
8. Sir John Thompson
9. Paul Martin
10. Lester B. Pearson
11. Sir Robert Borden
12. Joe Clark
13. Sir Wilfrid Laurier
14. Stephen Harper
15. R.B. Bennett
16. Sir Mackenzie Bowell
17. Brian Mulroney
18. Arthur Meighen
19. Pierre Trudeau
20. William Lyon Mackenzie King
21. Jean Chrétien

“Historica Canada is the largest independent organization devoted to enhancing awareness of Canadian history and citizenship. Our programs, all of which are offered bilingually, reach more than eight million Canadians annually. Visit www.HistoricaCanada.ca”

Source:: canada.com