Canada Between the Wars

1919- 1939

Post War CanadaClosing of War Industries major effects such as high inflation, women returning to home, rising unemployment, increasing labour unrest

Winnipeg General Strike 1919 30 000 workers went on strike (demanded .85 cents per hour, 8 hour day, right to collective bargaining)Bloody Saturday; riots and violence led to 1 death and 30 injuriesLeaders arrested and sent to jail but more attention drawn to social and economic problems of workers

Prohibition & Bootleggingban of production, import and distribution of alcoholLed to bootleg booze- smuggled alcohol and speakeasies

Spanish FluMassive epidemic after veterans returned homeDeadly strain killing up to 100 million people; 50 000 Canadians

Social IssuesAboriginal Issues Policy of assimilation seen in the Indian Act

1867, creation of residential schools, and policy of enfranchisement (right to vote if give up Aboriginal status)

League of Indians- created in 1919 by Frederick Loft (Aboriginal war veteran) to make a united voice for Aboriginals

Immigration Xenophobia- intense dislike of foreigners 1919 Immigration Act- made all immigrants

pass an English literacy test (emphasis on assimilation)

1923- Chinese Exclusion Act: banned all Chinese immigrants except students, merchants and diplomats (from 1923- 1947- only 8 Chinese immigrants admitted to Canada)

Roaring Twenties

New Technologies & Movements

New technologies: radio, automobile, passenger planes

Ford Model T or “Tin Lizzie” was most affordable car ($395 in 1924) and was mass produced by assembly line

Ted Rogers: Canadian who invented the world’s first battery-less radio

Joseph Bombardier: Canadian who invented first snowmobile called “B-7” for medical transport in winter

Person’s Case: Famous Five campaigned that women should be considered “Persons” under Canadian Law; finally granted by Britain’s Privy Council and Cairine Wilson was first women appointed to the Senate

Entertainment & SportsAmericanization Huge influence of culture & influence from United States

Fads mahjong, crosswords, contests, dancing marathons

Fashions flappers, rising hemlines, bob haircut, knickers, bow ties

Entertainment: Jazz Age, Charleston dance “talkies” (talking movies) with stars Charlie Chaplin and

Canadian Mary Pickford “America’s Sweetheart”

Golden Age of Sports Famous amateur athletes such as Lionel Conacher, Bobbie

Rosenfeld played multiple sports Women in Sports: Edmonton Grads dominated basketball

for over 20 years but by 1930s competitive sports were considered “unfeminine”

Professional Sports: hockey (NHL) & Foster Hewitt’s call of Hockey Night and Canada; baseball

1920s EconomyECONOMIC PROSPERITY End of post war economic problems New inventions and mass production of

products fueled economy and employment High sales, high wages, high prices, high

production, high profits, high demand, low unemployment

Emergence of ‘branch plants’ in Canada

PLAYING THE STOCKMARKET Get rich quick scheme (buy low, sell high) Stock / share: a unit of ownership in a

company Price of share dependent on supply and

demand

CREDIT BUYING ‘credit buying’ of products (appliances)- buy

now, pay later ‘buying on margin’ of stocks

The Balloon Bursts: The Great Crash of 1929

HOW DID IT CRASH? Stocks were highly inflated or overpriced AND company assets were not

the same worth Investors became nervous as stock prices were becoming “too high” for

what it actually worth ‘Black Tuesday’: October 29, 1929: massive selling of stocks > panic sets

in > everyone selling As investors sold, prices of stocks plunged

EFFECTS Thousands of investors wiped out Banks demanded payment for loans but borrowers could not repay Many companies had borrowed money to finance expansion of companies

and had to shut down > rise in unemployment People had bought many stocks and items on credit- had nothing to pay

back; then banks would repossess items (ie. homes) People could not afford to buy clothes, food and other merchandise >

forcing more companies to go bankrupt and put more people out of work Trigger to the Great Depression- worst economic downturn in history

Background Causes of Great Depression

Similar to WWI, there were BACKGROUND CAUSES to the Depression:

1) Overexpansion & overproduction2) Canada’s Dependence on Staples

(wheat)3) Canada’s Dependence on United

States4) High Taxes decreased International

Trade5) Credit Buying6) Buying on Margin

The Dirty Thirties 1933- 1/3 of

people were out of work

Riding the rods Relief vouchers

or Pogey Relief Camps Dust Bowl Soup Kitchens Bennett

Buggies On to Ottawa

Trek & Regina Riot

Political ResponsesP.M. Mackenzie King Five Cent Speech 1930 re-elected 1935

P.M. R.B. Bennett elected 1930 proposed the New Deal

New Political Parties emerged to solve the

problems of the 1930s Social Credit- leader William

Aberhart Union Nationale- leader

Maurice Duplessis Co-operative Commonwealth

Federation (CCF)- leader J.S. Woodsworth

Promoting Canadian Identity Group of Seven Canadian Author’s

Association (1921) RCAF: Royal Canadian Air

Force (1924) Statute of Westminster

(1931) CRBC: Canadian Radio

Broadcasting Company (1933)

CBC: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (1936)

NFB: National Film Board (1939)

What brought the world out of the Great Depression?

World War II breaks out September 3, 1939

Canada declares war on Germany September 10, 1939

HOW?• war industries re-open• rise in employment• as more people get jobs,

people have $ to spend• businesses revived