Events from the year 1789 in Canada.

Incumbents

Monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

Governors

* Governor of the Canadas:

Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester (3 September 1724 – 10 November 1808), known between 1776 and 1786 as Sir Guy Carleton, was an Anglo-Irish soldier and administrator. He twice served as Governor of the Province of Quebec, from 1768 to 177 ...

Governor of New Brunswick The following is a list of the lieutenant governors of New Brunswick. Though the present day office of the lieutenant governor of New Brunswick, lieutenant governor in New Brunswick came into being only upon the province's entry into Canadian Co ...

Thomas Carleton General Thomas Carleton (c. 1735 – 2 February 1817) was an Irish-born British Army officer who was promoted to colonel during the American Revolutionary War after relieving the siege of Quebec in 1776. After the war, he was appointed as L ...

Governor of Nova Scotia The following is a list of the governors and lieutenant governors of Nova Scotia. Though the present day office of the lieutenant governor in Nova Scotia came into being only upon the province's entry into Canadian Confederation in 1867, the po ...

John Parr John Stephen Parr (born 18 November 1952) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, best known for his 1985 single "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)", charting at number one in the US and number six in the UK, and for his 1984 US number- ...

* Commodore-Governor of Newfoundland: John Elliot * Governor of St. John's Island:

Edmund Fanning Edmund Fanning (July 16, 1769 – April 23, 1841) was an American explorer and sea captain, known as the "Pathfinder of the Pacific." Life Born in Stonington in the British Crown Colony of Connecticut to Gilbert and Huldah Fanning, from ne ...

Events

* 1789–93 – Alexander Mackenzie of Canada, seeking northern river route to the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, travels to the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...

; on second journey he crosses continent by land, making contact with many tribes. * Alexander Mackenzie journeys to the

Beaufort Sea The Beaufort Sea (; french: Mer de Beaufort, Iñupiaq: ''Taġiuq'') is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located north of the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, and Alaska, and west of Canada's Arctic islands. The sea is named after Sir Fr ...

, following what would later be named the Mackenzie River. * David Thompson learns surveying from Philip Turnor. *

Lord Grenville William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville, (25 October 175912 January 1834) was a British Pittite Tory politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1806 to 1807, but was a supporter of the Whigs for the duration of ...

proposes that lands in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

be held in free and common soccage, and that the tenure of Lower Canadian lands be optional with the inhabitants.

Births

*November 13 –

Denis-Benjamin Papineau Denis-Benjamin Papineau (November 13, 1789 – January 20, 1854) was joint premier of the Province of Canada for Canada East from 1846 to 1848. His joint premiers for Canada West during this period were William Henry Draper and Henry Sherwood. ...

joint premier of the Province of Canada Joint premiers of the Province of Canada were the prime ministers of the Province of Canada, from the 1841 unification of Upper Canada and Lower Canada until Confederation in 1867. Following the abortive Rebellions of 1837, Lord Durham was appoint ...

(died

1854 Events January–March * January 4 – The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the ''Samarang''. * January 6 – The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes is perhaps born. * January 9 – The Teut ...

)

Deaths

Historical documents

Wilberforce on slave trade's effects in Africa and on

Middle Passage The Middle Passage was the stage of the Atlantic slave trade in which millions of enslaved Africans were transported to the Americas as part of the triangular slave trade. Ships departed Europe for African markets with manufactured goods (first ...

with its 12.5% death rate, plus 4.5% rate from Caribbean seasoning Lord High Chancellor tells Secretary of State that colonies should get civil liberty without political liberty, which leads to independence Pre-industrial status of U.S.A. makes it dependent on British goods; such status will continue while so many seek agricultural work and wealth Letter-to-the-editor points out suffering of poor people when they can't afford price of flour in Montreal and upper Canada Bibliographer concludes state of literature and sale of books are very low in Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick

Lower Canada

Profile of Quebec's

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

, population, laws, "circulating property," land tenure, agriculture, science, commerce and import/export Lengthy petition to Gov. Gen. Lord Dorchester with scores of signatures calls for preservation of Quebec Act and Canadian laws

Council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

suggests setting up free school in each

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

(teaching "reading, writing, and cyphering"), county schools and "a collegiate institution" Provision made for four remaining

Jesuits in Canada , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

and transfer of Jesuit property to Canadian citizens (Note: "savages" used) Warning against "False Copper Coin;" supply entering province in tubs of butter with false bottoms; refuse any copper coin over 1

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...

"Mercatorius Honestus" lays out

business rules A business rule defines or constrains some aspect of business. It may be expressed to specify an action to be taken when certain conditions are true or may be phrased so it can only resolve to either true or false. Business rules are intended to as ...

under which "Trade will flourish .. Bankruptcy ndConfusion will cease, and honesty eturn Government circulates plan for new agricultural society to raise grain quality and prevent "scarcity ..his country unfortunately feels at present" New bridge over Saint-Charles River is 700 ft. long, has two lanes plus walkways, and will begin replacement of Canada's inconvenient ferries Bishop of Nova Scotia's sermon in

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

attended by Protestants, Catholics and Jews; 100 loaves of bread distributed to poor For sale: " Pawney Boy," about 17, "an excellent servant to attend table;" 9 years with current owner, who "has now no further use for him" "For Sale, a Stout, Healthy

Mulatto (, ) is a racial classification to refer to people of mixed African and European ancestry. Its use is considered outdated and offensive in several languages, including English and Dutch, whereas in languages such as Spanish and Portuguese is ...

Girl, 26 years of age, or thereabouts" "Quebec plan" to

transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, an ...

Newgate Newgate was one of the historic seven gates of the London Wall around the City of London and one of the six which date back to Roman times. Newgate lay on the west side of the wall and the road issuing from it headed over the River Fleet to Mid ...

convicts to Canada instead of

Botany Bay Botany Bay (Dharawal: ''Kamay''), an open oceanic embayment, is located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district. Its source is the confluence of the Georges River at Taren Point and the Cook ...

follows unspecified "unhappy fate" of transported Irish

Masons Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cutt ...

(in Quebec City?) to have 450 loaves of bread distributed, "considering the distressed situation of the poor in the present scarcity of flour" Quebec City dance to be held "once a

fortnight A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days," since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights). Astronomy and tides In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is h ...

during the

Season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

;" gentlemen are asked to retire after 2 dances to allow newcomer men to dance

Pianofortes The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

for sale, plus strings and music (

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

Clementi Clementi may refer to: People * Aldo Clementi (1925–2011), Italian composer * Cecil Clementi (1875–1947), British colonial administrator and Governor of Hong Kong * Cecilia Clementi, Italian-American scientist * David Clementi (born 1949), Brit ...

and others) for that instrument and

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

, guitar and violin; lessons too

Upper Canada

Secretary of State tells Gov. Gen. Lord Dorchester that expenditures of

Indian Department The Indian Department was established in 1755 to oversee relations between the British Empire and the First Nations of North America. The imperial government ceded control of the Indian Department to the Province of Canada in 1860, thus setting ...

are too high and "abuses" by staff need investigation Dorchester seeks "comfort of the Indians" in ending disputes among Six Nations leaders and evicting whites at Grand River

committee has ways to regularize shipping on

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

"to establish the Empire of the British Flag upon the Fresh water Oceans"

Nova Scotia

Provincial agriculture society to be set up especially to support knowledge of land improvement, cultivation, seeds, orchards and cattle Students in both

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and English divisions do well in examinations at King's Collegiate School (referred to as "academy" and "seminary") King's College of Nova Scotia to be founded and maintained by province with annual subsidy plus fund to purchase house or grounds in

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia *Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area *Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wind ...

"Wants a place, a

Negro In the English language, ''negro'' is a term historically used to denote persons considered to be of Black African heritage. The word ''negro'' means the color black in both Spanish and in Portuguese, where English took it from. The term can be ...

Woman, who can cook and do all kinds of Household Work, and be well recommended for Honesty and

Sobriety Sobriety is the condition of not having any measurable levels or effects from alcohol or drugs. Sobriety is also considered to be the natural state of a human being at birth. A person in a state of sobriety is considered sober. Organizations o ...

" Halifax man seeks missing Black

apprentice Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners to gain a ...

Hannah Thompson, who " chews Tobacco like a Man" and has legs "very much

scalded Scalding is a form of thermal burn resulting from heated fluids such as boiling water or steam. Most scalds are considered first- or second-degree burns, but third-degree burns can result, especially with prolonged contact. The term is from the L ...

" years ago Falmouth man seeks "

Woman Slave, named Philis, but calls herself Betty," age 37, and Irish servant John McNeal; reward of $8 for each

Overseers of the Poor An overseer of the poor was an official who administered poor relief such as money, food, and clothing in England and various other countries which derived their law from England such as the United States. England In England, overseers of the poo ...

call for contractors to supply Halifax Poor House with 50 cords of wood and "Fresh Beef, soft Bread, and single

Spruce Beer Spruce beer is a beverage flavored with the buds, needles, or essence of spruce trees. ''Spruce beer'' can refer to either alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages. A number of flavors are associated with spruce-flavored beverages, ranging from flo ...

Churchwarden A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish or congregation of the Anglican Communion or Catholic Church, usually working as a part-time volunteer. In the Anglican tradition, holders of these positions are ''ex officio'' members of the parish b ...

s thank "the Managers of the Navy and Army Theatre" for £20 donated for "the distressed and indigent at this inclement Season"

Digby Digby may refer to: Places Australia * Digby, Victoria, a town Canada * Digby (electoral district), a former federal electoral district in Nova Scotia (1867–1914) * Digby (provincial electoral district), a provincial electoral district i ...

minister: " e greater part of people seem to consider attendance on divine worship ..s left intirely to their own choice and

humour Humour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humorism, humoral medicine of the ancient Gre ...

" Halifax druggist has "a General fresh assortment of Medicines ncluding Camphire and

Saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...

;

Sago Sago () is a starch extracted from the pith, or spongy core tissue, of various tropical palm stems, especially those of ''Metroxylon sagu''. It is a major staple food for the lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Maluku Islands, where it is ...

Powder ndEssence of

Peppermint Peppermint (''Mentha'' × ''piperita'') is a hybrid species of mint, a cross between watermint and spearmint. Indigenous to Europe and the Middle East, the plant is now widely spread and cultivated in many regions of the world.Euro+Med Plantbas ...

New Brunswick

Courts may, instead of

burning Combustion, or burning, is a high-temperature exothermic redox chemical reaction between a fuel (the reductant) and an oxidant, usually atmospheric oxygen, that produces oxidized, often gaseous products, in a mixture termed as smoke. Combusti ...

convicted felon "in the brawn of the left thumb," impose fine or

whipping Flagellation (Latin , 'whip'), flogging or whipping is the act of beating the human body with special implements such as whips, rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails, the sjambok, the knout, etc. Typically, flogging has been imposed on an ...

, plus imprisonment U.S.

cornmeal Cornmeal is a meal (coarse flour) or a cell membrane ground from dried corn. It is a common staple food, and is ground to coarse, medium, and fine consistencies, but not as fine as wheat flour can be.Herbst, Sharon, ''Food Lover's Companion'', ...

is being imported because their wheat gets subsidy in France; N.B. mills at standstill though they lower price of meal about one third Praise for production of two comedies "by a company of Gentlemen ..ith great life and humour" in province's "first dramatic exhibition" Winter amusement in Fredericton includes

sleighing Sledding, sledging or sleighing is a winter sport typically carried out in a prone or seated position on a vehicle generically known as a sled (North American), a sledge (British), or a sleigh. It is the basis of three Olympic sports: luge, ske ...

dancing Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...

, rope dancers and man "dancing on a wire"

Prince Edward Island

Proprietors seek exemption from British law to allow them to bring settlers from U.S.A. to make Island "of that Importance of which it is capable"

Bishop of Nova Scotia The Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island is a diocese of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada of the Anglican Church of Canada. It encompasses the provinces of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island and has two cathedrals: All Saints' i ...

surprised

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city in ...

vestry A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquiall ...

has not built church; they "lament" not attending to "regular exercise of religious duties"

Pacific Coast

Suggestion (following Pacific coast exploration summary) that

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

fur be shipped to Asia by East India Co. (Note: "savages" used)

John Meares John Meares (c. 1756 – 1809) was an English navigator, explorer, and maritime fur trader, best known for his role in the Nootka Crisis, which brought Britain and Spain to the brink of war. Career Meares' father was Charles Meares, "formerly an ...

relates

capture Capture may refer to: *Asteroid capture, a phenomenon in which an asteroid enters a stable orbit around another body *Capture, a software for lighting design, documentation and visualisation *"Capture" a song by Simon Townshend *Capture (band), an ...

of his trading company's crew and ship by Spanish navy in Nootka Sound

French Revolution

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, "the murmurings and discontents of the people increase daily nddivisions

row Row or ROW may refer to: Exercise *Rowing, or a form of aquatic movement using oars *Row (weight-lifting), a form of weight-lifting exercise Math *Row vector, a 1 × ''n'' matrix in linear algebra. *Row (database), a single, implicitly structured ...

more alarming and violent" Towns tell deputies sent to Estates-General in Paris to propose various principles, "and it appears .. English Constitution is taken as a basis" "Here

n Paris N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

it is astonishing to see the fermentation which reigns among the minds of people of all ranks, professions, and denominations" "In the

national assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

, the debates continue to be carried on with increasing violence, and bid defiance to monarchy" "A National Revolution" -

Bastille The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was sto ...

taken, its

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

executed,

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

in flight,

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

detained, British ambassador threatened, etc. Drafting declaration of rights presented to National Assembly was difficult, given how "vicious" previous French government was "Wonderful" revolution is talk of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and influencing affairs in neighbouring countries; Britain "is minding her own business"

Edmund Burke Edmund Burke (; 12 January NS.html"_;"title="New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS">New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS/nowiki>_1729_–_9_July_1797)_was_an_ NS.html"_;"title="New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style"> ...

hears "there are considerable emigrations from France," even to "the frozen regions, and under the British despotism, of Canada"

Elsewhere

Notice: 2,500+ "

chaldron A chaldron (also chauldron or chalder) was an English measure of dry volume, mostly used for coal; the word itself is an obsolete spelling of cauldron. It was used from the 13th century onwards, nominally until 1963, when it was abolished by th ...

s" of coal for sale at Spanish River, Cape Breton, with payment taken in flour, bread, pork, rum, molasses, sugar etc.

's monopoly rights are "silent usurpations hat bringdiscredit upon an enlightened age and nation" Description of waterways between

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

and

Great Slave Lake Great Slave Lake (french: Grand lac des Esclaves), known traditionally as Tıdeè in Tłı̨chǫ Yatıì (Dogrib), Tinde’e in Wıìlıìdeh Yatii / Tetsǫ́t’ıné Yatıé (Dogrib / Chipewyan), Tu Nedhé in Dëne Sųłıné Yatıé (Chi ...

also assumes latter connects with Pacific by mistaken " Cook's River" Travelling down Dehcho (later Mackenzie River), Alexander Mackenzie befriends Dene (

Slavey The Slavey (also Slave and South Slavey) are a First Nations indigenous peoples of the Dene group, indigenous to the Great Slave Lake region, in Canada's Northwest Territories, and extending into northeastern British Columbia and northwestern ...

and Dogrib) who at first are terrified U.S. House hears duty on molasses will harm New England fishers, fishery and shipbuilding, and that some may move to Nova Scotia "Gentleman eportsthat last month, at New-York, General

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

was proclaimed and crowned George I, King of America""Extract of a letter from Montreal, May 18, 1789," (Quebec) Herald and Universal Miscellany, Vol. I, No. 27
May 25, 1789
, Page 8 of 8. Accessed 19 June 2023

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1789 In Canada 1780s in Canada 1789 in North America 1789 in the British Empire

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...