Related: WHAT IS THE CANADIAN STORY?
How would you tell the story of Canada? Would you use a timeline? How else?
Copyright © 2013 · Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation · Follow us: 
Copyright © 2013 · Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation · Follow us:
I would tell the story of Canada by discussing the lived experience of ordinary people who came before us. What was it like to live in Huronia in the 1600s, what about a worker in an 1890s factory? What do these stories tell us about Canada? What was it like, how has it changed, and why?
I would also focus on what’s important not just what’s well known. The museum should tell less known stories and not just rehash what people learned decades ago in high school textbooks.
Would be wonderful to revive the archives of the former Portrait Gallery to illustrate the personalities along this timeline.
[continued from email 4] the French would be interesting and give a broader view of the early years.
Finally, I think that asking for feedback with a low character limit is a bit disingenuous. It’s probably also irritating for the poor person stuck connecting these all together, so why have it? Either you want public feedback, or you don’t.
[end of final email]
[continued from email 2]
Finally, I would like to see further examination of the other groups who built this country. The French and English and First Nations are, of course, amply covered, but what about the heavily marginalized Irish or Scots (particularly the Gaelic speakers placed here after the clearances). Gaelic was the third most commonly spoken language at the time of Confederation. Today, it is all but none existent. A word about the forced Anglicization of groups other than [con't]
[continued from previous email]
To the best of my knowledge, the Canadian War Museum will not be changing, so why add additional emphasis on the military?
I like the frank inclusion of some of the darker elements of our history, such as the Chinese Head Tax or the Grande Dérangement (though wonder about the new exclusion of the Beothuk extinction). However, I do wonder if this might make the exhibits too dark.
[to be continued in email 3]
Judging from the events placed here, there’s not much coherence to be found in the new museum. There’s social history, military history, Aboriginal history, and political history all mashed together. I think it will be difficult to create any sort of narrative from so many disparate pieces and that the future exhibits will suffer greatly for it. In particular, I’m concerned about the inclusion of military history, as that is quite amply represented by the Canadian War Museum.
I like the timeline however, there is not enough early Canadian history the really shaped our country i.e. Capt. Cook and Vancouver discovering and exploring the west coast, Champlain voyage and routes, the inland exploration of what are the prairie provinces.
The new exhibitions should focus less on the object itself and more on the moment in history that it came from and the meaning to Canada’s history.
The space allotted is not great enough. Five subjects missing: Wendat-Huron history; Responsible government (Lafontaine-Baldwin-Howe); Catholic Church, Canada East; Communism; Refus Global. I am willing to present in Montreal or Gatineau.
This is a commendable initiative. Please include more insight and analysis into the history of the Prairies prior to World War II. To understand the social, political and economic transformation of the West, the trials and tribulations endured by homesteaders on the frontier, particularly in the drought-ridden southern plains of Alberta and Saskatchewan, must be understood.
The Selkirk Treaty, the fur trade, including the 1821 merger of the NWCo and HBC, the 1870 Resistance, any history that is not big men doing big things. The Residential Schools system, immigration, significant events in Indigenous history that do not necessarily involve Euro-Canadians, but may have significant wider implications such as alliances and social structures…. This is terribly monolithically Euro-centric, right down to the timeline structure.
Transportation: Why did Europeans come to the Western Hemisphere?
What was trans-Atlantic like? How did it develop from the times of the Vikings to now? Where did they encounter the original residents / inhabitants? How did they get along – initially and later? What were the routes to access the interior? How did they travel? Where did they explore? Establish trading posts? Forts? From water travel (rivers, lakes, portages, canals) to land routes (trails, roads, railroads) to air travel.
very good publish, i definitely love this website, keep on it
Ideas
What I’ve seen so far represents a very Eurocentric view of the place we now call Canada. Lets begin to do justice to the First Nations by showing the great civilations before the colonization and the effects of the reserve system and residential schools.
As noted by many others, I’d like to see more about our indigenous peoples, the physical, mental and social effects of colonization on their societies. Similarly, our social history should be highlighted, rather than just having a time line of “important” events. How did the enmity between French and English develop and what effect did it and does it have on our various provinces and national outlook? How have families been affected by various wars, epidemics, waves of immigration, etc.?
We really like how this timeline begins before confederation and even before the first Europeans arrived in Canada.
The establishment of the North West Mounted Police. This was a major factor in settling the West in a peaceful manner.
While I’m pleased to see that this timeline no longer starts at 1608, you’ve done nothing to really correct the problem. Clearly, the only story of Canada that this museum wishes to tell is through colonization.Thanks for throwing us a bone, but there is a great deal more to be included between 10500B.C. and 1000A.D that is vital to the story of this nation.
I definitely wanted to type a brief word to be able to thank you for some of the magnificent secrets you are showing at this website. My particularly long internet look up has finally been compensated with awesome know-how to talk about with my neighbours. I would assert that we visitors are extremely blessed to dwell in a notable site with very many lovely professionals with beneficial hints.
The problem with a timeline is that it will be, with the best will in the world, about events not stories. The event is the opening of the Seaway. The story is (or could be) about post war Canadian Nationalism or optimism. The timeline masks how a historical perspective as driven the selection process