1866 in Canada

Decades:	1840s; 1850s; 1860s; 1870s; 1880s;
See also:	History of Canada; Timeline of Canadian history; List of years in Canada;

Events from the year 1866 in Canada.

Incumbents

Crown

Monarch – Victoria^[1]

Federal government

Parliament — 8th

Governors

Premiers

Joint Premiers of the Province of Canada –
- John Alexander Macdonald, Canada West Premier
- Narcisse-Fortunat Belleau, Canada East Premier
Premier of Newfoundland — Frederick Carter
Premiers of New Brunswick — Albert James Smith then Peter Mitchell
Premiers of Nova Scotia – Charles Tupper
Premier of Prince Edward Island – James Colledge Pope

Events

May–June – The 1866 New Brunswick election
June 2 – Battle of Ridgeway: Fenians invade Canada.
June 9 – At Danville, Canada East, a fire breaks out in a railway car containing 2,000 pounds (910 kg) of ammunition. Private Timothy O'Hea, an Irish soldier, will be awarded the Victoria Cross for his leadership and initiative in fighting the fire.
August 6 – The colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia are united, bearing the Mainland's name as the Colony of British Columbia, with the Island capital, Victoria, as the seat of government of the united colony.
December 4 – London Conference, conference on resolutions discussed in 1864, to be added to the British North America Act
The piano manufacturer Heintzman & Co. is incorporated.
Peter Edmund Jones graduates from Queen's University, becoming Canada's first indigenous medical doctor^[2]

Births

January to June

February 24 – Martha Black, politician and the second woman elected to the House of Commons of Canada (died 1957)
March 8 – John Wesley Dafoe, journalist and author (died 1944)^[3]
May 10 – Constance Piers, journalist, poet and editor (died 1939)^[4]
May 11 – Edward Rogers Wood, financier (died 1941)^[5]
May 12 – Walter Charles Murray, first President of the University of Saskatchewan (died 1945)
June 14 – Henry Sproatt, architect (died 1934)

July to December

September 1 – Clifford William Robinson, lawyer, businessman, politician and 11th Premier of New Brunswick (died 1944)
September 12 – Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon, 13th Governor General of Canada (died 1941)
October 6 – Reginald Fessenden, inventor and radio pioneer (died 1932)
October 19 – Clarence Lucas, composer, lyricist, conductor and music professor (died 1947)
December 26 – Godfroy Langlois, politician, journalist and lawyer (died 1928)

Deaths

January 16 – David Willson, religious leader and mystic (born 1778)
January 28 – Robert Foulis, inventor, civil engineer and artist (born 1796)
February 3 – François-Xavier Garneau, notary, civil servant, poet and historian (born 1809)
February 19 – Charles Richard Ogden, Joint Premier of the Province of Canada (born 1791)
March 14 – Norman McLeod, Presbyterian minister (born 1780)
April 11 – Edward Bowen, lawyer, judge and politician (born 1780)
July 28 – Frédéric-Auguste Quesnel, politician, lawyer, and businessman (born 1785)
October 26 – John Kinder Labatt, brewer and founder of the Labatt Brewing Company (born 1803)
November 1 – Jean-Baptiste-Éric Dorion, journalist and politician (born 1826)

Historical documents

Sarnia, Canada West guards against Fenian attack^[6]

Charge given by a Canada West judge to a grand jury in the Fenian invaders case ^[7]

U.S. President Andrew Johnson hopes Canadian courts will show mercy to condemned Fenians ^[8]

Washington learns Fenian invaders' death sentences are to be commuted^[9]

References

^ "Queen Victoria | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
^ Sherwin, Allan L. (2012). Bridging two peoples : Chief Peter E. Jones, 1843-1909. Waterloo, Ont.: Wilfrid Laurier University Press. ISBN 9781554586332. OCLC 806521138.
^ Fetherling, Douglas (2008). "John Wesley Dafoe". The Canadian Encyclopedia.
^ Constance Piers
^ Niosi, Jorge (2008). "Edward Rogers Wood". The Canadian Encyclopedia.
^ "Letter, Newton Wolverton at Sarnia, Ont. to brother Alonzo Wolverton at Wolverton, Ont., February 2, 1866" Examples of Wolverton Family Letters from Darroch Donation, Archives of Ontario. Note: scroll to bottom of page; accessed 9 September 2018
^ Trials of the Fenian Prisoners at Toronto, Who Were Captured at Fort Erie, C.W., in June, 1866 (1867), pg. 3. Accessed 9 September 2018
^ "(...)from the President of the United States" Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, 1789-1873; Monday, December 3, 1866, pgs. 16-17. Accessed 9 September 2018
^ United States Department of State, "Sir F. Bruce to Mr. Seward" Executive Documents Printed by Order of the House of Representatives, during the Second Session of the Fortieth Congress, 1867-'68 (1867-1868), pg. 181. Accessed 9 September 2018

[1] "Queen Victoria | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 5 December 2022.

[2] Sherwin, Allan L. (2012). Bridging two peoples : Chief Peter E. Jones, 1843-1909. Waterloo, Ont.: Wilfrid Laurier University Press. ISBN 9781554586332. OCLC 806521138.

[3] Fetherling, Douglas (2008). "John Wesley Dafoe". The Canadian Encyclopedia.

[4] Constance Piers

[5] Niosi, Jorge (2008). "Edward Rogers Wood". The Canadian Encyclopedia.

[6] "Letter, Newton Wolverton at Sarnia, Ont. to brother Alonzo Wolverton at Wolverton, Ont., February 2, 1866" Examples of Wolverton Family Letters from Darroch Donation, Archives of Ontario. Note: scroll to bottom of page; accessed 9 September 2018

[7] Trials of the Fenian Prisoners at Toronto, Who Were Captured at Fort Erie, C.W., in June, 1866 (1867), pg. 3. Accessed 9 September 2018

[8] "(...)from the President of the United States" Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, 1789-1873; Monday, December 3, 1866, pgs. 16-17. Accessed 9 September 2018

[9] United States Department of State, "Sir F. Bruce to Mr. Seward" Executive Documents Printed by Order of the House of Representatives, during the Second Session of the Fortieth Congress, 1867-'68 (1867-1868), pg. 181. Accessed 9 September 2018

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

v t e History of Canada
Year list (Timeline)	18000 BCE–1500 CE 1534–1763 1763–1867 1867–1914 1914–1945 1945–1960 1960–1981 1982–present
Topics	Canadians - (Persons of significance) Constitutional Crown and Indigenous peoples Cultural Economic Etymology Events of significance Former colonies and territories Heritage Minutes Historic Sites Immigration Chinese immigration Military Operations Peacekeeping Monarchical Population history Sports Territorial evolution Women
Provinces and territories	Alberta British Columbia Manitoba Ontario New Brunswick Newfoundland and Labrador Northwest Territories Nova Scotia Nunavut Quebec Prince Edward Island Saskatchewan Yukon (Name etymologies)
Cities	Brampton Charlottetown Edmonton Fredericton Halifax Hamilton Lethbridge Markham Moncton Montreal Northwest Territories capital cities Ottawa Quebec City Saint John Regina Richmond Hill Saskatoon Toronto Vancouver Winnipeg (Name etymologies)
Research	Bibliography Historiography Historians Surveys
Category Canada portal

v t e List of years in Canada
Pre-Confederation Prehistory–1866	Prehistory to 1 BC 1st millennium 1000s 1100s 1400s 1500s 1600s 1610s 1620s 1630s 1640s 1650s 1660s 1670s 1680s 1690s 1700 1701 1702 1703 1704 1705 1706 1707 1708 1709 1710 1711 1712 1713 1714 1715 1716 1717 1718 1719 1720 1721 1722 1723 1724 1725 1726 1727 1728 1729 1730 1731 1732 1733 1734 1735 1736 1737 1738 1739 1740 1741 1742 1743 1744 1745 1746 1747 1748 1749 1750 1751 1752 1753 1754 1755 1756 1757 1758 1759 1760 1761 1762 1763 1764 1765 1766 1767 1768 1769 1770 1771 1772 1773 1774 1775 1776 1777 1778 1779 1780 1781 1782 1783 1784 1785 1786 1787 1788 1789 1790 1791 1792 1793 1794 1795 1796 1797 1798 1799 1800 1801 1802 1803 1804 1805 1806 1807 1808 1809 1810 1811 1812 1813 1814 1815 1816 1817 1818 1819 1820 1821 1822 1823 1824 1825 1826 1827 1828 1829 1830 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835 1836 1837 1838 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866
Post-Confederation 1867–present	1867 1868 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Quebec	1608 1609 1610 1611 1612 1613 1614 1615 1616 1617 1618 1635
Canadian electoral calendars	2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Related	List of Canadian monarchs List of governors general of Canada List of prime ministers of Canada Population of Canada by year Timeline
Research	Bibliography Historiography
Category Canada portal

v t e 1866 in North America
Sovereign states	Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Canada Costa Rica Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic El Salvador Grenada Guatemala Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Panama Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago United States
Dependencies and other territories	Anguilla Aruba Bermuda Bonaire British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Curaçao Greenland Guadeloupe Martinique Montserrat Puerto Rico Saint Barthélemy Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saba Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten Turks and Caicos Islands United States Virgin Islands