|
     
     
     
1950 AD to 1959 AD
Events listed relate to Canadian women with a few
extra items added to give the timeline perspective.
This timeline is not all
inclusive. Mar 2018
| DATES |
EVENTS |
| 1950 |
1950 - 1953 - women once again volunteer for military service when
when Canada commits itself to the Korean War. Source:
National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces, Fact sheet.
Online (Accessed March 2014)
February 14, 1950 -
Nancy Hodges
(1888-1969) is appointed as Speaker of the House in the
British Columbia legislature the 1st woman in the British
Commonwealth to hold such a position.
1950
- Inuit
Canadian are given the right to vote.
March
1950 -
several women’s organizations amalgamate to create the Congress of
Canadian Women to lobby for equal rights for women in all aspects of
life.
1950 - Muriel McQueen Fergusson
(1899-1997) is the 1st woman elected to the
Fredericton City Council in New Brunswick and was the 1st woman
deputy mayor in 1953.
1950 - Marion Orr (1918-1995) of Maple, Ontario
begins her own flying school. During
her career as a flight instructor she trained over 600 pilots.
Source: Women in Canadian History. Susan Merrwill
http;//www.niagara.com/~merrwill/trivia.html (accessed June 3, 2004)
1950 - Acclaimed engineer Dormer Ellis
(1925 - ) becomes
the 1st woman professor of electrical engineering at Ryerson
Institute of Technology, Toronto,
Source
The Toronto Business and Processional Women’s Club. Online Accessed
February 2013.
1950 - Canadians invent the green garbage bag. Source : Canuck Chicks and Maple Leaf Mamas : women of the
Great White North by Ann Douglas Toronto, McArthur and Co., 2002. pg
18.
Births 1950:
1950 - Born Cathy Kerr (1951-2004) social activist for the disabled
March 6, 1950 - Born Marlys Edwardh (1950- ) lawyer
who worked tirelessly to overturn wrongful convictions.
March 16, 1950 - Born
Kate Nelligan, actress.
April 18, 1950 - Born Jane Austin Coop, musician.
April 25, 1950 - Born Joyce Ann C. Douthwright (1950-
) champion basketball player.
June 17, 1950 - Born Cathy Sherk ( 1950- ) Canadian
Champion women's golfer.
July 11, 1950 - Died
Dr. Margaret Ellen Douglas (1878-1950) doctor and
medical administrator in Manitoba.
July 12, 1950 - Born Barbara Astman, photographer and multimedia
artist.
July 19, 1950 - Born Karen Gay Kulyk (1950- )
acclaimed artist & art gallery owner
July 20, 1950 - Born Tantoo Cardinal, actress.
July 23, 1950 - Born Belinda Montgomery (1950- )
well respected support actress worked mainly in TV.
August 14, 1950 - Born Katherine Edna Swinton (1950-
) lawyer
August 21, 1951 - Born Margo Gwendolyn Kane (1951-
) actor, singer, dancer and playwright.
August 25, 1950 - Born Heather Anne Elyse Lilian Munroe-Blum
(1950- ) 1st woman to serve as McGill University's
President.
September 15, 1950 - Born Sheila Fraser (1950- ) appointed Auditor General of
Canada.
September 20 1950 - Born Jocelyne Bourgon (1950- )
1st woman Clerk of the Privy Council and also Secretary to Canadian
Cabinet.
September 28, 1950- Born Catherine Robbin (1950- ), mezzo-soprano.
November 2, 1950 - Born Wendy Lill Playwright (1950-
) , journalist, community
development worker, historian and Member of Parliament (Dartmouth, N.S.)
November 9, 1950 - Born Rachelle Halpenny (1950-2012) a sport
personality who say no disability to entering the "Game"
November 22, 1950 - Born Linda Granfield, author.
September 28, 1950 - Born Catherine Robbin (1950- ),
acclaimed opera singer
November 29, 1950 - Born Anne Goodman (1950-2013) educator
Deaths 1950:
1950 -
Died Julia Arthur (1869-1950) international stage actress and movie
star.
1950 - Died
Marion Coutts Carson (1861-1950) social activist in
Alberta.
1950 - Died
Eleanor 'Ella' Johnson (1875-1950) Journalist and 1st woman taxi
driver in British Columbia.
July 11, 1950 - Died Margaret Ellen Douglass (1878-1950)
distinguished early woman doctor.
July 29, 1950 - Died Alice Stuart Massey ( -1950)
Wife of Vincent Massey and author.
|
1951
|
1951 -
All three services of the Canadian military begin
to recruit women in the reserves. Source:
Women in the Military. The Canadian Encyclopedia Online
http://thecanadianencyclopedia.com accessed March 2005.
July 3, 1951 -
The 1st
80 recruited enlisted women in the Royal Canadian Air Force arrive
at St Jean , Quebec for basic training.
Source: A Brief History. RCAF Women.
www.rcafwomen.ca
1951 -
The Ontario government passes the Female Employees Fair
Remuneration Act requiring equal pay for women who do the same
work as men.
Source:
Shirley Tillotson, "Human Rights Law as a Prism: Women's
Organizations, Unions, and Ontario's Female Employees Fair
Remuneration Act, 1951," Canadian Historical Review (1991)
72#4 pp 532-557
1951
-
The Quebec government passes law that gives married women the power
to exercise her civil rights in her own name rather than through her
husband.
1951 -
Charlotte Whitton (1896-1975) is the
1st woman to become mayor of a major Canadian city,
Ottawa.
1951 - Addie Aylestock becomes
the 1st Black woman to be ordained as a Minster in Canada.
Source: Black History
Month
http://cyberus.ca/~acdas/bhm1a.html (accessed May 2005)
August 16, 1951 -
Winnie Roach-Leuszler
(1926-2004)
becomes
the 1st Canadian woman to swim the English Channel.
(Information from her family)
October 2, 1951 -
the 1st enlistees in the Woman's Division of
the Royal Canadian Navy begin their training.
Source: “Doreen Nettie Paterson Reitsma” by Raymond Reitsma ,
The Vancouver Hall of Fame, online (Accessed December 2012.)
November 12, 1951 - National Ballet of Canada is founded.
Births 1951:
1951 -
Born Cheryl Marlene Davidson (1951-1997) Lawyer and Judge in
Manitoba
1951 -
Born Meerlae Cho (1951 - ) Lawyer
1951 -
Born
Micheline Rawlins ( 1951 - )
The
Honorable Madam Justice Rawlins was the 1st Black woman
appointed the bench in Ontario in 1992.
1951 - Born Jane Ash Poitras (1951-
) aboriginal artist/painter.
1951 - Born Elizabeth Hay (1951- ) award winning author.
February 22, 1951 - Born Elaine Tanner- Watt ,
considered
Canada's best competitive swimmer., national champion and Olympic
Medal winning swimmer.
February 24, 1951 - Born Helen Shaver (1951-
) , actress and member of Canada's Walk of Fame.
March 2, 1951 - Born Louise V. Charron (1951- )
appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada on August 30, 2004
March 7, 1951 - Born Diane Jones Konihowski, Medal winning track star and
recipient of the Order of Canada.
March 12, 1951 - Born Susan, Musgrave, poet.
March 25, 1951 - Born Ethel Blondwin-Andrews, the 1st aboriginal
woman elected to the Canadian Parliament and the the first appointed
to a Cabinet position.
March 28, 1951 - Born Karen Kain, prima ballerina.
May 6, 1951 - Born Louise Portal, award winning actress, author, and
composer.
May 7, 1951 - Born Janina Frakowska, international
renowned pianist.
June 4, 1952 - Born Maryann Kovalski (1951- )
Illustrator for books.
July 4, 1951 - Born Beverly Boys, champion diver in springboard and
platform diving.
July 5, 1951 - Born Marie M. Klawe (1951- )
businesswoman
July 19, 1951 - Born Elizabeth Jo-Anne 'Jo' Bannatyne-Cugnet
(1951- ) author of books for children and
novelist.
August 5, 1951- Born Carole Laure, accomplished actress, director
and producer of films.
August 23, 1951 - Born Bev (Beverly) Busson ( 1951-
) first woman to be appointed as Commissioner of the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police. (2006)
September 14, 1951 - Born Elizabeth Ann 'Liz' Carruthers
(1951- ) champion diver
October 9, 1951 - Born Thelma Sonia Wright ( 1951 ) medal
winning track and field star.
September 17, 1951 - Born Sylvia Elizabeth Dockerill (1951-
) champion swimmer.
November 11, 1951 - Born Wendy Irving-Dell (1951- )
champion equestrian.
December 13, 1951 - Born Anne-Marie Alonzo (1951-2005)
playwright, novelist, poet, critic & publisher who was quadriplegic.
December 22, 1951 - Born Judith 'Judy' MacPherson
Crawford-Rawley (1951- ) champion alpine skier.
Deaths 1951:
1951 -
Died Mary Alexander Bell Eastlake (1864-1951) artist
1951 -
Died Flores (Florence) La Due (1883-1951) World Champion Trick and
Fancy Roper, rancher .
February 7, 1951 - Died Edna May Diefenbaker (1899-1951) wife of
John George Diefenbaker (1895-1979) 13th Prime Minister of Canada.
Note some sources report her birth date as 1901.
October 5, 1951 - Died Francis Marion Beynon (1884-1951), journalist,
feminist & social reformer. In 1912 became the first full-time
editor, Grain Growers Guide.
|
| 1952 |
1952 -
The province of Manitoba passes a law allowing women to sit on a
jury.
1952 -
The Ontario Training Schools for Girls was established for young
female offenders under the age of 16. the schools will close in
1960.
1952 - Tillie
Jean Rolston
(1887-1953)
is appointed the Minister of Education in British Columbia becoming
the 1st woman to hold a provincial cabinet position with
a portfolio in Canada. Women who had held provincial cabinet
positions prior to this date were not given a specific portfolio.
1952
- Elsie Knott, a member of the Ojibwa tribe, is the
1st aboriginal woman elected chief.
September 1952 -
Canada's 1st television stations begin
broadcasting in Montreal and Toronto.
September 8, 1952 - Laddie Dennis (1920-2009)
is the 1st Canadian woman to appear on Canadian TV.
Source: Canadian Broadcast Museum Foundation
Http://www.cbmf-fmcr.ca/Newsletter/march 2009/laddie.php (Accessed
March 2009)
1952 -
Ethlyn Trapp
(1891-1972) became the 1st woman doctor to become head of the
National Cancer Institute of Canada.
Source: Vancouver Hall of Fame (Accessed December 2012)
1952 - The Boys' and Girls' Clubs, originally founded in
the Agricultural District of Waterloo, Ontario in 1915, change their
name to 4-H Clubs.
My Head for clearer thinking
My Heart for greater loyalty
My Hands for larger service
My Health for better living.
1952 -
Hanaka Muraoka, a Japanese woman, who learned English at school and
became a translator, published her translation in Japanese of Anne
of Green Gables...Akage-no An (Red haired Anne)
Source: Canadian Women Missionaries at Toyo Eiwa in Japan
1882-2006. Translated by Seiichi Ariga and Wayne Irwin. (Toyo
Eiwa Jogakuin, 2012)
1952 - Tillie
Jean Rolston
(1887-1953)
is appointed the Minister of Education in British Columbia becoming
the 1st woman to hold a provincial cabinet position with
a portfolio in Canada. Women who had held provincial cabinet
positions prior to this date were not given a specific portfolio.
Births 1952:
1952 -
Born Marsha Elaine Boulton (1952- ) listed in the Canadian
Who's Who as shepherd and author, she is also an historian.
1952 - Born Susan Mabel Hare (1952- ) one of the 1st
aboriginal lawyers in Ontario 1995.
1952 - Born Anne Leahy (1952- ) career diplomat with
Canadian Foreign Service.
January 10, 1952 - Born Angela Grauerholz ( 1952- )
internationally known photographer.
January 20. 1952 - Born Ruth Elizabeth Borson (1952-
),. Canadian Poet.
January 25, 1952 - Born Patricia Martens (1952-2015), science
researcher.
February 4, 1952 - Born Shirley Blumberg (1952- )
acclaimed architect.
February 19, 1952 - Born Constance Barbara Backhouse educator and
author in women's issues.
February 27, 1952 - Born Maureen McTeer, author, journalist, lawyer
and politician, wife to Prime Minister Joe Clark.
March 19, 1952 - Jeanne Beker (1952- ) journalist, TV
broadcaster, fashion editor, author and newspaper bolumnist
March 21, 1952 - Born Margaret Franssen (1952- )
social activist for international women's rights
March 25, 1952 - Born Elizabeth Legge, artist and curator of fine
arts.
April 4, 1952 - Born Karen Magnusson, world champion figure skater.
April 9, 1952 - Born Diana Zoe Coop, visual artist.
April 11, 1952 - Born Indira Vasanti Damarasekera an award winning
mechanical Engineer.
April 22, 1952 - Born Kathy Stinson (1952- )
outstanding author of books for children.
May 13, 1952 - Born Mary Walsh (1952- ) award winning
actor, comedian, writer and role model.
May 19, 1952 - Born Sarah Ellis, (1952- ) author of books for
children and youth.
June 18, 1952 - Born Shirley Cheechoo ( stage name Cactus Rose) artist,
actor, writer, director singer and producer.
July 5, 1952 - Born Susan Riva Bellan, import and retail executive and
author.
July 5, 1952 - Born Laurelea Vorna Conrad, artist and business CEO.
July 25, 1952 - Born Linda Marie Giesbrecht (1952-2013)
Lawyer
August 15, 1952 - Born Jan Wong (1952- ) Canadian
journalist & author often reporting from or on China.
August 31, 1952 - Born Carrie-Jo (C.J.) Taylor, artist and author of
books for teens.
September 17, 1952 - Born Nancy Margaret Reid award winning
statistician.
October 4, 1952 - Born Angela Coughlan (1952-
) champion freestyle swimmer.
October 18, 1953 - Born Janet Ecker (1953- )
politician.
October 22, 1952 - Born Peggy Laurayne Baker (1952 -
) know for her modern dance.
November 27, 1952 - Born Jacqueline Guest (1952- )
Métis Children's author.
December 11, 1952 - Born Goldie Semple (1952-2009) stage actress
December 31, 1953 - Born Sharon Anne Firth twin sister of
Shirley (1953- ) champion cross country skier
December 31, 1953 - Born Shirley Firth twin sister of Sharon
(1953- ) champion cross country skier.
Deaths 1952:
1952 - Died Arabelle "Belle" Frances Patchen Northwestern
pioneer
January 23, 1952 - Died Anna "Annie" Jamieson (1871-1952)
education activist
April 9, 1952 - Died Harriet
Tremaine Meiklejohn (1876- 1952) World War l Nursing Sister and
acclaimed nursing administrator.
April 12, 1952 - Died Margaret May McWilliams, (1875-1952)author and
founder of the Canadian Federation of University Women.
May 12, 1952 - Died Lillian Margaret Hendrie, (1870-1952) teacher and
author.
October 8, 1953 - Died Helen
MacMurchy (1862-1953) the 1st woman doctor to intern at Toronto
General Hospital
November 3, 1952 - Died Minnie Julia Beatrice Campbell
(1862-1952) social activist and prominent volunteer.
|
| 1953 |
January 1, 1953 - National Library of Canada is
established in Ottawa.
January 9, 1953 - Marguerite Pitre is the last woman hanged
in Canada. She was sentenced to death for her role in the bombing of
a passenger airplane.
Source: Canada’s History December 2011-January 2012 page 11.
January 1953 - 5 women, including Mrs. Irvin McLean are the
1st
women to serve on a jury in Ontario. Source: Cochrane
Northland Post January 22, 1953. pg.2.
July 13, 1953 - Stratford Festival
opens under a tent for its 1st season.
July 27, 1953 - Korean conflict ends.
1953 -
The Canadian government passed the Fair Employment Practices Act
to help end discrimination in the labour force
1953 - Vitamin D is now added to milk.
1953 -
there are
3,133 women enlisted in the RCAF Source: A Brief
History. RCAF Women.
www.rcafwomen.ca
1953 -
Nancy Hodges becomes the 1st woman senator in British Columbia's
legislature. Source:
British Columbia Federation of Labour.
http://bcfed.com/issues/women/history
1953 - Stella Panarites
(1924-1986) is the 1st woman lawyer of Greek Heritage to be
called to the bar in Ontario.
Source: Diversifying the bar: Lawyers Make history. Law
Society of Upper Canada Online
1953 - Canada's Outstanding womens Athelete of
the year was Ernestine Russell Weaver,
(1938- ) Champion Gymnast. (Also won this title for
1954 & 1955)
1953 - Frances Dafoe (1929 - )
and her skating partner Norris Bowden (1926-1991)
are the 1st Canadians to win a World Pairs Skating title.
Source: Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame Online (Accessed January 2013)
1953 - Simpson's Department Stores merges with American Sears and the first
Simpson's Sears catalogue is issued. Source: Before
e-commerce : a history of mail order catalogues
http://wwwcivilization.ca/cpm/catalog/catooooe.html
(Accessed December 15,2004.)
1953 - Woodward's Catalogue, a tradition in Western
Canada, business closes and assets are purchased by the Hudson's
Bay Company. Source: Before e-commerce : a history of
mail order catalogues
http://wwwcivilization.ca/cpm/catalog/catooooe.html
(Accessed December15, 2004.)
Births 1953:
1953 -
Born Shari Andrews (1953- ) writer and poet.
1953 -
Born Micheline Charest (1953-2004) business woman in animation
industry.
1953 -
Born Rachna Gilmore (1953- ) author of books for
children and youth
1953 -
Born Roberta Jamieson (1953- )1st aboriginal & 1st woman
Ontario Ombudsman, Chief of Six Nations, Grand River
1953 - Born Catherine Kim McArthur(1953 - ) head
of McArthur and Company Publishers.
1953 -
Born Helen R. Pierce (1953- )
appointed to the Supreme Court of Justice at Thunder Bay, & may be the 1st Métis
judge in Ontario.
January 30, 1953 - Born Patricia Kim Alletson (1953- )medal winning figure skater.
February 12, 1953 - Born Linda Pauline Griffiths (1958-
) actor and playwright
February 27, 1953 - Born Libby Davies (1953- )
provincial and federal politician.
March 10, 1953 - Born Debbie Brill (1953- ) medal winning track and field star
who has been awarded the Order of Canada.
March 10, 1953 - Born Hélène Madeleine Grégoire (1953 -
) champion water skier.
April 12, 1953 - Born Paddy Tutty (1953- ) musician and singer of Celtic music.
April 18, 1953 -
Born Louise Bernice Halfe, (1953-
) aboriginal author and poet.
June 17, 1953 -
Born Beverly 'Bev' Cameron (1953- ) champion in the
sport of curling.
July 9, 1953 -
Born Margie Gillis ballerina (1953- )cultural ambassador, appointed to
the Order of Canada.
July 12 1953 -
Born Debbie Muir (1953- ) national award winning coach
of synchronized swimming.
July 13, 1953 -
Born Milica "Mila" Mulroney ( 1953- ) wife of Prime Minister
Brian Mulroney (1939 - )
July 31, 1953 -
Born Sylvie Fortier (1953- ) champion synchronized swimmer.
August 1, 1953 - Born Wanda Thomas Elaine Bernard (1953-
) 1st Black Canadian to have academic tenure and become a full
professor at Dalhousie University.
August 8, 1953 - Born Miriam Alleyne Priscilla Renouf
(1953-2014) archeologist.
August 14, 1953 - Born Jennifer Marie Diachun-Palmer (1953-
) champion gymnast.
August 14, 1953 - Born Debora Turney Zagwyn (1953-
) author & illustrator.
August 15, 1953 - Born Rhea Tregebov (1953- ) award
winning author & poet.
September 1953 - Born Anne Laurel Carter (1953- )
author of books for youth.
September 9, 1953 - Born Deanne "Dee" Brasseur (1953 -
)
In 1989 she & Captain
Jane Foster became the 1st women fighter pilots in
the world.
October 15, 1953 - Born Elizabeth Anne 'Betsy' Clifford
(1953- ) champion alpine skier.
November 1953 - Born Wendy Duggleby (1953- )
Queen Elizabeth ll Jubilee Medal holder.
December 2, 1953 - Born Sheila Watt-Cloutier (1953- )
contemporary champion against persistent organic pollutants
Deaths 1953;
1953 -
Died
Nellie Lyle Pattinson (1878-1953) educator
& author of Canada's 1st mass
produced cookbook
1953 -
Died Helena Jane Coleman (1860-1953) journalist &
novelist.
1953 - Died Sara Mary Lynch-Stanton
(1864-1953) western Canadian pioneer & artist.
January 26, 1953 - Died Isabelle McTavish (1881-1953)
Presbyterian medical missionary to China.
February 21, 1953 - Died Janet
Wishart Carter (1870-1953) renowned educator in Ontario.
February 28, 1953 - Died Constance Wilson Samuel (1908-1953)
international champion figure skater solo and pairs.
May 11, 1953 - Died Jean Adair (1873-1953)
movie actress.
May 26, 1953 - Born Maureen Adele Crowley (1953-
) champion in track & field.
June 6, 1953 - Died Mary Elizabeth
Crawford (1876-1953) indomitable woman doctor
July 28, 1953 - Died Florence Livesay (1874-1953) journalist &
poet.
October 12, 1953 - Died Pearl Beatrix Foley ( ? - 1953) author
October 12, 1953 - Died Tilly Rolston (1887-1953)
2nd
woman in British Columbia to be appointed to the cabinet & 1st woman in Canada to hold a specific
portfolio.
November 1953 - Died
Arthamise Fortin (1879-1953) pioneer of
Northern Ontario
December 3, 1953 - Died
Partial Edith Fanny Kirk (1858-1953) water colour landscape
artist.
December 11, 1953 - Died
Dr. Jennie Wildman (1863-1953)
established the Department of Gynecology at the Women’s College
Hospital
December 16, 1953 - Died Rebecca (Becky) Buhay
(1896-1953) a radical political organizer.
December 18, 1953 - Died
Eva Finkelstein Abremovich ( 1877-1953) 1897
graduated as one of the 1st Jewish person from Manitoba College.
|
| 1954 |
June 7, 1954 - The Canadian
government declares Onésime Dorval
(1845-1932) the 1st certified teacher in the Red River
District a Person of National Historic significance.
Source: Dorval, Onésime (1845-1932) Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan.
Online (Accessed May 2014)
1954 -
The province of New Brunswick passes a law that allows women to sit
on a jury.
1954 -
The Quebec
government passes a law that allows a wife to see separation from
her husband on the simple grounds of adultery.
1955 -
The
Ontario Women’s Treatment Center is established for the treatment of
alcoholism, drug addiction and psychiatric disorders. It would
become by 1965 part of the Mercer Complex in Brampton, Ontario.
September 9, 1954 - Long distance swimmer, Marilyn Bell
(1937-
) becomes the 1st person to swim across Lake Ontario, a
distance of 51 km.
1954 - Olivia Poole,
(1889-1975) a mother of seven children who lives in
Vancouver, British Columbia, invents the Jolly Jumper.
The device can be hung in any doorway
and the baby is safely harnessed in such manner as to allow exercise
and fun with bouncing. Source : Canuck Chicks and Maple
Leaf Mamas : women of the Great White North by Ann Douglas Toronto,
McArthur and Co., 2002.
1954 -
Canada's Outstanding Womens Athlete
of the year was Ernestine Russell Weaver,
(1938- ) Champion Gymnast. (Also won
this title for 1953 & 1955)
1954 - Frances Dafoe (1929 -
) and skating partner Norris Bowden
(1926-1991) win the World Pairs Skating competition for the
2nd year in a row. They also hold 1953-1956 the North American
Championship titles. .
Source:
Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame Online (Accessed January 2013)
1954 - St John's General Hospital in
Newfoundland names its new nurse's residence after pioneer nursing
educator, Mary Southcott (1862-1943). Source
: 100 Canadian Heroines: famous and forgotten faces by Merna Forester.
Toronto : Dundurn Press, 2004.
1954 - General Electric introduces the portable home dishwasher.
Source : Canuck Chicks and Maple Leaf Mamas : women of the
Great White North by Ann Douglas Toronto, McArthur and Co., 2002.
pg 18
1954 - Swanson and Sons introduced the TV Dinner.
Source : Canuck Chicks and Maple Leaf Mamas : women of the
Great White North by Ann Douglas Toronto, McArthur and Co., 2002. pg
18.
Births 1954:
1954 -
Born Gillian Chan (1954- ) author of books for
youth.
1954 -
Born - during winter seal hunt Rosemarie Kuptana (1954 -
) social Activist and Native Leader, Officer , Order of Canada.
1954 - Born Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch (1954- ) author
of books for youth.
January 6, 1954 - Born Judith 'Jude' Marian Johnson (1954-
) jazz singer and social activist for children and arts.
February 2, 1954 - Born D. J. McCawley Canadian lawyer and judge.
February 21, 1954 - Born Katherine Heinrich educator.
March 4, 1954 - Born Catherine O'Hara, comedienne and actress
of stage and film.
April 6, 1955 - Born Catherine 'Cathy' Theresa Mary Andrea
Jones (1955- ) actor& comedienne from CODCO and This
Hour has 22 Minutes.
September 20, 1954 - Born Judith Claire Francesca Marie Bernadette
Thompson, award winning playwright.
September 22, 1954 - Nicole Juteau (1954- ) 1st
woman police officer in the Province of Quebec.
October 18, 1954 - Born Lesley Elizabeth Harris (1954-
) champion badminton player.
December 12, 1954 - Born Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch, writer of books for
young readers.
Deaths 1954:
1954 -
Died
Kathleen Barrett Blanchard
(1872-1954) Music historian.
1954 - Died
Mary Riter Hamilton (1873-1954) artist of World War l European
battlefields.
February 13, 1954 - Died Agnes Macphail (1890-1954) a founder of the
Elizabeth Fry Society, she was first woman elected to the Canadian
parliament.
April 18, 1954 - Died Winifred Eaton (1875-1954) Onoto Watanna,
1st
known author of Asian descent to have works published in America.
May 27, 1954 - Died Alice Ravenhill (1859-1954) social activist and author.
|
| 1955 |
1955 -
Restrictions on the employment of married women in
the federal public service are removed.
1955 -
The Canadian Army and Navy begin to recruit women for regular services
not just reserves.
By 1955 more than 5,000 women are serving.
Source: Women in the
Military. The Canadian Encyclopedia Online
http://thecanadianencyclopedia.com ;
Source: National
Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces, Fact sheet. Online
(Accessed March 2014)
1955 -The
Ontario government amends its Mothers Allowance legislation to
include unwed mothers.
1955 - Lucille Teasdale-Corti
(1929-1996) is the 1st woman in Québec to receive a diploma
as a surgeon.
Sources: Dr. Lucille Teasdale. Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Online
(Accessed 2005) ; Lucille Teasdale. The Canadian Encyclopedia Online
(Accessed 2005) ; Dawson, Joanna and Beverly Tallon. “Helping
Heroes: Canadians who made a difference in the world.’ In
Canada’s History February- March 2013
1955 - Margaret Gee
is the 1st Chinese Canadian woman lawyer
to be
called to the bar. Source: Canadian Chinese
National Council. Moments of Chinese Canadian History.
http://www.ccnc.ca/toronto/history/timeline.html (accessed July 7,
2003)
1955 - Canada's Outstanding womens
Athelete of the year was Ernestine Russell Weaver,
(1938- ) Champion Gymnast.
(Also won this title for 1953 & 1955)
1955 - The Canadian Labour Congress is established.
1955 - The
Canadian Sports Hall of Fame is established.
1955 - Abby Hoffman (1947- ) wants to play hockey. In
order to play she has to cut her hair short and play as a boy. All
went well until the all-star game when players had to submit birth
certificates! Abby became an overnight sensation and other girls soon
appeared to try out for boys hockey teams! Source:
Women's Hockey - backcheck; a hockey retrospective. Library and
Archives Canada
http://collectionscanada.ca/hockey/024002-2200-e.html (accessed
January 27, 2006)
1955 - Frances Dafoe-Mellick (1929- )
and
Norris Bowden (1926-1991) Pairs skating champions are inducted into
Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.
Source: Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame Online (Accessed January 2013)
Births 1955:
1955 -
Born Brenda Chapman (1955- ) Author of mystery stories for
youth.
1955 -
Born Sarindar Dhaliwal (1955- ) artist & feminist of
Sikh descent.
1955 -
Born Andromache Karakatsanis (1955- ) appointed to the
Supreme Court of Canada 2011.
1955 -
Born Kathy Knowles (1955 - ) lay librarian & social
activist.
1955 - Born Debbie Palmer (1955- ) social
activist for wives of polygamous marriages.
January 10, 1955 - Born Eva Qamaniq Aariak (1955- )
2nd premier of Nunavut.
February 1, 19555 - Born Donna Brown (1955 - ) internationally
acclaimed soprano.
February 10, 1955
- Born Brenda Clark (1955- ) illustrator of Franklin the
Turtle books.
February 18, 1955 - Born Donna-Marie Gurr (1955- )
Olympic swimmer.
February 28, 1955 - Born Rebecca Gail Cowan (1955- ) artist
March 9, 1955 - Born Marilyn C. Bodough (1955- )
businesswoman &
motivational speaker, a member of the 2996 Canadian & World Championship curling teams.
March 11, 1955 - Born Leslie G. Cliff (1955- ) world medalist in swimming
March 26, 1955 - Born Annette Mangaard (1955- ) filmmaker.
April 12, 1955 - Born Claire Samson (1955- ), businesswoman in communications
and broadcasting.
May 19, 1955 - Born Sue Holloway (1955- )
Olympic skier & Kayak racer.
May 26, 1955 - Born Louise Bédard (1955- ) renowned
dancer on stage, TV & movies.
June 19, 1955 - Born Renée Elaine Elio (1955- ) professor and author in the
field of computer sciences.
July 17, 1955 - Born Geneviére Cadieux(1955-
), photographic artist.
August 12, 1955 - Born Jane Siberry (1955- ) a singer who owns her own record
label.
August 17, 1955 - Born Manitok Thompson (1955-
) teacher and Inuklitut programs
specialist and MPP Northwest Territories.
October 13, 1955 - Born Teresa Toten (1955- ) writer.
October 15, 1955 - Born Kristine Winder (1955- ) model.
Deaths 1955:
1955 - Died Mary Margaret "Margery" Brooker (1901-1955) In
1941 the firs woman appointed School Inspector for the Virden
District , Manitoba, the First Canadian women to hold such a
position.
1955 - Died
Mabel Priscilla Penery French (1881-1955) 1st woman
lawyer in New Brunswick.
1955 -
Died Violet Irene Guymer (1885-1955) first woman licensed funeral
director in Canada
January 1, 1955 - Died Victoria Cartier (1867-1955) Pianist, organist
and teacher.
January 11, 1955 - Died Henrietta Tuzo Wilson (1873-1955) The first
Canadian born woman mountaineer.
March 13, 1955 - Died Mary Walker Dobson (1871-1955) teacher
who received
King’s
Coronation Medal 1937.
April 10, 1955 - Died Sara "Sadie" Ann Stringer (
1869-1955) Anglican Church Missionary to the Canadian Northwest
May 18, 1955 - Died
Emilie Musgrave Boswell (1886-1955) early journalist
with the Winnipeg Tribune.
December 28, 1955 - Died
Pearl Hart (1871-1955) woman stagecoach robber.
|
| 1956 |
1956 -
The Canadian government passes the Federal Equal Pay
legislation in an attempt to provide equality in pay for men and
women. However there is still a long way to go for pay equity.
January 11, 1956 -
Ann Shipley (1899-1981)
is the 1st woman to move acceptance of the
Speech from the Throne in the House of Commons.
Source: Bob Bowman, Dateline: Canada.
Toronto: Holt Rinehart and Winston of Canada, Ltd., 1973.
1956
-
The federal government passes a law granting women
equal pay for doing "identical or substantially identical"
work as men.
1956 -
Lucille Wheeler
(1935- ) wins a bronze medal in the Olympics,
the 1st ever
Canadian Olympic ski medal.
- Frances Dafoe
(1929- ) and Norris Bowden
(1926-1991) win a Silver Olympic medal in Pairs figure skating.
1956 - Irene MacDonald (1933- )
wins
Canada’s 1st Olympic
diving medal, a bronze,
in Melbourne, Australia.
1956 - Ernestine Russell Weaver
(1938- )
becomes
the 1st Canadian Woman to participate in Gymnastics in the
Games in Melbourne , Australia.
1956 -
Marlene Streit
(1934 - )
wins the U.S. Amateur
Women's Golf Open Tournament.
1956 - There has been little interest in women's
hockey teams since World War ll. Abigail Hoffman
(1947- ) , a pre-teen challenges "boys only" policy in
minor hockey when she demands to play the game.
1956 - The Woman's Canadian
Historical Society of Ottawa is renamed the Ottawa Historical
Society. Source: The Ottawa Historical Society Online
(Accessed July 2011)
1956 -
Col. Saunders introduces Kentucky Fried Chicken
in a fast food format to the world.
Births
1956:
1956 - Born Lisa De Wilde (1956- ) TV executive &
promoter of educational TV
1956 -
Born Glenna Hansen (1956- ) 1st woman of Inuvialuit
descent to become Commissioner of Northwest Territories.
1956 -
Born Denise Donlon
(1956- ) Broadcaster, Member of Canadian Broadcaster's
Hall of Fame.
January 1, 1956 -
Born Sheila McCarthy (1956- ) award winning actress.
January 9, 1956 - Born Alexandra Bugailiskis (1956-
) diplomat
February 22, 1956 -
Born Denise Donlan (1956- ) a
broadcaster and corporate administrator.
March 11, 1956 - Born Wendy May
Clarkson-Carter (1956- ) champion badminton
player.
April 4, 1956 -
Born Evelyn Hart (1956- ), international prima
ballerina.
April 6, 1956 - Born Sandra Bezic (1956- ) International award
winning figure skater.
April 30, 1956 - Born Gina Feldberg (1956-2010) an
academic who wrote on the social history of health issues.
May 10, 1956 - Born Dinah Anderson (1956- ), aboriginal artist and woodcarver.
May 27, 1956 - Born Catherine Priestner-Allinger (1956- )
Medal winning speed skater and Olympic organizer
June 13, 1956 - Born Barbara Stymiest (1956- ), one of Canada's top
businesswomen.
July 31, 1956 -
Born Pam Withers (1956- ) author of
extreme sports novels for young readers.
August 15, 1956 - Born Lorraine Desmarais (1956-
) jazz pianist.
August 21, 1956 - Born Kim Cattral (1956- ) award
winning actress of movies, television and stage who has a Star on
Canada's Walk of Fame.
August 29, 1956 - Born Carla Jean Hartsfield (1956-
) poet.
September 15, 1956 - Born Wendy Elizabeth Hogg (1956-
) champion and Olympic medal swimmer.
October 8, 1956 - Born Arlene Dickinson (1956-
) business woman and TV personality on Dragon's Den
October 25, 1956 - Born Andrea Beck (1956- )
author and artist of the Elliot Moose stories.
December 1956 - Born Cathy Lacey (1956- ) artist who uses her art to
raise funds to create awareness of various community groups.
Deaths 1956:
1956 -
Born Jocelyne Rey-Vienneau (1956-
) 1st Acadian woman to be Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick.
January 1956 - Died
Nora Bateson (1896--1956) Librarian
and professor at McGill University
May 4, 1956 - Died Mina Hubbard (1870-1956) Labrador
adventurer and explorer.
May 18, 1956 - Died
Nellie Margaret Lewis (1892-1956) teacher and author.
August 23, 1956 - Died
Isabel Skelton (1877-1956)
respected historian and author.
September 7, 1956 - Died
Amelia Beers Garvin (1878-1956) journalist and editor.
September 20, 1956 - Died
Nanette Bordeaux, (1911-1956) actress.
October 7, 1956 - Died Maud Allan
(1873-1956) , pioneer of modern dance.
|
| 1957 |
June
21,1957 - Rt. Hon. Ellen Louks Fairclough (1905-2004) is the
1st woman appointed to the Canadian federal
cabinet by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.
1957 - Mabel
Frances Timlin
(1891-1976.) is the 1st woman
to be elected to the executive committee of the American Economics
Association.
1957 - The Canada
Council is established to enhance the Canadian cultural experience.
1957 - Blanche Margaret
Meagher
(1911-1999.) she is
the 1st woman to become
appointed as an ambassador from Canada.
1957 - Winnie Roach-Leuszler
(1926-2004) is the
1st Canadian woman to
be a baseball umpire
1957 - Canada has only 24 women engineers , compared
with Russia's 233,000!
Source: Jean Bannerman, Leading Ladies of Canada (Belleville,
Mika Publishing, 1977);
1957 - Ruth Addison (1897-2005)
is the 1st woman to be a member of the Civil Service
Commission.
Source: Jean Bannerman, Leading Ladies of Canada (Belleville,
Mika Publishing, 1977);
1957 - The Canadian Women's Press Club (CWPC) is at its peak with
675 membersd in 17 branches across the country. The meet this year
for their triennial national conference.
Births 1957:
January 7, 1957 -
Born Raymonde
Gagné
(1957- ) academic &
politician.
January 17, 1957 -
Born Nancy Argenta (1957- ) soprano.
February 17, 1957 -
Born Loreena McKennit (1957- ) singer, actress
and writer.
February 28, 1957 - Born Margaret 'Meg' Ruffman (1958-
) actress & handy woman contractor.
March 10, 1957 - Born Shannon Tweed (1957- ) TV and film actress.
March 23,1957 - Born Amanda Plummer (1957- ) actress.
March 24, 1957 - Born Olivia Chow (1957- )
prominent politician and MP of the NDP.
April 3, 1957 - Born Sandra Bell Lundy (1957- ) cartoonist and founder of the
comic strip "Between Friends"
April 6, 1957 - Born Gail (1957- ) Amundrud Award winning competitive swimmer.
April 9, 1957 - Born Kit Brennan Watters (1957-
) actress and
playwright .
April 25, 1957- Born Francine Pelletier, (1957- ) award winning author.
May 1, 1957 - Born Marjorie Blackwood ( 1957- ) award
winning tennis star.
May 4, 1957 - Born Kathy Kreiner (1957- )
gold medal Olympian in skiing.
May 21, 1957 - Born Linda Bouchard (1957- ) composer and orchestra conductor.
May 26, 1957 - Born Lucille Lessard (1957- ) world champion archer.
June 16, 1957 - Born Cindy Shatto
(1957-2011) a true pioneer in the sports of swimming and
diving.
June 29, 1957 - Born Janice Rennie (1957- ) award winning financial consultant.
August 20, 1957- Born Cindy Nicholas (1957- ) long distance swimmer and member
Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
September 6, 1957-
Born Michaelle Jean (1957- ) 27th and first Afro Caribbean
Governor General of Canada.
November 8, 1957 - Born Afua Cooper (1957 - )
Black Canadian historian, author and poet.
Deaths 1957:
1957 -
Died
Adelaide Morin-Thomas (1847-1957) pioneer in Canadian
northwest.
April 22, 1957-
Died
Dorothy Duncan (1903-1957) author
May 1957 - Died Helen Barnard McCall (1899-1957)
photographer
May 1957 - Died Helen Bernard McCall (11899-1957) pioneer
photographer in British Columbia.
May 28,
1957 -
Died
Minerva Ellen Reid
(1872-1957) Medical doctor, Chief of Surgery Women's College Hospital,
Toronto
June 15, 1957 - Died
Gertrude Childs (1881-1957) social
worker awarded the Order of the British Empire 1934.
June 21, 1957 - Died Bertha Mabel Dunham ( 1881-1957) Librarian, local
historian and author of works for young readers.
June 26, 1957 - Died
Virginia K. Copping Norton Kemp (1895-1957) Lady Kemp, social
activist and volunteer.
July 15, 1957 - Died Marion Hilliard (1902-1958), medical doctor who
helped develop a simplified Pap test.
October 31, 1957 - Died
Martha Louise
Black (1866-1957), adventurer and politician, considered to be the
First Lady of the Yukon.
November 1957 - Died
Marjorie McKenzie (1895- 1957) one of the 1st women to become a
Foreign Service Officer in Canada.
December 14, 1957 - Died Katherine Elizabeth Wallis (1860-1957) a
sculptor who was decorated by Britain and France for her nursing
efforts in World War l.
|
| 1958 |
1958 - Les Grands Ballets Canadiens is founded in
Montreal.
Source: The Timechart of
History of Canada by Meredith Macardle (2004)
1958 - Jean Casselman-Wadds
(1920-2011)
is the third woman elected to the Canadian
Parliament and
along with her father Earle Rowe they became the only father
daughter ever to sit in the same session of Parliament.
Sources: Obituary. Ottawa Citizen December 3, 2011.
1958 - Frances Dafoe -Mellick
(1929- )
and Norris Bowden
(1926-1991)
figure skating pairs Olympic Silver Medalists in 1956 are inducted
into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame.
Source: Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame Online (Accessed January 2013)
1958 – Margaret Meagher (1911-1999)
is appointed to Israel, Canada’s 1st female ambassador.
Source:
Margaret Weiers, Envoys Extraordinary: Women of the Canadian
Foreign Service (Toronto: Dundurn, 1995)
October 22, 1958 -
Blanche Margaret Meagher
(1911-1999)
is the 1st woman appointed as a Canadian Ambassador when she
served in Israel.
Sources: Margaret K. Weiers, Envoys Extraordinary: Women of the
Canadian Foreign Service. (Toronto; Dundurn, 1995); Blanche
Margaret Meagher, Canadian Encyclopedia online (Accessed July
2015)
Births 1958:
1958 -
Born Michelle "Mickey" Colton (1958- ) the 1st Canadian
Herculese pilot to reach 5000 hours of flying.
1958 -
Born Luba (Lubomir Kowalchyk) (1958 - ) Roc singer.
1958 -
Born Susan Ursel (1958 - ) 1st openly Lesbian lawyer in
Ontario 1986.
February 12, 1958 - Born Mariann Domonkos (1958- )
champion in table tennis.
April 5, 1958 -
Born Susan Sloan-Kelsey (1958- ) champion and Olympic
medal swimmer.
June 4, 1958 -
Born Jeannine Ouellette, (1958- ) bilingual author and
Canadian women's historian.
July 26, 1958 -
Born Angela Hewitt ( 1958- ) renowned pianist known for
playing of music by Bach.
September 24, 1958 -
Born Trish Monture-Angus (1958-2010) lawyer, Aboriginal rights
enthusiast, Sociologist, author & teacher.
September 24, 1958 -
Born Barbara 'Barb' Lynne Clark-Parolin champions swimmer.
September 28, 1958 -
Born Angella Taylor - Issajenko (1958- ), one of Canada's outstanding
sprinters.
November 19, 1958 - Born
Elise Partridge
(1958-2015) poet.
December 18, 1958 - Born Cheryl Lynn Hayes (1958-
) deaf Olympian swimmer.
December 30, 1958 - Born Bridgid Ann Davidson (1958-2013 social
activist
Deaths 1958:
1958 -
Died Jessie Georgina Sime (1868-1958) author.
January 15, 1958 - Died
Elizabeth Scott Matheson (1866-1958) an early
doctor in Manitoba who practiced for 50 years.
February 16, 1958 - Died Clara Dennis (1881-1958) pioneer
photographer of life in Nova Scotia.
May 25, 1958 - Died
Blanche Lamontagne (1889-1958) poet with a library, a road and a
mountain named for her.
October 2, 1958 - Died Kathleen "Kit" Adeline Martin
Cowaret (1887- 1958) Anglican Church Missionary to the Canadian
Northwest.
December 15, 1958 - Died
Alexandrine Gibb (1891-1958) pioneer woman sports
journalist for women's sports.
December 26, 1958 - Died Eva Gauthier, (1885-1958) internationally
acclaimed mezzo soprano.
|
| 1959 |
May
3, 1959 - Marie-Marguerite d'Youville ( -1771)
is beatified ( a step in the declaration of sainthood by the Roman
Catholic Church). She is the 1st Canadian born candidate for
sainthood .
1959 - Canada's Food Rules is renamed and updated to become
Canada's Food Guide.
July 1959 - Margaret Paton Hyndman
(1901?-1991) who served the Free France Movement
during World War ll is awarded a citation fro Charles DeGaulle and
received a silver medal from the City of Paris.
Sources: Toronto Business and Professional Club, website accessed
March 1913. ; Margaret Hyndman, lawyer: no warm welcome 50 years
ago, Ottawa Citizen June 13, 1976.
September 28, 1959 - Betty
Oliphant (1918-2004)
and
Celia Franca (1921- ) founds the National Ballet School
of Canada
June 26, 1959 -
Queen Elizabeth II and President D.
Eisenhower of the U.S.A. officially open the St. Lawrence Seaway.
1959 - Olivia Poole (1889-1975)
the inventor of the Jolly Jumper
for pre toddler babies had began
manufacturing the device in the 1950's and by the end of the decade
the family factory in North Vancouver was supplying all of North
America, Great Britain and Australia.
1959 - Ernestine Russell Weaver
(1938- )
dominates the field of Gymnastics in the Pan
American games winning four gold and two silver medals. This was the first Pan Am games for the event of
Gymnastics.
1959 - Mary and Helen Stewart
wins a silver medal in the 4X100 freestyle relay in
the swimming relay at the Pan Am Games.
Source: British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame Online (Accessed
June 2008)
Births 1959:
1959 -
Born Nathalie Des Rosiers (1959- ) lawyer, provincial
politician, & university professor,
1959 -
Born Mandy Kerlann (birth name Harmunderjit Kaur Brar) (1959-
)
international textile artist.
January 4, 1959 -
Born Denise Katrina Mathews (1959 - ) singer, B
movie actor turned evangelist.
January 12, 1959 - Born
Helen Vanderburg (1959- ) champion synchronized swimmer.
March 14,1959 - Born Elizabeth
"Betsey" Carroll Martin (1959-2013) philanthropist.
May 30, 1959 - Born Claudia Joan
Alexander (1959- 2015) scientist.
June 3, 1959 -
Born Rebecca 'Becky' Gwendolyn
Smith-Wiber (1959- ) champion & Olympic medalist in
swimming.
June 20, 1959 - Born Louise Bessette (1959 -
) internationally acclaimed pianist.
July 26, 1959 - Born Anne Elizabeth Jardin-Alexander (1959-
) champion swimmer.
July 28, 1959 - Born Cheryl Ann Gibson-Brokop (1959-
) champion golfer.
September 5, 1959 - Born Stacy Dales-Schuman (1959- ) Womens
National Basketball Association player and broadcaster.
September 8, 1959 - Born Carmen
Campagne (1959- ) French folk singer & activist to
save French language and culture. Order of Canada.
September 16, 1959 - Born Jennifer Tilly, (1959- )
actor.
October 19, 1959 - Born Christine Mary Forgo (1959-
) champion table tennis player.
Deaths 1959:
1959 - Died
Constance Garner-Short (1910-1959) one of four women who
were 1st lawyers called to the Bar in Quebec.
1959 - Died
Patricia Jenkins Blondal (1926-1959) broadcast journalist,
journalist & novelist.
1959 - Died
Christine Pilon (1862-1959) pioneer
of the North-west rebellion, Manitoba.
January 21, 1959 - Died Dr. Frances Gertrude McGill
(1877-1959) early Canadian medical criminal forensic investigator.
April 25, 1959 - Died
Maude Pettit Hill-Beaton (1877-1959)
journalist who used pen name 'Videre'
December 16, 1959 - Died Roberta Catherine MacAdams (1880-1959) in
1918 1st woman in British Empire to introduce legislation in a
parliament (Alberta)
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