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By the end of this lesson you will know what the Charlottetown Conference was, why it happened, and why it was important to the Confederation process.
By the end of this lesson you will know what the Charlottetown Conference was, why it happened, and why it was important to the Confederation process.
Thought Experiment:
Thought Experiment:
Imagine your usual journey to school. You probably sit in a car or on a bus, and you drive on roads from anywhere between 30kmph to 80kmph. Or, perhaps you walk on a path that cuts through parks to get to school quicker than via the sidewalks.
Now imagine that journey without the car or the bus, or the shortcuts. How much longer do you think it would take you to get to school? By the time you got to school, it would almost be time to go home again.
Think about how we communicate. If you are too sick to go to school your parent or guardian might make a phone call or send an email to your school's front reception office.
If you want to make a trip to Vancouver, British Columbia, how would you get there? Horse and buggy? Walk? or would you take a car? plane? bus?
If you have ever made a road trip across Canada then you might have a sense of how long it takes to travel across the country in a car.
But, travel without motorised vehicles was the reality in Canada in the 1800s. They walked or travelled by horse and buggy/cart.
Why?
Why?
Delegates (representatives) from the maritime colonies (PEI, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia) agreed to meet one another in Charlottetown in PEI to discuss a union of sorts.
West Canada (later called "Ontario") and East Canada (later called "Quebec") heard about this meeting and asked if they could join.
The Maritime colonies agreed to let East and West Canada come.
The Maritimers wanted at least a maritime railway out of the conference.
Some of the colonies worried about America.
Other Prompts for the Charlottetown Conference
Other Prompts for the Charlottetown Conference
Think about what was happening in America at this time.
Before using a search engine to find the answer, write down some ideas you have about America that may have prompted the Charlottetown Conference.
What Happened?
What Happened?
The delegates agreed on a number of things: keeping and maintaining local control, minor federal intrusion, and a Canadian railway funded by the richest of taxpayers.
The main delegates: Sir George-Etienne Cartier (East Canada), Sir John A MacDonald (West Canada), Charles Tupper (Nova Scotia), Chandler Tilly (New Brunswick), John Hamilton Gray (PEI)
What prompted the Charlottetown Conference? Click here for the answer:
With the American Civil War going on, the colonies feared that the Americans might expand into any one of the colonies. If the colonies in Canada united then they would stand a better chance against the Americans.
Activity:
Activity:
If you have not already, watch the above videos.
With this overview of the Charlottetown Conference, create a pros and cons list of Confederation. Consider what the delegates were concerned about. Think about what their colonies would gain if they joined Confederation. Think about the global, national, regional, and individual changes that will occur. You may need to watch them a couple of times to get all the information into your pros and cons list! Submit your pros and cons list to your teacher.
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