Canadian Cities

Prime Minister Mackenzie King observes Victory in Japan Day alongside the Minister to Canada from the Argentine Republic and his wife, and the Minister to Canada from the Czechoslovakian Republic. VJ Day marked not only the end of the war in the Pacific Theatre, but also meant that Canadian prisoners of war held in terrible conditions by the Japanese could finally return home. Also released were the surviving Canadian soldiers who were captured in the attacks on Hong Kong after being held for almost five years. Japanese POW camps were notoriously inhumane, and were among the worst of those Canadian prisoners endured during World War II.

See more of over 100 photos of Ottawa here.

Or try our walking tour A Nation's Journey: Canadian History through Ottawa's Eyes.

A small Union Steamship is passing under the Lions Gate Bridge during its construction. This view gives us a glimpse of North Vancouver which still appears almost entirely forested.

See more of over 650 photos of Vancouver here.

Or try one of our 11 walking tours, including Real Estate Speculation: A City Built on Property Values, and Stories of Granville Street: The Street at Centre Stage.

Boys stand in the street in front of the Coffin Block, a Front Street landmark built in a distinctive triangular shape.

See more of over 125 photos of Toronto here.

Or try our walking tour examining the People and Ideas that Shaped Toronto's First Century.

A view of how the 'mushroom patch' of downtown Winnipeg, as it was then called, looked like from Fort Garry.

See more of over 200 photos of Winnipeg here.

Or try our walking tours examining the The Boomtown Era 1870-1912 and the era of Turmoil and Reform 1913-1945.

A view of Montreal from Mont Royal.

Photos and tours coming soon!

Quebec City from the Citadel.

Photos and tours coming soon!

A Blackball ferry, the Chippewa, entering Victoria's Inner Harbour as seen from Esquimalt. At right the legislature can be seen, and at centre the Empress Hotel, which has since been expanded in size. The large building to the left was the post office.

See more of over 60 photos of Victoria here.

Or try our walking tour The Peopling of Victoria: A Multicultural History.

John Walter set up the cable ferry across the North Saskatchewan River before the construction of a bridge. The ferry was a vital asset to the community. In the spring, the violent fracturing of the river ice could damage bridges, and the high water could--and sometimes did--wash them away. While more time-consuming (carts could only be taken across one at a time), a cable ferry was also more reliable. This photo shows John Walter's ferry in its last year of operation as the half-finished bridge looms in the background, symbolizing the end of one era and the beginning of another.

See more of over 200 photos of Edmonton here.

Or try our walking tours examining Strathcona's Early History and the story of the pioneer John Walter.

Saskatoon's skyline from across the river.

Photos and tours coming soon!

Here we see cargo ships in Nanaimo harbour, some taking on coal at Cameron Island to the right while others are moored just offshore. In a sign of the changing economy, in the 1930s the Cameron Island wharf was converted to move lumber instead of coal. Surrounded by dense stands of old growth trees and having easy access to forested slopes up and down the coast, Nanaimo's harbour became BC's main forestry hub.

See more of over 400 photos of Nanaimo here.

Or try one of our six walking tours, including Nanaimo's Waterfront: The Key to Prosperity, and Life in Early Nanaimo: How We Got Here.

A view of the Conger Mill and lumber yards at the mouth of the Seguin River. Notice the beehive burner at centre, which was used to burn the leftover sawdust.

See more of over 160 photos of Parry Sound here.

Or try one of our four walking tours, including Parry Sound's Industrial Past: Logging, Mining, and Shipping, and The Steamship Era: Tourism in Parry Sound.

A streetcar drives down Yonge Street.

See more of over 150 photos of Aurora here.

Or try one of our walking tours, If These Walls Could Talk: Aurora's History told through Architecture, and Fire, Wind, and Water: Disasters in Aurora History.

A look up 2nd Ave from pioneer times. For decades Strathmore remained a town of much less than 1,000, centered on the railway station and serving the surrounding farmers. Today over 13,000 people call this place home, mostly in rapidly expanding suburbs.

See more of over 150 photos of Strathmore here.

Or try one of our three walking tours, including Life in Strathmore: The Village that Moved, and The Canadian Pacific Railway: How a Railway Shaped Strathmore.

A view of Calgary from Scotsman's Hill.

Photos and tours coming soon!

Gleichen's soldiers put on a military parade as they prepare to embark on trains and begin the long journey to the trenches in France. In both world wars a remarkable number of Gleichen's men signed up to fight, and a shocking number of them would be killed or wounded.

See more of over 60 photos of Gleichen here.

Or try our walking tour, The Story of Gleichen in the Boomtown Era.

Canoes in the water prepare for the much looked forward to Gorge Regatta.

See more of over 150 photos of Esquimalt here.

Or try one of our walking tours, Gorge Park: Esquimalt's Playground and The E&N: The Little Railway that Almost Killed Canada.