Persons of National Historic Significance
Persons of National Historic Significance are people designated by the Canadian government as being nationally significant in the history of the country. Designations are made by the Minister of the Environment on the recommendation of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. Approximately 70 nominations are submitted to the board each year. A person is eligible to be listed 25 years after death, but Prime Ministers may be designated any time after death. Parks Canada administers the program, and installs and maintains the federal plaques commonly erected to commemorate each person, usually placed at a site closely associated with them. The intent is generally to honour the person's contribution to the country but is always to educate the public about that person.
Canada has related programs for the designation of National Historic Sites and National Historic Events. Events, Sites, and Persons are each typically marked by a federal plaque, but the markers do not indicate which designation a subject has been given. The Welland Canal is an Event, while the Rideau Canal is a Site. The cairn and plaque to John McDonell does not refer to a National Historic Person, but is erected because his home, Glengarry House, is a National Historic Site. Similarly, the plaque to John Guy officially marks not a Person, but an Event—the Landing of John Guy.
List of Persons of National Historic Significance
this list contains 715 entries. The searchable database provided by Parks Canada returns 700 records, and may not be up to date.Name | Role | Year designated |
Maude Abbott | Medical researcher | 1993 |
John Abbott | Prime Minister | 1938 |
William Aberhart | Premier, Social Credit leader | 1974 |
Gabriel Acquin | Hunter, cultural broker, Maliseet guide | 1999 |
Frank Dawson Adams | Geologist | 1943 |
Mary Electa Adams | Women's education reformer | 2004 |
William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook | Businessman, press baron, philanthropist | 2016 |
Thomas Beamish Akins | Historian | 1938 |
Emma Albani | Musician | 1937 |
William Donald Albright | Journalist, agriculturalist, promoted development of Peace River district | 1954 |
Grant Allen | Author | 1938 |
Susan Louisa Moir Allison | Author, historian | 2007 |
Walter Seymour Allward | Sculptor | 2002 |
Adams George Archibald | Father of Confederation, Lieutenant-Governor | 1938 |
Edith Archibald | Women's rights | 1997 |
Edward William Archibald | Surgeon | 1998 |
Samuel George William Archibald | Attorney General, Chief Justice | 1939 |
Joseph E. Atkinson | Publisher, philanthropist | 1986 |
Philippe-Joseph Aubert de Gaspé | Author | 1974 |
Charles Aubert de La Chesnaye | Businessman | 1971 |
George Back | Artist, Arctic explorer | 1973 |
William Baffin | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
Charles Bagot | Governor General, role in responsible government | 1926 |
Frederick Walker Baldwin | Engineer | 1957 |
Robert Baldwin | Co-premier, reformer, role in responsible government | 1937 |
Frederick Banting | Medical researcher, shared Nobel Prize | 1945 |
Marius Barbeau | Ethnographer, folklorist | 1985 |
William George Barker | Military, World War I pilot | 1998 |
Robert Bartlett | Arctic explorer | 1969 |
Arthur Beauchesne | Parliamentary expert | 2003 |
François Beaulieu | Métis leader | 2000 |
Adam Beck | Politician, founded Ontario Hydro | 1938 |
William George Beers | Dentist, developed modern sport of lacrosse | 1976 |
Matthew Baillie Begbie | Judge, Chief Justice | 1959 |
Edward Belcher | Naval officer, surveyor | 1938 |
Georges-Antoine Belcourt | Missionary, banker | 1959 |
Mabel Hubbard Bell | Aeronautical investor, founder of educational & social organizations | 2018 |
Robert Bell | Geologist, explorer | 1938 |
John Wilson Bengough | Cartoonist, journalist, poet, lecturer | 1938 |
Charles Fox Bennett | Businessman, politician | 1975 |
R. B. Bennett | Prime Minister | 1949 |
William Berczy | Pioneer, painter | 2016 |
Joseph-Elzéar Bernier | Mariner | 1961 |
Norman Bethune | Physician, political activist | 1972 |
William Beynon | First Nations chief, ethnographer | 1989 |
Michel Bibaud | Poet, historian | 1944 |
Mary and Henry Bibb | Author, abolitionist, publisher | 2002 |
Big Bear | First Nations leader, role in North-West Rebellion | 1971 |
Billy Bishop | World War I pilot, Victoria Cross recipient | 1980 |
Davidson Black | Physician, palaeontologist | 1974 |
Martha Black | Politician | 1987 |
Thornton and Lucie Blackburn | Escaped slaves, founded Toronto's first taxi operation | 1999 |
Edward Blake | Premier | 1937 |
Richard Blanshard | Governor | 1951 |
Jean Blewett | Journalist, poet | 1946 |
La Bolduc | Musician | 1992 |
Joseph-Armand Bombardier | Businessman, inventor | 1994 |
Robert Bond | Prime Minister | 1975 |
Robert Borden | Prime Minister | 1938 |
Jim Boss | Assisted First Nations in the Yukon | 2001 |
Pierre Boucher | Author, government official, First Nations interpreter | 1978 |
Joseph Bouchette | Author, cartographer, Surveyor General of Lower Canada | 1937 |
Sieurs de La Boularderie | Settlers | 1964 |
Henri Bourassa | Politician, publisher | 1962 |
Marguerite Bourgeoys | Nun, founded first Canadian religious community | 1985 |
John George Bourinot | House of Commons clerk, founded Royal Society of Canada | 1938 |
Mackenzie Bowell | Prime Minister | 1945 |
Joseph W. Boyle | Businessman | 1984 |
Joseph Brant | First Nations leader, British ally, settler | 1972 |
Mary Brant | First Nations leader | 1994 |
John Gough Brick | Missionary, settler | 1954 |
Emmanuel Briffa | Theatre decorator | 2007 |
Isaac Brock | Soldier | 2010 |
Allan Brooks | Artist | 1999 |
Harriet Brooks | Nuclear physicist | 2005 |
George Brown | Father of Confederation, publisher, abolitionist | 1950 |
George Browne | Architect | 2008 |
James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin | Governor General, role in responsible government | 1953 |
Étienne Brûlé | Explorer, Coureur de bois, lived among First Nations | 1984 |
George Bryce | Educator, historian | 1947 |
Douglas Brymner | Archivist, founded Public Archives of Canada | 1938 |
John Buchan | Governor-General | 2010 |
Patrick Burns | Rancher, businessman, Senator | 1960 |
Thomas Button | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
John By | Engineer | 1954 |
George Frederick Cameron | Journalist, poet | 1946 |
Lydia Campbell | Author | 2009 |
Alexander Campbell | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
William Wilfred Campbell | Writer | 1938 |
Charles Camsell | Geologist, Commissioner | 2001 |
William Canniff | Physician, historian, teacher | 1945 |
Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester | Governor, Governor-in-Chief | 1974 |
John Carling | Brewer, politician, founded Dominion Experimental Farms | 1938 |
Bliss Carman | Poet | 1945 |
Emily Carr | Author, painter | 1950 |
Father Henry Carr | College leader, Univ. of Toronto president | 2012 |
William Carson | Businessman, physician, reformer | 1954 |
Frederick Carter | Father of Confederation, Prime Minister | 1959 |
George-Étienne Cartier | Father of Confederation, French-Canadian statesman | 1937 |
Jacques Cartier | Early French explorer paved way for settlement | 2011 |
Richard John Cartwright | Politician | 1938 |
Joseph Casavant | Manufacturer | 1974 |
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle | Explorer, founded Lachine, rebuilt Fort Frontenac | 1934 |
Claude Champagne | Musician | 1988 |
Samuel de Champlain | Explorer, founded Quebec City, "The Father of New France" | 1929 |
Edward Barron Chandler | Father of Confederation, Lieutenant-Governor | 1939 |
Jean-Charles Chapais | Father of Confederation, Senator | 1943 |
Thomas Chapais | Historian, Senator | 1955 |
Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau | Premier, politician | 1974 |
Margaret Ridley Charlton | Medical librarian, co-founder Medical Library Association | 2003 |
William Henry Chase | Businessman, philanthropist | 1939 |
Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Léry | Seigneur, military leader, politician | 2006 |
Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve | Military officer, founded Montreal | 1985 |
Robert Christie | Historian, politician | 1938 |
Francis Clergue | Businessman | 1987 |
Lucille Clifton | Clan leader, cultural defender | 2016 |
John Clinch | Clergyman, physician | 1964 |
William Coaker | Union leader, politician | 1985 |
James Cockburn | Father of Confederation, first House of Commons Speaker | 1939 |
Kathleen Blake Coleman | Innovative newspaper editor | 2011 |
George Coles | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
Enos Collins | Businessman | 1974 |
Lionel Conacher | Athlete | 1976 |
Ralph Connor | Novelist | 1938 |
James Cook | Explorer, surveyor | 1954 |
George Copway | Writer, indigenous rights leader | 2018 |
William Cormack | Explorer | 1953 |
Ernest Cormier | Architect | 2018 |
Louis de la Corne, Chevalier de la Corne | Military officer | 1953 |
Edward Cornwallis | Military officer, Governor, founded Halifax | 1974 |
Phillips Cosby | Military commander | 1945 |
Laurence Coughlan | Itinerant preacher | 1965 |
George Albertus Cox | Businessman, Senator | 1990 |
James Henry Coyne | President Ontario Historical Society, member Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada | 1945 |
Isabella Valancy Crawford | Poet, writer | 1947 |
Helen Creighton | Folklorist, author | 2018 |
James George Aylwin Creighton | Lawyer, engineer, journalist, athlete | 2008 |
Octave Crémazie | Poet | 1937 |
Thomas Crerar | Politician | 2004 |
Jean-Baptiste de La Croix de Chevrières de Saint-Vallier | Bishop | 1990 |
A. E. Cross | Businessman, politician, co-founder Calgary Stampede | 1971 |
Crowfoot | First Nations leader, role in North-West Rebellion | 1945 |
Ernest Alexander Cruikshank | Historian, original chairman Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada | 1943 |
Maurice Galbraith Cullen | Artist | 1944 |
Samuel Cunard | Businessman | 1937 |
Arthur Currie | Military officer | 1934 |
Augustin Cuvillier | Speaker, banker | 1969 |
Louis Cyr | Wrestler, weightlifter | 1976 |
John Wesley Dafoe | Journalist | 1974 |
William Davidson | Lumberman, politician | 1949 |
Louis Henry Davies | Premier, judge | 1937 |
Nicholas Flood Davin | Publisher, politician | 1947 |
John Davis | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
George Mercer Dawson | Scientist, surveyor | 1937 |
John William Dawson | Geologist, university administrator | 1943 |
Robert MacGregor Dawson | Political scientist | 1975 |
Louis de Buade de Frontenac | Governor General | 1974 |
Louis-Hector de Callière | Politician, diplomat | 2001 |
Amor De Cosmos | Premier, journalist | 1938 |
Dorimène Desjardins | Business and co-op organizer | 2012 |
Mazo de la Roche | Novelist | 1976 |
James De Mille | Novelist, humorist, professor | 1937 |
Agathe de Saint-Père de Repentigny | Symbol of women's entrepreneurism in New France | 2016 |
Charles de Salaberry | Military officer | 1934 |
Demasduit | Among the final surviving Beothuks | 2000 |
Modeste Demers | Bishop, missionary | 1973 |
George Taylor Denison | Soldier, community leader, founded Canada First Movement, Imperial Federation League, role in North-West Rebellion | 1937 |
Nicolas Denys | Explorer, trader, colonizer | 1924 |
Carrie Derick | Botanist | 2007 |
Joseph Frederick Wallet DesBarres | Lieutenant-Governor, cartographer | 1925 |
Alphonse Desjardins | Businessman, began Caisse Populaire system | 1971 |
Viola Desmond | Civil rights activist | 2018 |
Edouard Deville | Surveyor General, developed photogrammetry | 1971 |
Edgar Dewdney | Lieutenant-Governor, reassigned territorial capital to Regina | 1975 |
Robert B. Dickey | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
Punch Dickins | Bush pilot | 1995 |
John Diefenbaker | Prime Minister | 1981 |
Thomas Dixson | Soldier | 1938 |
Donnacona | First Nations leader, kidnapped by Jacques Cartier | 1981 |
Antoine-Aimé Dorion | Cabinet minister, Chief Justice | 1937 |
Onésime Dorval | Teacher | 1954 |
Arthur Doughty | Dominion Archivist, historian | 1991 |
David Douglas | Botanist | 1979 |
Howard Douglas | Lieutenant-Governor, Chancellor | 1925 |
James Douglas | Governor | 1944 |
Thomas Clement "Tommy" Douglas | Premier, founding leader of the NDP, father of single payer healthcare | 2016 |
Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk | Philanthropist, colonizer | 1943 |
Gordon Drummond | Military leader, role in War of 1812 | 1928 |
Charles Carter Drury | Naval leader | 1938 |
Lyman Duff | Chief Justice, constitutional expert | 1971 |
Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava | Governor General, diplomat, traveller, writer | 1975 |
Jeanne Dugas | Acadian survivor of multiple displacements, symbol of resilience | 2016 |
Margaret Duley | Novelist | 1976 |
Gabriel Dumont | Métis leader, role in North-West Rebellion | 1981 |
Sara Jeannette Duncan | Journalist, author | 2016 |
Charles Avery Dunning | Premier ; cabinet minister | 1985 |
Robert Dunsmuir | Coal miner, industrialist, politician | 1971 |
Maurice Duplessis | Premier, founded Union Nationale | 1974 |
Ernest Melville DuPorte | Scientist and teacher known for study of parasites | 2010 |
Ludger Duvernay | Printer-publisher in Lower Canada, revived Saint-Jean-Baptiste celebrations | 2019 |
Dorothy Dworkin | Nurse, businesswoman, supported Jewish immigrants | 2009 |
Timothy Eaton | Businessman | 1971 |
Ezra Butler Eddy | Businessman | 1976 |
Charles Edenshaw | Artist | 1971 |
Henrietta Edwards | Women's rights activist, reformer | 1962 |
Mina Benson Hubbard Ellis | Explorer, author | 2018 |
J. S. Ewart | Lawyer, role in Manitoba schools dispute | 1966 |
Robert Falconer | University president | 1944 |
Aegidius Fauteux | Librarian, historian | 1955 |
Edward Feild | Clergyman, bishop, academic | 2003 |
Reginald Fessenden | Inventor | 1943 |
Peter Fidler | Explorer, trader, surveyor | 1953 |
William Stevens Fielding | Premier, cabinet minister | 1938 |
Charles Fisher | Father of Confederation, Premier | 1939 |
Charles Fitzpatrick | Chief Justice, Lieutenant-Governor, role in North-West Rebellion, lawyer for Louis Riel | 1973 |
Michael Anthony Fleming | Bishop | 2003 |
Sandford Fleming | Engineer and inventor | 1950 |
James Fletcher | Entomologist | 2016 |
Marc-Aurèle Fortin | Painter | 2011 |
Pierre-Étienne Fortin | Politician, physician | 1953 |
Rose Fortune | Businesswoman, first female police officer in Canada | 2018 |
George Eulas Foster | Politician, academic | 1938 |
Terry Fox | Humanitarian, athlete | 2008 |
Luke Fox | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
Gustave Francq | Trade unionist, publisher | 2008 |
John Franklin | Arctic explorer | 1945 |
Archibald Fraser | Industrialist | 1975 |
Simon Fraser | Explorer, fur trader | 2016 |
Louis-Honoré Fréchette | Poet, author | 1937 |
Lillian Bilsky Freiman | Organizer, philanthropist | 2008 |
Benjamin Frobisher | Fur trader | 1973 |
Joseph Frobisher | Fur trader, businessman | 1973 |
Martin Frobisher | Arctic explorer | 1957 |
Thomas Frobisher | Fur trader, established Île-à-la-Crosse post | 1973 |
Northrop Frye | Educator, author, literary critic & theorist | 2018 |
Thomas Fuller | Architect | 2016 |
Marie-Anne Gaboury | Settler, grandmother of Louis Riel | 1982 |
William James Gage | Publisher | 1938 |
Clarence Gagnon | Artist | 1944 |
Alexander Tilloch Galt | Father of Confederation, politician, businessman | 1944 |
William Francis Ganong | Botanist, cartographer, historian | 1945 |
James Garfield Gardiner | Premier, cabinet minister | 1975 |
François-Xavier Garneau | Historian | 1937 |
Pierre Gaultier de La Vérendrye | Explorer, fur trader | 1920 |
Cyril Genik | Supported Ukrainian immigrantion in western Canada | 1995 |
Antoine Gérin-Lajoie | Journalist, lawyer | 1939 |
Marie Lacoste Gérin-Lajoie | Women's rights activist | 1997 |
Abraham Pineo Gesner | Physician, geologist, inventor of kerosene | 1954 |
John Murray Gibbon | Writer, cultural promoter | 1954 |
Mifflin Wistar Gibbs | Politician, businessman, human rights activist | 2009 |
Alexander Gibson | Industrialist | 2007 |
Robert Giffard de Moncel | Nobleman, colonizer, physician, surgeon | 1955 |
Humphrey Gilbert | Unsuccessful colonizer | 1981 |
Edouard Percy Cranwill Girouard | Military engineer, developed African railways | 1938 |
Oliver Goldsmith | Poet | 1944 |
Glenn Gould | Classical musician | 2012 |
Enid Gordon Graham | Physiotherapist | 2014 |
Mary Grannan | Children's author & broadcaster | 2018 |
Cuthbert Grant | Métis leader | 1972 |
George Monro Grant | Educator, writer, university principal | 1937 |
Louis-Pierre Gravel | Promoted settlement and agriculture | 1956 |
John Hamilton Gray | Father of Confederation, Speaker | 1939 |
John Hamilton Gray | Father of Confederation, Premier | 1939 |
Wilfred Grenfell | Medical missionary | 1959 |
Grey Owl | Conservationist, author, speaker | 1993 |
Lionel Groulx | Clergyman, historian, Quebec nationalist | 1972 |
Helena Gutteridge | Suffragette and politician | 2010 |
Casimir Gzowski | Lieutenant-Governor, engineer, constructed railroads, Niagara Parks Commission chair | 1956 |
Roderick Langmere Haig-Brown | Writer, conservationist | 2016 |
Frederick Haldimand | Governor, settler | 1974 |
Arthur Lawrence Haliburton | Military officer, civil servant | 1938 |
Thomas Chandler Haliburton | Author, satirist | 1936 |
William Neilson Hall | First Victoria Cross recipient of African heritage | 2008 |
Ishbel Hamilton-Gordon, Marchioness of Aberdeen and Temair | Established Victorian Order of Nurses, National Council of Women | 1979 |
Ned Hanlan | Athlete | 1938 |
Arthur Sturgis Hardy | Premier, Attorney General | 1948 |
James B. Harkin | First national parks commissioner, established Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada | 1955 |
Lawren Harris | Artist | 1970 |
Robert Harris | Artist | 1945 |
Ezekiel Hart | Entrepreneur, politician, first Jew to be elected a legislator in the British Empire | 1995 |
Julia Catherine Hart | Author | 1951 |
John Harvey | Lieutenant-Governor, Governor | 1974 |
Frederick W. A. G. Haultain | Premier, Chief Justice | 1946 |
Thomas Heath Haviland | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
Sir Edmund Walker Head, 8th Baronet | Lieutenant-Governor, Governor General | 1974 |
Abraham Albert Heaps | Politician and labor leader | 2010 |
Samuel Hearne | Explorer,Governor | 1936 |
Louis-Philippe Hébert | Artist | 1937 |
Theodor August Heintzman | Manufacturer | 1974 |
Anthony Henday | Explorer, fur trader | 1953 |
John Hendry | Industrialist | 1988 |
Louis Hennepin | Clergyman, explorer, cartographer | 2008 |
Alexander Henry the elder | Fur trader | 1973 |
Alexander Henry the younger | Fur trader | 1973 |
William Alexander Henry | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
Josiah Henson | Author, abolitionist, minister, role in Underground Railroad | 1995 |
William Hespeler | Businessman, immigration agent, politician | 2000 |
James Jerome Hill | Businessman | 1938 |
Francis Hincks | Politician | 1969 |
Ella Cora Hind | Women's rights activist | 1997 |
Henry Youle Hind | Scientist, explorer, surveyor, author | 2018 |
Gilles Hocquart | Administrator, Intendant, established Les Forges du Saint-Maurice | 1974 |
Samuel Holland | Engineer, Surveyor General | 1989 |
Luther Hamilton Holton | Businessman, banker, cabinet minister | 1938 |
Adelaide Hoodless | Educational reformer | 1960 |
Frederic William Howay | Historian, lawyer, judge | 1944 |
C. D. Howe | Cabinet minister, established Atomic Energy of Canada | 1984 |
Joseph Howe | Premier, role in responsible government | 1983 |
William Pearce Howland | Father of Confederation | 1959 |
James Patrick Howley | Naturalist, geologist | 2016 |
Henry Hudson | Arctic explorer | 1973 |
Sam Hughes | Cabinet minister, journalist, soldier | 1969 |
William Roper Hull | Businessman, philanthropist, developer | 1988 |
George Hunt | Linguist, ethnologist | 1989 |
Harold Innis | Economist, historian | 1972 |
Ipirvik and Taqulittuq | Inuit couple, assisted Arctic exploration | 1981 |
James Isbister | Métis leader | 1997 |
A. Y. Jackson | Artist | 1974 |
Charles William Jefferys | Artist | 1954 |
Diamond Jenness | Anthropologist | 1973 |
Louis-Amable Jetté | Lieutenant-Governor and Chief Justice | 1945 |
Sylvester Joe | Aboriginal guide | 2002 |
Ethel Johns | Nurse, educator, administrator | 2009 |
Pauline Johnson | Poet, speaker | 1945 |
Edward Johnson | Singer, manager | 1974 |
John Mercer Johnson | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
Louis Jolliet | Explorer | 1944 |
Sigtryggur Jónasson | Manitoba politician and Icelandic-Canadian leader | 2010 |
William Judge | Missionary | 1987 |
Peter Jones | First Nations leader, clergyman | 1996 |
Israel Isaac Kahanovitch | Manitoba rabbi and leader | 2010 |
Paul Kane | Artist | 1937 |
Thomas Keefer | Engineer, railroader | 1938 |
Henry Kelsey | Explorer, fur trader | 1931 |
John Kennedy | Civil engineer | 2001 |
William Frederick King | Surveyor, astronomer, civil servant | 1959 |
Reverend William King | Clergyman, abolitionist | 2005 |
William Lyon Mackenzie King | Prime Minister | 1967 |
Charles Edmund Kingsmill | Founder of the Navy | 2010 |
William Kirby | Writer, historian | 1946 |
David Kirke | Adventurer, colonizer, Governor | 1968 |
A. M. Klein | Writer, lawyer | 2007 |
Otto Julius Klotz | Astronomer, geographer | 1938 |
Leon Joseph Koerner | Industrialist | 2009 |
Kondiaronk | Negotiator | 2001 |
Cornelius Krieghoff | Artist | 1972 |
Chief Kw'eh | Leader of Dakelh people, British Columbia | 2011 |
John Kinder Labatt | Businessman | 1971 |
Albert Lacombe | Missionary | 1932 |
Édouard Lacroix | Businessman, politician | 2006 |
Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine | Jurist, statesman, co-Premier | 1937 |
Jean-Baptiste Lagimodière | Trapper, grandfather of Louis Riel | 1981 |
David Laird | Lieutenant-Governor, cabinet minister | 1950 |
John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham | Governor General, High Commissioner | 1974 |
Catherine Beaulieu Bouvier Lamoureux | Defender of Métis culture | 2011 |
Archibald Lampman | Poet | 1920 |
Pierre-Amand Landry | Lawyer, judge, politician, first Acadian to be knighted | 1955 |
Franklin Knight Lane | American politician, born in Prince Edward Island | 1938 |
Hector-Louis Langevin | Father of Confederation, cabinet minister | 1938 |
Sam Langford | Boxer | 1987 |
Ernest Lapointe | Cabinet minister | 1954 |
Margaret Laurence | Novelist, academic | 2016 |
Wilfrid Laurier | Prime Minister | 1938 |
François de Laval | Bishop | 1972 |
Calixa Lavallée | Musician | 1966 |
Marguerite Vincent Lawinonkié | Artist | 2008 |
Sheridan Lawrence | Farmer, businessman, judge | 1954 |
James MacPherson Le Moine | Author, historian, ornithologist | 1938 |
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville | Soldier, explorer, administrator | 1937 |
Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville | Governor, founded Mobile, Alabama and New Orleans | 1953 |
Charles le Moyne de Longueuil et de Châteauguay and family | Family of soldiers and colonizers | 1957 |
Stephen Leacock | Writer, economist, particularly as humorist | 1946 |
Ozias Leduc | Painter | 2018 |
Camille Lefebvre | Clergyman, established Acadian Renaissance Movement | 1997 |
Jean-Louis Légaré | Settler, trader | 1969 |
Rodolphe Lemieux | Speaker and cabinet minister, professor | 1973 |
Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond | Governor General | 1923 |
Irma LeVasseur | Physician | 2008 |
Arthur Lismer | Artist | 1974 |
Philip Francis Little | Premier, role in responsible government | 2007 |
Kathleen 'Kay' Livingstone | Feminist-activist for blacks | 2011 |
George Lloyd | Bishop, helped found Lloydminster | 1953 |
George Locke | Librarian, author, historian | 1939 |
Grace Annie Lockhart | First woman in British Empire to receive university bachelor's degree | 1991 |
William Edmond Logan | Geologist | 1967 |
Jean-Baptiste Lolo | Interpreter, guide, trader, peacemaker | 2012 |
Tom Longboat | Athlete, Boston Marathon winner | 1976 |
Frances Loring | Sculptor | 2011 |
Albert Peter Low | Geologist, explorer, athlete, surveyor | 1972 |
John MacIntosh Lyle | Architect | 2008 |
Archibald Macallum | Biochemist, founded National Research Council | 1938 |
Thomas Bassett Macaulay | Businessman | 1997 |
Andrew Archibald Macdonald | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
James E.H. MacDonald | Artist | 1974 |
Margaret C. MacDonald | Nurse | 1982 |
John MacDonald of Glenaladale | Organized settlement of PEI | 2012 |
John A. Macdonald | Father of Confederation, Prime Minister | 1939 |
William Christopher Macdonald | Manufacturer, philanthropist | 1974 |
Alexander Macdonell | Bishop | 1924 |
Angus Bernard MacEachern | Bishop | 1968 |
Elsie MacGill | Aeronautical engineer | 2007 |
Helen Gregory MacGill | Judge, campaigned for women's suffrage | 1998 |
Agnes Maule Machar | Patriotic writer, social commentator | 2015 |
Alexander Mackenzie | Explorer | 2016 |
Alexander Mackenzie | Prime Minister | 1957 |
William Mackenzie | Railway entrepreneur | 1976 |
William Lyon Mackenzie | Politician, journalist, led Upper Canada Rebellion | 1949 |
Pegi Nicol MacLeod | Modernist painter | 2011 |
Archibald MacMechan | Professor, writer | 1946 |
H. R. MacMillan | Forester, industrialist | 1987 |
Ernest MacMillan | Musician, composer, conductor | 1984 |
Helen MacMurchy | Doctor, author, health care reformer | 1997 |
Allan MacNab | Premier, politician, judge | 1937 |
John Macoun | Botanist, advocate of the West | 2011 |
Agnes Macphail | First female Member of Parliament | 1985 |
Andrew Macphail | Physician, author, professor | 1945 |
Charles Alexander Magrath | Surveyor, engineer, first mayor of Lethbridge, Alberta | 1950 |
Charles Mair | Poet, nationalist, promoted western development | 1937 |
Jeanne Mance | Settler, nurse, established hospital | 1998 |
Donald Mann | Railroader | 1976 |
Charles Marega | Artist | 2009 |
Marie-Victorin | Botanist, monastic, author, educator | 1987 |
Jacques Marquette | Priest, explorer | 1937 |
Paul Mascarene | Lieutenant-Governor, defended Annapolis Royal | 1929 |
Kèsh | Explorer, discovered gold | 1994 |
Vincent Massey | Governor General | 1974 |
Hart Massey | Businessman, philanthropist | 1971 |
Matonabbee | First Nations leader, role in Samuel Hearne expedition | 1981 |
Wilfrid R. "Wop" May | Aviator | 1974 |
Peter McArthur | Writer, farmer | 1946 |
Richard McBride | Premier and Agent General | 1938 |
Francis Leopold McClintock | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
Nellie McClung | Politician, feminist, social activist | 1954 |
Robert McClure | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
Grant McConachie | Businessman, aviator | 2007 |
David Ross McCord | Lawyer, philanthropist, founded McCord Museum in Montreal | 2000 |
John McCrae | Physician, soldier, poet | 1946 |
Thomas McCulloch | Educator | 1959 |
Jonathan McCully | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
John Alexander Douglas McCurdy | Aviator, Lieutenant-Governor | 1974 |
George Millward McDougall | Missionary, role in Treaty 6 | 1969 |
William McDougall | Father of Confederation, politician | 1943 |
Duncan McNab McEachran | Veterinarian | 2016 |
Thomas D'Arcy McGee | Father of Confederation, writer, Irish nationalist | 1943 |
Donald McKay | Ship designer and builder | 1938 |
R. Tait McKenzie | Surgeon, artist, physical educator | 1958 |
Louise McKinney | First female legislator in the British Empire | 1939 |
Samuel McLaughlin | Businessman, philanthropist | 1989 |
John McLoughlin | Hudson's Bay Company chief factor, "Father of Oregon" | 1951 |
Marshall McLuhan | Professor, author | 2007 |
William McMaster | Businessman, Senator, banker | 1990 |
Violet Clara McNaughton | Social reformer | 1997 |
Alexander James McPhail | Social reformer, Canadian Wheat Pool president | 1971 |
Arthur Meighen | Prime Minister | 1961 |
Jean-Baptiste Meilleur | Doctor, educator | 2002 |
Henri Membertou | First Nations leader, role in establishing Mi'kmaq-French Alliance | 1981 |
Men of Letters – | Writers | 1955 |
Charles de Menou d'Aulnay | Governor, colonizer | 1972 |
Honoré Mercier | Premier, journalist, lawyer | 1938 |
William Hamilton Merritt | Businessman, role in building the Welland Canal | 1974 |
Mikak | Female symbol of Inuit self-determination | 2011 |
David Mills | Cabinet minister | 1954 |
David Milne | Artist | 2016 |
Mattie Mitchell | Mi’kmaq guide, prospector, explorer and hunter | 2001 |
Peter Mitchell | Father of Confederation, Prime Minister | 1938 |
Mokwina | First Nations leader | 1987 |
William Molson | Businessman | 1971 |
Charles Monck, 4th Viscount Monck | First Governor General of Confederation | 1974 |
Lucy Maud Montgomery | Author | 1943 |
Frederick Montizambert | Physician, civil servant | 1998 |
Susanna Moodie | Author, settler | 1975 |
Sewell Moody | Businessman | 1988 |
Howie Morenz | Hockey player | 1976 |
Frederick Cleveland Morgan | Montreal museum curator | 2012 |
Henry James Morgan | Author, historian, archivist | 2016 |
Adrien-Gabriel Morice | Missionary, author | 1948 |
Augustin-Norbert Morin | Lawyer, Superior Court Justice, role in Reform Coalition | 1938 |
James Wilson Morrice | Artist | 1954 |
Alexander Morris | Chief Justice, politician, role in 1864 Great Coalition | 1971 |
Arthur Silver Morton | Teacher, historian, archivist | 1952 |
William Richard Motherwell | Cabinet minister ; established Territorial Grain Growers' Association | 1966 |
Oliver Mowat | Father of Confederation, Premier | 1934 |
John Munn | Newfoundland outport merchant, civic leader | 2016 |
Beamish Murdoch | Lawyer, politician, writer | 1937 |
Emily Murphy | First female judge in British Empire, author, women's rights activist | 1958 |
James Murray | Governor, Military Governor | 1955 |
Leonard W. Murray | Admiral | 1977 |
Anthony Musgrave | Governor, role in British Columbia joining Confederation | 1975 |
James Naismith | Inventor of basketball, physician, promoter of physical education | 1976 |
Thomas Nangle | Cleric, chaplain, war memorial planner, politician | 2016 |
Neekaneet | First Nations leader | 1981 |
John Neilson | Politician, editor, journalist, reformer | 1976 |
Émile Nelligan | Poet | 1974 |
Nescambiouit | First Nations leader | 2005 |
Simon Newcomb | Astronomer, mathematician | 1935 |
Gilbert Stuart Newton | Artist | 1944 |
Margaret Newton | Scientist | 1996 |
Guido Nincheri | Artist, decorator | 2007 |
Percy Erskine Nobbs | Architect | 2008 |
Charles Sherwood Noble | Inventor | 2002 |
John Norquay | Premier, Métis statesman | 1943 |
John Norton | Native political and military leader | 2011 |
William Notman | Photographer, businessman | 1975 |
Harold Anthony Oaks | Bush pilot | 1974 |
Jonathan Odell | Poet, clergyman, surgeon, Secretary | 1959 |
William Ogilvie | Commissioner, surveyor, explorer, author | 1970 |
Joseph Oleskiw | Professor, promoted Ukrainian immigration | 1996 |
Frank Oliver | Cabinet minister, journalist | 1947 |
Onondeyoh | Opposed residential schools, founded League of Indians | 2019 |
David Oppenheimer | Mayor, businessman, Jewish community leader | 2008 |
Oronhyatekha | First Canadian First Nations physician | 2001 |
William Osler | Physician, medical researcher and educator | 1950 |
Léo-Ernest Ouimet | Filmmaker, producer, distributor, theatre operator | 2018 |
Daniel David Palmer | Founded chiropractic medicine | 1993 |
Edward Palmer | Father of Confederation, Premier | 1939 |
Théophile Panadis | Defender of Abenaki traditions | 2011 |
Louis-Joseph Papineau | Politician, lawyer, seigneur, Patriot Movement leader | 1937 |
Étienne Parent | Civil servant, journalist, editor Le Canadien | 1974 |
Sir Gilbert Parker, 1st Baronet | Politician, author | 1938 |
Elizabeth Parker | Co-founded Alpine Club of Canada | 2011 |
George Robert Parkin | Author, educator, Imperial Federation Movement leader | 1938 |
Irene Parlby | Politician, rural leader, campaigned to allow women in the Senate | 1966 |
William Edward Parry | Arctic explorer | 1971 |
Edward Alexander Partridge | Agrarian activist, farmer, author | 2018 |
Walter Patterson | Governor | 1974 |
Andrew Paull | Squamish leader, rights advocate | 2012 |
The Peacemakers: Albert Lacombe, John McDougall | Brokered peace between First Nations groups | 1932 |
William Pearce | Surveyor, planner | 1973 |
Lester B. Pearson | Prime Minister | 1974 |
Paul Peel | Artist | 1937 |
Francis Pegahmagabow | War hero and activist for Native rights | 2019 |
Chief Peguis | First Nations leader | 2008 |
Wilfrid Pelletier | Orchestra conductor, founded Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec | 1988 |
Wilder Penfield | Neurosurgeon | 1988 |
Simeon Perkins | Businessman, diarist, politician | 1946 |
Nicolas Perrot | Explorer, diplomat, fur trader | 1952 |
Piapot | First Nations leader | 1981 |
Pitikwahanapiwiyin | First Nations leader | 1967 |
Peter Pitseolak | Photographer, artist, historian, hunter | 1981 |
John Stanley Plaskett | Astronomer | 1949 |
Peter Pond | Fur trader, cartographer, explorer | 1951 |
Georgina Pope | Nurse | 1983 |
James Colledge Pope | Premier, cabinet minister | 1938 |
Joseph Pope | Civil servant, author | 1938 |
William Henry Pope | Father of Confederation | 1939 |
Charles Gavan Power | Defense Minister, expanded Air Force | 2013 |
Philip Louis Pratley | Bridge designer | 2005 |
E. J. Pratt | Poet | 1975 |
Richard Preston | Escaped slaved, black community leader | 2005 |
George Prevost | President | 2016 |
William Price | Businessman, politician | 2003 |
Léon Abel Provancher | Priest, naturalist, author | 1994 |
Pierre-Esprit Radisson | Explorer, cartographer, fur trader, role in Hudson's Bay Company | 1971 |
John Rae | Explorer, physician, fur trader | 1973 |
James Ralston | Cabinet minister | 1973 |
Alice Ravenhill | Educator, author, social and educational reformer | 2008 |
Red Crow | First Nations leader, signatory to Treaty 7 | 1977 |
John Reeves | Judge, historian | 1995 |
George Agnew Reid | Artist, president | 1948 |
Marcel-François Richard | Role in Acadia – developed flag, anthem and patron day | 2004 |
William Buell Richards | Supreme Court of Canada judge | 1938 |
Harriette Taber Richardson | Promoted reconstruction of Port Royal Habitation | 1949 |
John Richardson | Soldier, poet, novelist, established New Era journal | 1938 |
Louis Riel | Métis leader, role in North-West Rebellion | 1956 |
John William Ritchie | Father of Confederation, Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice | 1959 |
Joseph-Noël Ritchot | Clergyman | 1990 |
Charles G.D. Roberts | Poet | 1945 |
Charles Walker Robinson | Soldier, author | 1938 |
John Beverley Robinson | Mayor, Lieutenant-Governor, leader of Family Compact | 1937 |
John Robson | Premier, established first British Columbia newspaper | 1938 |
Marie Marguerite Rose | Abolitionist, freed slave | 2008 |
Sir John Rose, 1st Baronet | Politician, banker, diplomat | 1973 |
Bobbie Rosenfeld | Athlete | 1976 |
Alexander Ross | Fur trader, author, role in Pacific Fur Company and North West Company | 1951 |
James Hamilton Ross | Member of North-West Council and Assembly, Commissioner | 1948 |
George William Ross | Premier, Senate Liberal leader | 1937 |
James Clark Ross | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
John Ross | Arctic explorer | 1972 |
John Rowand | Fur trader, Chief factor | 1954 |
Gabrielle Roy | Author | 2008 |
Louis Rubenstein | Champion figure skater, sports administrator/promoter | 2016 |
Ernest Rutherford | Physicist | 1939 |
Egerton Ryerson | Clergyman, educator, politician, school advocate | 1934 |
Mary Anne Sadlier | Author | 2008 |
Idola Saint-Jean | Women's rights activist | 1997 |
Bernard Keble Sandwell | Editor, writer, role in Saturday Night | 1955 |
Edward Sapir | Anthropologist, linguist, expert on First Nations | 1983 |
Margaret Marshall Saunders | Author | 1947 |
Charles E. Saunders | Agronomist | 1938 |
William Saunders | Pharmacist, scientist, civil servant, author, role with Experimental farms | 1952 |
Savalette | Established Acadian "sedentary" fisheries | 1944 |
Frank W. Schofield | Veterinarian | 2009 |
Jacob Gould Schurman | Educator, philosopher, academic president | 1943 |
Duncan Campbell Scott | Poet | 1948 |
Richard William Scott | Politician, supported Ontario Separate School Act | 1938 |
Joseph E. Seagram | Alcohol distiller, politician | 1971 |
Laura Secord | Heroine, War of 1812 | 2002 |
Hans Selye | Medical researcher | 1989 |
Ernest Thompson Seton | Writer, conservationist, artist, social reformer | 1995 |
Jonathan Sewell | Chief Justice, supported Confederation | 1956 |
Mary Ann Shadd | Editor, leader | 1994 |
Shanawdithit | Last surviving Beothuk | 2000 |
Ambrose Shea | Father of Confederation, Speaker | 1959 |
Francis Joseph Sherman | Poet, banker | 1945 |
Adam Shortt | Historian, author, role in Canadian Civil Service Commission | 1938 |
Clifford Sifton | Cabinet minister, promoted immigration | 1955 |
John Graves Simcoe | Lieutenant-Governor, military leader | 1974 |
George Simpson | Governor-in-Chief, General Superintendent | 1927 |
Thomas Simpson | Arctic explorer | 1937 |
Oscar D. Skelton | Historian, economist, established Department of External Affairs | 1947 |
Frank Leith Skinner | Horticulturalist | 1997 |
Joshua Slocum | Mariner, explorer, author, first solo sailor to travel throughout the world | 1957 |
Charlotte Small | Métis figure, role in fur trade | 2008 |
Joey Smallwood | Father of Confederation, Premier | 1996 |
Elizabeth Smellie | First World War nursing Sister | 2011 |
Albert James Smith | Premier, cabinet minister | 1949 |
Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal | Fur trader, railroader, politician, role with Hudson's Bay Company | 1971 |
Goldwin Smith | Historian, journalist | 1975 |
Mary Ellen Smith | Politician | 2016 |
Mary Agnes Snively | Nursing advocate | 2011 |
Mary Meager Southcott | Nurse, superintendent | 1998 |
Louis St. Laurent | Prime Minister | 1973 |
Sam Steele | Soldier, Superintendent | 1938 |
William Steeves | Father of Confederation, industrialist, senator | 1939 |
Vilhjalmur Stefansson | Arctic explorer | 1964 |
Stephan G. Stephansson | Poet | 1946 |
George Stephen, 1st Baron Mount Stephen | Banker, railroader, philanthropist | 1971 |
Emily Stowe | First woman to practise as a Canadian doctor, women's rights activist | 1995 |
John Strachan | Bishop, founded King's College | 1925 |
Gilfred Studholme | Army officer, role in constructing Fort Howe | 1927 |
Benjamin Sulte | Historian | 1928 |
Alexandre-Antonin Taché | Bishop, missionary, writer | 1943 |
Étienne-Paschal Taché | Father of Confederation, headed Coalition Government | 1937 |
François-Xavier Picard Tahourenche | Archivist | 2008 |
Jean Talon | Intendant | 1974 |
Joseph Israël Tarte | Journalist, politician, cabinet minister | 1973 |
Tecumseh | First Nations leader, role in War of 1812 | 1931 |
James Teit | Ethnographer | 1994 |
Tessouat dubbed "le Borgne de l'isle" | First Nation leader | 1983 |
Thanadelthur | First Nations figure, role in northern fur trade | 2000 |
George McCall Theal | Educator, historian, archivist | 1937 |
Louis Thomas | Defended Maliseet rights and interests | 2002 |
William Thomas | Architect | 1974 |
David Thompson | Fur trader, cartographer, surveyor | 1927 |
John Sparrow David Thompson | Prime Minister | 1937 |
Stanley Thompson | Architect | 2005 |
Charles Poulett Thomson, 1st Baron Sydenham | Governor General, established Union of the Canadas | 1926 |
Edward William Thomson | Writer | 1938 |
Tom Thomson | Artist | 1958 |
Samuel Leonard Tilley | Father of confederation, cabinet minister | 1937 |
William Tomison | Role in Hudson's Bay Company | 1974 |
Henry Marshall Tory | University president, first National Research Council president | 1949 |
Catharine Parr Traill | Author | 1974 |
Jennie Kidd Trout | First Canadian woman licensed as physician | 1995 |
Pierre Trudeau | Prime Minister | 2001 |
Joseph Trutch | Lieutenant-Governor | 1975 |
Ignace-Nicolas Vincent Tsawenhohi | First Nations leader | 2001 |
Harriet Tubman | Abolitionist, humanitarian | 2005 |
Charles Tupper | Prime Minister, Father of Confederation | 1957 |
William Ferdinand Alphonse Turgeon | Attorney General, diplomat, judge | 1981 |
Wallace Rupert Turnbull | Inventor, aeronautical engineer | 1960 |
Philip Turnor | Surveyor, cartographer | 1973 |
Joseph Tyrrell | Geologist, historian, cartographer | 1970 |
James Boyle Uniacke | Premier | 1938 |
William Cornelius Van Horne | Railroader | 1954 |
George Vancouver | Explorer | 1933 |
Georges Vanier | Governor General, soldier, Ambassador | 1983 |
Frederick Varley | Artist | 1974 |
Madeleine de Verchères | Defended family fort | 1923 |
Peter Vasilevich Verigin | Christian Community of Universal Brotherhood, Doukhobor emigration | 2008 |
Louis-Guillaume Verrier | Founded law school | 1952 |
Samuel Vetch | Soldier, Governor | 1928 |
Hiram Walker | Industrialist, developed distillery, ferry and railway in Windsor, Ontario | 1971 |
Horatio Walker | Artist, Royal Academy of Art | 1939 |
Byron Edmund Walker | Businessman, arts patron | 1938 |
Provo Wallis | Royal Navy officer, capture USS Chesapeake, War of 1812 | 1945 |
James Morrow Walsh | North-West Mounted Police, Commissioner of Yukon | 1967 |
Angus J. Walters | Fishing captain | 2005 |
Homer Ransford Watson | Artist | 1939 |
Ken Watson | Champion curler | 2016 |
Margaret Robertson Watt aka Madge Watt | Associated Country Women of the World | 2007 |
George Edward Watts | Vice-admiral, War of 1812 | 1945 |
John Clarence Webster | Surgeon, historian, author, professor, chair Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada | 1950 |
John Wentworth | Lieutenant-Governor Nova Scotia | 1974 |
Philip Westphal | Navy Admiral | 1945 |
George Augustus Westphal | Navy Admiral | 1945 |
Arthur Oliver Wheeler | Surveyor, National Park Movement, Alpine Club | 1995 |
Seager Wheeler | Agriculturist | 1976 |
Edward Whelan | Father of Confederation, journalist, speaker | 1939 |
Richard Whitbourne | Newfoundland businessman, promoted settlement | 1984 |
Portia White | Musician | 1995 |
Healey Willan | Musician, professor | 1984 |
John Stephen Willison | Editor | 1938 |
Thomas Willson | Inventor | 1972 |
Lemuel Allan Wilmot | Lieutenant-Governor New Brunswick, politician and judge | 1938 |
Robert Duncan Wilmot | Father of Confederation, Senator | 1959 |
Alice Evelyn Wilson | Scientist, teacher | 2011 |
Cairine Reay Mackay Wilson | First woman Senator | 2005 |
Ethel Wilson | Modernist fiction writer | 2011 |
Mona Gordon Wilson | Prince Edward Island Public Health Nursing Division | 2008 |
Edward Winslow | Loyalist; founded Fredericton, settlements in Saint John River Valley | 1951 |
Hirsch Wolofsky, aka Harry Wolofsky | Montreal Jewish community leader; founded Eagle Publishing Company | 2007 |
William Wolseley | Royal Navy Admiral | 1945 |
Wong Foon Sien | Chinese-Canadian activist | 2008 |
Henry Wise Wood | Founded Canada Wheat Pools | 1962 |
J. S. Woodsworth | CCF leader | 1972 |
Philemon Wright | Lumber merchant, Ottawa Valley settler | 1976 |
George MacKinnon Wrong | Professor | 1950 |
Florence Wyle | Sculptor | 2011 |
James Lucas Yeo | War of 1812 Commander | 1937 |
Nellie Yip Quong | Community advocate; Euro-Canadian/Chinese Canadian intermediary | 2008 |
John Young | Farmer, businessman, agricultural reformer | 1951 |
William Young | Premier, judge | 1951 |
Marie-Marguerite d'Youville | Saint, founded Order of the Sisters of Charity | 1973 |