# 1961 in Canada

Events from the year 1961 in Canada.

## Incumbents
### Crown

* Monarch – Elizabeth II

### Federal government

* Governor General – Georges Vanier
* Prime Minister – John Diefenbaker
* Chief Justice – Patrick Kerwin (Ontario)
* Parliament – 24th

### Provincial governments
#### Lieutenant governors

* Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – John Percy Page
* Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – George Pearkes
* Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Errick Willis
* Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – Joseph Leonard O'Brien
* Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland – Campbell Leonard Macpherson
* Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Edward Chester Plow
* Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – John Keiller MacKay
* Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Frederick Walter Hyndman
* Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Onésime Gagnon (until October 12) then Paul Comtois
* Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Frank Lindsay Bastedo

#### Premiers

* Premier of Alberta – Ernest Manning
* Premier of British Columbia – W.A.C. Bennett
* Premier of Manitoba – Dufferin Roblin
* Premier of New Brunswick – Louis Robichaud
* Premier of Newfoundland – Joey Smallwood
* Premier of Nova Scotia – Robert Stanfield
* Premier of Ontario – Leslie Frost (until November 8) then John Robarts
* Premier of Prince Edward Island – Walter Shaw
* Premier of Quebec – Jean Lesage
* Premier of Saskatchewan – Tommy Douglas (until November 7) then Woodrow Lloyd

### Territorial governments
#### Commissioners

* Commissioner of Yukon – Frederick Howard Collins
* Commissioner of Northwest Territories – Robert Gordon Robertson

## Events
### January to June

* June 1
** The Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Canada merge to form the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.
** Census Day for the 1961 Census of Canada, which finds Canada has a population of 18,238,247.
* June 6 – CUSO is formed
* June 13 – The NCC study of Ottawa's new Green Belt is completed
* June 14 – James Elliott Coyne, the Governor of the Bank of Canada resigns due to disagreements with the federal government's fiscal policies

### July to December

* August 3 – Tommy Douglas is elected leader of the newly formed New Democratic Party
* August 14 – 15 – The Premiers meet in Charlottetown
* August 26 – The new home for the Hockey Hall of Fame opens in Toronto, at the Canadian National Exhibition.
* October 1 – CTV, Canada's second major television network, begins broadcasting
* November 7 – Woodrow Lloyd becomes premier of Saskatchewan, replacing Tommy Douglas
* November 8 – John Robarts becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Leslie Frost
* November 17 – Saskatchewan passes a bill creating Canada's first government run health system
* December 28 – Canada's first BOMARC Missile squadron is formed

### Full date unknown

* The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation becomes the New Democratic Party
* The Massey Lectures are created
* The transatlantic telephone system is officially launched with a call from Elizabeth II to Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.
* The Canadian Conference of the Arts is established.

## Sport

* March 12 – The Trail Smoke Eaters win the 1961 Ice Hockey World Championships for Canada.
* May 5 – The Ontario Hockey Association's Toronto St. Michael's Majors win their fourth (and final) Memorial Cup by defeating the Central Alberta Hockey League's Edmonton Oil Kings 4 games to 2. The deciding Game 6 was played at Edmonton Gardens.
* July 11 – Gene Kiniski becomes the first Canadian to win the AWA World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Verne Gagne
* December 2 – The Winnipeg Blue Bombers win their 6th Grey Cup by defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 21–14 in the 49th Grey Cup at CNE Stadium in Toronto.

## Arts and literature
### New books

* Morley Callaghan: A Passion in Rome
* Max Aitken: Courage
* Margaret Atwood: Double Persephone
* Farley Mowat: Owls in the Family

### Awards

* See 1961 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
* Stephen Leacock Award: Norman Ward, Mice in the Beer

## Births
### January to March

* January 11 – Graham Welbourn, swimmer
* January 15 - Yves Pelletier, film director and actor
* January 18 – Mark Messier, ice hockey player
* January 26 – Wayne Gretzky, ice hockey player and coach
* January 27 – Tony Clement, politician and Minister
* January 28 – Normand Rochefort, ice hockey player and coach
* February 4 – Connor O'Brien, Canadian skier
* February 10 – Steve Pagendam, boxer
* February 21 – Paul Edwards, politician and lawyer
* February 23 – Silvia Ruegger, long-distance runner (died 2019)
* February 27 – Ann Peel, race walker
* February 28 - René Simard, singer
* March 16 – Todd McFarlane, cartoonist, comic book artist, writer, toy designer and entrepreneur
* March 24 – Pat Turner, rower and Olympic gold medallist

### April to June

* April 6 – Gene Eugene, actor, record producer, engineer, composer and musician (died 2000)
* April 10 – Barb Tarbox, anti-smoking activist (died 2003)
* April 22 – Scott D. Sampson, paleontologist, science communicator and television presenter
* May 1 – Clint Malarchuk, ice hockey player
* May 8 – Greg Thomey, comedian
* May 9 – Darren Praznik, politician
* May 10 – Randy Cunneyworth, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
* June 1 – Paul Coffey, ice hockey player
* June 9 – Michael J. Fox, actor, author and voice over artist

### July to September

* July 1 – Michelle Wright, singer-songwriter
* July 8 – Kelly Kryczka, synchronized swimmer
* July 17 – Blair Horn, rower and Olympic gold medallist
* July 23
** André Ducharme, author, comedian and humorist
** Richard Martineau, journalist
** Rob Stewart, actor
* July 24 – Brian McMahon, coxswain and Olympic gold medallist
* July 26 – Alan Lowe, politician
* August 12 – Peter Szmidt, swimmer
* August 20 – Lizanne Bussières, long-distance runner
* August 23 – François Lapointe, racewalker
* August 25 – Dave Tippett, ice hockey player and coach
* September 12 – Mylène Farmer, singer, songwriter, actress and author
* September 16 – Jen Tolley, actress, voice actress and singer
* September 18 – Denis Lambert, boxer
* September 24
** Nancy Garapick, swimmer and Olympic bronze medallist
** Luc Picard, actor
* September 25 – Tracy Wilson, ice dancer
* September 27 – Randy Vancourt, composer and entertainer
* September 30 – Erica Ehm, video jockey, songwriter and actress

### October to December

* October 16 - Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO of Quebecor Inc., Quebecor Media Inc. and Sun Media Corporation
* October 25 – Alison Webb, judoka
* November 2 – k.d. lang, singer-songwriter
* November 23 – Floyd Roland, politician and 11th Premier of the Northwest Territories
* December 8 – André Bachand, politician
* December 10 – Mark McKoy, hurdler and Olympic gold medallist
* December 11 - Michel Courtemanche, actor
* December 13 – Ranza Clark, middle-distance runner
* December 18 – Brian Orser, figure skater, double Olympic silver medallist and World Champion
* December 30
** Douglas Coupland, novelist
** Ben Johnson, Jamaica-born sprinter, double Olympic bronze medallist, Olympic gold medal rescinded as disqualified for doping

## Deaths
### January to June

* May 12 - Janis Babson (born 1950)
* May 14 – Albert Sévigny, politician (born 1881)
* May 28 – Frank Boyes, politician (born 1874)
* May 29 – Gilbert Layton, businessman and politician (born 1899)
* May 31 – Walter Little, politician (born 1877)
* June 6 – William Anderson, politician and businessman (born 1905)
* June 19 – Richard Ernest William Turner, soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross (born 1871)

### July to December

* July 12 – Mazo de la Roche, author (born 1879)
* July 15 – John Edward Brownlee, politician and 5th Premier of Alberta (born 1884)
* September 12 – Joseph-Arthur Bradette, politician (born 1886)
* September 16 – Percy Chapman Black, politician (born 1878)
* September 21 – William Duncan Herridge, politician and diplomat (born 1888)
* September 30 - Onésime Gagnon, politician and the 20th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (born 1888)
* October 15 – Peter Dickinson, architect (born 1925)
* October 22 – Harry Nixon, politician and 13th Premier of Ontario (born 1891)

### Full date unknown

* Anne Wilkinson, poet (born 1910)