1881 in Canada

1881 in Canada
Events from the year 1881 in Canada.
Incumbents
Crown
Monarch – Victoria
Federal government
Governor General – John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne
Prime Minister – John A. Macdonald
Chief Justice – William Johnstone Ritchie (New Brunswick)
Parliament – 4th
Provincial governments
Lieutenant governors
Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – Albert Norton Richards (until June 21) then Clement Francis Cornwall
Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Joseph-Édouard Cauchon
Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – Robert Duncan Wilmot
Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Adams George Archibald
Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – John Beverley Robinson
Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Thomas Heath Haviland
Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Théodore Robitaille
Premiers
Premier of British Columbia – George Anthony Walkem
Premier of Manitoba – John Norquay
Premier of New Brunswick – John James Fraser
Premier of Nova Scotia – Simon Hugh Holmes
Premier of Ontario – Oliver Mowat
Premier of Prince Edward Island – William Wilfred Sullivan
Premier of Quebec – Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau
Territorial governments
Lieutenant governors
Lieutenant Governor of Keewatin – Joseph-Édouard Cauchon
Lieutenant Governor of the North-West Territories – David Laird (until December 3) then Edgar Dewdney
Events
January 17 – The Interprovincial Bridge connecting Ottawa to Hull, Quebec, opens
February 16 – The Canadian Pacific Railway is incorporated
April 4 – The 1881 census finds Canada's population to be 4,324,810
May 24 – The overloaded steamer Victoria' capsizes on the Thames River near London, Ontario, killing 182 people.
October – Clifton, Ontario, is renamed to Niagara Falls.
December 2 – Quebec election: Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau's Conservatives win a majority
Full date unknown
Manitoba's boundaries are extended north, east and west. Ontario disputes the eastward extension.
Births
January 2 – Frederick Varley, artist and member of the Group of Seven (d.1969)
January 20 – Fred Dixon, politician (d.1931)
June 17 – Tommy Burns, only Canadian born world heavyweight champion boxer (d.1955)
September 27 – James Ralston, lawyer, soldier, politician and Minister (d.1948)
October 23 – Al Christie, film director, producer and screenwriter (d.1951)
November 4 – Hector Authier, politician, lawyer and news reporter/announcer (d.1971)
November 19 – Robert James Manion, politician (d.1943)
December 20 – Télesphore-Damien Bouchard, politician (d.1962)
December 29 – George Washington Kendall (d.1921)
December 31 – Albert Sévigny, politician (d.1961)
December 31 – Elizabeth Arden (birth name, Florence Nightingale Graham), founder, Elizabeth Arden cosmetics (d.1966)
Deaths
January 28 – Luc Letellier de St-Just, politician and 3rd Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (b. 1820)
Historical documents
John A. Macdonald expounds on CPR's troubled past and secure future in House of Commons speech
British editorial labels CPR and Canada bad investments
Wilfrid Laurier accuses Conservatives of "having sacrificed the public cause to personal cupidity"
Governor General speaks on prospects of Northwest Territories
Importance of steamboats to colonization along Saskatchewan River
Ojibwa entertain Governor General at Rat Portage (Kenora), Ont. (Note: racial stereotypes)
Chief Poundmaker tells Cree and Blackfoot legends to Governor General on tour
Colourful Blackfoot riders meet Governor General (Note: "savage" and other stereotypes)
Journalist describes beautiful Qu'Appelle Valley in gorgeous sunset
Nova Scotia woman tries to find maid for $4/month, and describes some of the work
References
Years of the 19th century in Canada
Canada
1881 in North America