How the Government Almost Wrecked Canada Day

On July 1, 1867, the British North America Act (now called the Constitution Act) was set in place, creating a country where only colonies had stood before.

The following year, the nation’s first governor general, Charles Stanley Monck, asked his fellow Canadians to celebrate our founding on its anniversary; however, a holiday was not officially established until May 1879. The wheels of government turned slowly even then.

The early days of the holiday were anemic, with celebrations of what was then known as Dominion Day occurring infrequently, and then only local in nature. It wasn’t until 1946 that House of Commons member Philéas Côté introduced a bill to rename Dominion Day as Canada Day, the first use of the term.

The bill was passed by the House but then stalled by the Senate, which wanted the holiday to be renamed The National Holiday of Canada, a childish, red-tape maneuver that ended Canada Day before it even started.

It wasn’t until 1958, during Prime Minister John Diefenbaker’s term, that ceremonies began popping up on Parliament Hill, including a concert and fireworks display. During the 1960s and 1970s, the holiday gained some traction, with parades, concerts, and events happening across the country. And, finally, in 1980, the federal government began to recognize Dominion Day beyond the confines of Ottawa by giving money to cities across the country to help them create local activities.

This was the true beginning of Canada Day.

Of course, purists and royalists wanted the day to remain as Dominion Day, a throwback to our early colonial history, while others wanted a name that proved our independence as a nation. The holiday was officially renamed Canada Day in 1982, after the bill had spent some time in the House of Commons and the Senate ... it only took from July 9 to October 27 to pass. It was a mere 36 years after the initial bill was introduced.

Each July for the past several years, CIM—Canadian Industrial Machinery has produced a special Canada Day issue. This year we take a look at lean manufacturing and the many ways it can be applied to the shop floor.

These special issues were the brainchild of the magazine’s founder, Tom Dillon. It is with regret that I have to announce his death, but thought this issue—his idea for something new in a crowded industry full of the same old, same old—was an apt time.

Tom was one of a kind, a bon vivant. We traveled the world together for a time, eating in the fanciest restaurants, as well as the smallest dives. He was equally happy and at home in both.

When he founded this magazine in 1986, he was making something from nothing, creating something new. This type of act is familiar to many manufacturers across the country.

Tom had a generous nature, freely giving to strangers in need, and he loved this industry, its machines, and its people.

Cheers, Tom. Merci.