Canadian History for Kids: John A. Macdonald

January 11, 1815 – The birth of John A. Macdonald is registered in Glasgow on this day

This Canadian History for Kids exclusive, looks at our founding father, Sir John A. Macdonald.

Sir John A. Macdonald, the first Prime Minister of Canada, was born in Glasgow, Scotland. January 11, 1815.

Macdonald and his family left Glasgow Scotland in 1820 and emigrated to Kingston, Ontario. By the age of fifteen he was out working for a law firm in Kingston. He had his own legal practice in the town of Picton, Ontario by age of 19.

In 1843, Macdonald entered politics as a city alderman in Kingston, Ontario and by 1844 he was elected Conservative representative for Kingston in the Province of Canada.
In July 1857, Macdonald was appointed to Premier of Canada after coming back from Britain where he was promoting Canadian government projects.

Canadian History for Kids has learned Macdonald worked very hard trying to pull the provinces together to become one large country, and in 1867 it was announced that the Dominion of Canada would come into existence on July 1st. Macdonald was appointed as the new nation’s first Prime Minister. With the birth of the Dominion, Canada East and Canada West became separate provinces, known as Quebec and Ontario. Macdonald was knighted on that very special day, known as Canada Day, 1 July 1867.

Key events of his political career include being a Father of Confederation and seeing the provinces of Manitoba, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island join Confederation. He was an important figure in the creation of the Canadian Pacific Railway from 1871 to 1885 and in the creation of the Northwest Mounted Police in 1873. He was also behind the development of Canada’s first national park in Banff, Alberta, in 1885. He served as Canada’s Minister of Justice and Attorney General from 1867 to 1873 and was Leader of the Opposition from 1873 to 1878. He died on June 6, 1891, in Ottawa, Ontario.

And that’s this week’s Canadian History for Kids, exclusive!
 

Other Canadian History for Kids Sketches of Canada