Student Activity #1: Images of Canada 1860

The Royal Tour of 1860 was Canada’s first official visit by a member of the British royal family. The government of Lower Canada http://www.collectionscanada.ca/ had invited Queen Victoria to open the Victoria Bridge in Montreal. This railway bridge was being hailed as the “eight wonder of the world” http://www.vieux.montreal.qc.ca/
However, Queen Victoria decided to send her eighteen-year-old son and heir, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. The Prince and his enturage [see – it’s not just a TV show!] landed at St. John’s, Newfoundland, then travelled through Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Canada East and Canada West including London, and on to the United States.

The tour was a triumph: the Prince was very charming and the crowds loved him! Many cities had parades to welcome the Prince and erected large arches featuring his signature emblem of three ostrich feathers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Wales

WILL: The tour has been incredible -- cheering crowds everywhere and I’m taking photographs of so many things. I was really excited about visiting Montreal. They have some photos by the famous American photographer Mathew Brady. I would like to be like him and spend my life recording important events and people.

I’ve noticed that most of the British and Canadian newspapers don’t emply photographers yet. They have sketch artists who make detailed drawings of an event for publication. The image on page 2 of Canada: A Developing Nation is from the National Archives of Canada. Your task is to examine and evaluate the sketch as an historical source.

Your Task: Use the provided table to record and organize your observations and thinking. Then, study three other images of the 1860 royal tour and add your notes to the table.

Will’s notes: What images will I select/keep for my album? Why? What notes should I record for my album captions?