Important places in our past are all around you. No matter where you live or travel in Canada, there are museums, historic sites and all kinds of other special places to explore. In each issue of Kayak, we tell you about some that relate to our theme — check them out below! And if you have a favourite historic place, tell us about it.

A History of Protest

In nearly every part of Canada, you’ll find stories of people who wanted to change the country.

The bilingual Saint-Boniface Museum is located in a traditionally French-speaking area of Winnipeg. It focuses on francophone life in Manitoba, and especially on the Métis. You can see items that belonged to Louis Riel, Gabriel Dumont and other important players in the Red River Resistance. A short walk away is the place where Riel is buried in the Saint Boniface Cathedral cemetery.

Left: Lock of Louis Riel’s hair mounted on a souvenir card. The text reads For his people, he gave his time and his life. © Rob Barrow, Collection du Musée de Saint-Boniface.

Beautiful Clayoquot Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island was the site of passionate protests in the early 1990s by people who wanted it protected from logging. The United Nations declared it a World Biosphere Reserve in 2000. Today you can hike and paddle there, as long as you are careful and treat it with respect.

Clayoquot Sound, July 15, 2010. / © Sam Beebe

You can learn more about the Fenian raids of the late 1860s at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa. There are also exhibitions on conscientious objectors — people who chose to do other work instead of serving in the military.

Outside the Canadian War Museum. / © Canadian War Museum, Marie-Louise Deruaz