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.

Historic Sites

It’s not a fight many Canadians have heard of, but the Bataille-du-Moulin-à-vent near Prescott, Ont., in 1838, prevented a combined force of rebels from Upper Canada and American invaders from capturing nearby Fort Wellington. Both are now national historic sites. On the other hand, there is also a historic site devoted to Lower Canada’s rebel leader, Louis-Joseph Papineau, in Vieux-Montréal (see photo above; © Parks Canada).

North America’s first canal with locks to move boats up and down past rough water opened in 1781 at what is now Lieu national historique de Coteau-du-Lac. Located about 40 kilometres from Montreal, this site explores the exciting history of the St. Lawrence River.