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In 1863–1864, Confederate naval operations were launched from Canada against America, with an unexpected impact on North America’s future. Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, a myth has persisted that the hijackers entered the United States from Canada. This is completely untrue. Nevertheless, there was a time during the U.S. Civil War when attacks on America were launched from Canada, but the aggressors were mostly fellow Americans engaged in a secessionist struggle.

Richard Pierpoint or Captain Dick, as he was commonly known, emerges from the shadows of history in A Stolen Life: Searching for Richard Pierpoint. An African warrior who was captured at about age 16, Pierpoint lived his remaining years in exile. From his birth in Bundu (now part of Senegal) around 1744 until his death in rural Ontario in 1837, Pierpoint’s life allows us to glimpse the activity of an African involved in some of the world’s great events.

In the early to mid-19th century, Isaac Brown, a slave, was accused of the attempted murder of a prominent plantation owner, despite there being no evidence of his guilt. Brown, after enduring two brutal floggings, was shipped to a New Orleans slave pen. From there the resourceful Brown was able to make a daring escape to Philadelphia in the free state of Pennsylvania. His biggest error was writing a note informing his free wife and 11 children in Maryland of his whereabouts.

2013 Information Book Awards — Long-listed Harriet Tubman encouraged enslaved Africans to make the break for freedom and reinforced the potential of black freedom and independence. Born in the United States and enslaved as a child, Harriet Tubman (circa 1820-1913) is one of the best-known figures connected to the Underground Railroad. Through her knowledge and outdoor survival skills, honed through her unpaid labour in the fields and through the later connections she made in the abolitionist community, Tubman was well poised to command her followers.

In this revised edition, men from the army, navy, and air force are honoured for their bravery in the Korean War. The Korean War (1950-53) forms a little-known but exciting part of Canada’s military history. The heroism and sacrifice of Canadians who fought in this conflict as part of the United Nations force has often been ignored. In this lively, anecdotal book, John Melady combines archival material and interviews with many Korean veterans.

This is the story of the National Ballet of Canada – the people, the determination, and how at sixty it is still creating new work while still representing the classics. Passion to Dance is the story of the National Ballet of Canada – the people who dreamt the company into existence, the determination needed to keep it afloat, the bumps on the road to its success, and above all, its passion for dance as a living, evolving art form.

The Chinese have become a vibrant part of Toronto’s multiculturalism, with no less than seven Chinatowns created since 1984. Short-listed for the 2013 Speaker’s Book Award and for the 2012 Heritage Toronto Award The modest beginnings of the Chinese in Toronto and the development of Chinatown is largely due to the completion of the CPR in 1885. No longer requiring the services of the Chinese labourers, a hostile British Columbia sent them eastward in search of employment and a more welcoming place. In 1894 Toronto’s Chinese population numbered fifty.

Discover the scrapyard statue planned for University Avenue, the flapper-era "CN Tower" that led to a decade of litigation, and an electric light-rail transit network proposed in 1915.

During the American Revolution and the border conflicts that followed, Simon Girty’s name struck terror into the hearts of U.S. settlers in the Ohio Valley and the territory of Kentucky. Girty (1741-1818) had lived with the Natives most of his life. Scorned by his fellow white frontiersmen as an "Indian lover," Girty became an Indian agent for the British. He accompanied Native raids against Americans, spied deep into enemy territory, and was influential in convincing the tribes to fight for the British. The Americans declared Girty an outlaw. In U.S.

The Canadian National Exhibition grounds are so richly steeped in history that there are spirits that dwell there who like to come out and play and work. When one thinks of Toronto’s Canadian National Exhibition, memories of bright lights, cotton candy, the rush of people, and the excitement of rides spring to mind. But when the lights go down and the people head home, the fairground takes on a life of its own. The spirits that dwell there from the exhibition’s long history come out to play and work, even to scare the occasional employee.