1961 in Canada

Years in Canada:	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964
Centuries:	19th century · 20th century · 21st century
Decades:	1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
Years:	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964

Part of a series on the
History of Canada
Year list / Timeline
Pre-colonization 1534–1763 1764–1866 1867–1914 1914–1945 1945–1960 1960–1981 1982–1992 1992–present
Topics
Constitutional history Cultural history Economic history Former colonies Immigration history Military history Monarchical history National Historic Sites Persons of significance Population history Territorial evolution
Research
Bibliography Historiography
Portal

Events from the year 1961 in Canada.

Incumbents

Crown

• Head of state (monarch) – Queen Elizabeth II (consort – Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh)

Federal government

• Governor general – Georges Vanier (viceregal consort – Pauline Vanier)
• Prime minister – John Diefenbaker

Provincial governments

Lieutenant governors

• Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – John Percy Page
• Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – George Pearkes
• Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Errick Willis
• Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – Joseph Leonard O'Brien
• Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland – Campbell Leonard Macpherson
• Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Edward Chester Plow
• Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – John Keiller MacKay
• Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – Frederick Walter Hyndman
• Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Onésime Gagnon (until October 12) then Paul Comtois
• Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Frank Lindsay Bastedo

Premiers

• Premier of Alberta – Ernest Manning
• Premier of British Columbia – W.A.C. Bennett
• Premier of Manitoba – Dufferin Roblin
• Premier of New Brunswick – Louis Robichaud
• Premier of Newfoundland – Joey Smallwood
• Premier of Nova Scotia – Robert Stanfield
• Premier of Ontario – Leslie Frost (until November 8) then John Robarts
• Premier of Prince Edward Island – Walter Shaw
• Premier of Quebec – Jean Lesage
• Premier of Saskatchewan – Tommy Douglas (until November 7) then Woodrow Lloyd

Territorial governments

Commissioners

• Commissioner of Yukon – Frederick Howard Collins
• Commissioner of Northwest Territories – Robert Gordon Robertson

Events

January to June

• February 3 – The Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Canada merge to form Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
• June 1 – Census Day for the 1961 Census of Canada, which finds Canada has a population of 18,238,247.
• June 6 – CUSO is formed
• June 13 – The NCC study of Ottawa's new Green Belt is completed
• June 14 – James Elliott Coyne, the Governor of the Bank of Canada resigns due to disagreements with the federal government's fiscal policies

July to December

• August 3 – Tommy Douglas is elected leader of the newly formed New Democratic Party
• August 14 – 15 – The Premiers meet in Charlottetown
• August 26 – The new home for the Hockey Hall of Fame opens in Toronto, at the Canadian National Exhibition.
• October 1 – CTV, Canada's second major television network, begins broadcasting
• November 7 – Woodrow Lloyd becomes premier of Saskatchewan, replacing Tommy Douglas
• November 8 – John Robarts becomes premier of Ontario, replacing Leslie Frost
• November 17 – Saskatchewan passes a bill creating Canada's first government run health system
• December 28 – Canada's first BOMARC Missile squadron is formed

Full date unknown

• The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation becomes the New Democratic Party
• The Massey Lectures are created
• The transatlantic telephone system is officially launched with a call from Elizabeth II to Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.
• The Canadian Conference of the Arts is established.

Arts and literature

New books

• Morley Callaghan: A Passion in Rome
• Max Aitken: Courage
• Margaret Atwood: Double Persephone
• Farley Mowat: Owls in the Family

Awards

• See 1961 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
• Stephen Leacock Award: Norman Ward, Mice in the Beer

Births

January to March

Wayne Gretzky

• January 11 – Graham Welbourn, swimmer
• January 15 - Yves Pelletier, film director and actor
• January 18 – Mark Messier, ice hockey player
• January 26 – Wayne Gretzky, ice hockey player and coach
• January 27 – Tony Clement, politician and Minister
• January 28 – Normand Rochefort, ice hockey player and coach
• February 4 – Connor O'Brien, Canadian skier
• February 10 – Steve Pagendam, boxer
• February 21 – Paul Edwards, politician and lawyer
• February 23 – Sylvia Ruegger, long-distance runner
• February 27 – Ann Peel, race walker
• February 28 - René Simard, singer
• March 16 – Todd McFarlane, cartoonist, comic book artist, writer, toy designer and entrepreneur
• March 24 – Pat Turner, rower and Olympic gold medalist

April to June

• April 6 – Gene Eugene, actor, record producer, engineer, composer and musician (died 2000)
• April 10 – Barb Tarbox, anti-smoking activist (died 2003)
• May 1 – Clint Malarchuk, ice hockey player
• May 8 – Greg Thomey, comedian
• May 9 – Darren Praznik, politician
• May 10 – Randy Cunneyworth, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• June 1 – Paul Coffey, ice hockey player
• June 9 – Michael J. Fox, actor, author and voice over artist

July to September

• July 1 – Michelle Wright, singer-songwriter
• July 17 – Blair Horn, rower and Olympic gold medalist
• July 23
  • André Ducharme, author, comedian and humorist
  • Richard Martineau, journalist
  • Rob Stewart, actor
• July 24 – Brian McMahon, coxswain and Olympic gold medalist
• July 26 – Alan Lowe, politician
• August 12 – Peter Szmidt, swimmer
• August 20 – Lizanne Bussières, long-distance runner
• August 23 – François Lapointe, racewalker
• August 25 – Dave Tippett, ice hockey player and coach
• September 12 – Mylène Farmer, singer, songwriter, actress and author
• September 16 – Jen Tolley, voice actress
• September 18 – Denis Lambert, boxer
• September 24
  • Nancy Garapick, swimmer and Olympic bronze medalist
  • Luc Picard, actor
• September 27 – Randy Vancourt, composer and entertainer
• September 30 – Erica Ehm, video jockey, songwriter and actress

October to December

Floyd Roland

• October 16 - Pierre Karl Péladeau, president and CEO of Quebecor Inc., Quebecor Media Inc. and Sun Media Corporation
• October 25 – Alison Webb, judoka
• November 2 – k.d. lang, singer-songwriter
• November 23 – Floyd Roland, politician and 11th Premier of the Northwest Territories
• December 8 – André Bachand, politician
• December 10 – Mark McKoy, hurdler and Olympic gold medalist
• December 11 - Michel Courtemanche, actor
• December 13 – Ranza Clark, middle distance runner
• December 18 – Brian Orser, figure skater, double Olympic silver medalist and World Champion
• December 30
  • Douglas Coupland, novelist
  • Ben Johnson, Jamaica-born sprinter, double Olympic bronze medalist, Olympic gold medal rescinded as disqualified for doping

Deaths

January to June

• May 12 - Janis Babson (born 1950)
• May 14 – Albert Sévigny, politician (born 1881)
• May 28 – Frank Boyes, politician (born 1874)
• May 29 – Gilbert Layton, businessman and politician (born 1899)
• June 6 – William Anderson, politician and businessman (born 1905)
• June 19 – Richard Ernest William Turner, soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross (born 1871)

July to December

• July 12 – Mazo de la Roche, author (born 1879)
• July 15 – John Edward Brownlee, politician and 5th Premier of Alberta (born 1884)
• September 12 – Joseph-Arthur Bradette, politician (born 1886)
• September 16 – Percy Chapman Black, politician (born 1878)
• September 21 – William Duncan Herridge, politician and diplomat (born 1888)
• September 30 - Onésime Gagnon, politician and the 20th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (born 1888)
• October 15 – Peter Dickinson, architect (born 1925)
• October 22 – Harry Nixon, politician and 13th Premier of Ontario (born 1891)

Full date unknown

• Anne Wilkinson, poet (born 1910)