• Medical Facilities at Pier 21
    by Steve Schwinghamer, Historian (Updated July 20, 2021) Introduction: Medical Screening at Pier 21 The manual used by immigration staff in the 1950s stated that medical and physical requirements of the Immigration Act were “[f]or the protection of residents of Canada, and to ensure that persons …
  • The Colour Bar at the Canadian Border: Black American Farmers
    by Steve Schwinghamer, Historian (Updated July 20, 2021) “I am not sure whether it will interest you or not but I may state that a number of coloured people have been going from your district lately to Western Canada, and it is not considered that they are a class of colonists who will be likely to …
  • Exploring Pier 21’s Immigration Quarters
    by Steve Schwinghamer, Historian (Updated July 20, 2021) Introduction: Accommodation and Detention at Pier 21 Pier 21 is best known as Halifax’s receiving station for almost one million immigrants to Canada, and as a key embarkation facility during the Second World War. However, most of the people …
  • Entrenching Refugee Rights in Canada: The 1985 Singh Decision
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian Introduction: Up to the early 1980s, refugee claimants had the possibility of appealing a negative outcome to their refugee claims. However, Canada’s refugee determination system remained partial to the interests of the Canadian government rather than the claimant. The …
  • Canadian Immigration Facilities at Victoria, BC
    by Steve Schwinghamer, Historian (Updated July 21, 2021) “Conditions are so much different out here from what you have in the East” Immigration Facilities at Victoria, British Columbia The history of immigration facilities at the port of Victoria, British Columbia, extends from the mid-nineteenth …
  • Resettling Child Refugees: Canada and Armenian Orphans, 1923-1927
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian (Updated October 20, 2020) Introduction For centuries, child orphans have sought permanent resettlement in Canada. Refugee orphans seeking to enter Canada today must hold legal documentation and provide testimony to a federal immigration official that he or she is a …
  • Borders, Groups, Statistics: Researching Immigrant Arrival at Pier 21
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian (Updated October 23, 2020) Introduction How do I find a passenger list? Is there a ledger? What if my ancestor came from a country that no longer exists? While the Scotiabank Family History Centre at the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 does not hold copies of …
  • Starting Points: Researching Canadian Immigration and Ethnic History
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian (Updated October 8, 2020) Introduction So you’re interested in researching a topic that deals with Canadian immigration and ethnic history? This short post will give you an overview of the field and suggest some starting points to help get your research underway. Early …
  • Who Is Admissible? Immigrant Desirability and Immigration Acts since Confederation
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian (Updated October 9, 2020) In May 2015, the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 opened new exhibitions on the history of the Pier 21 National Historic Site of Canada and the history of immigration to Canada. This blog is based on research that informs new displays …
  • Hooks for History: Using a Building Model to Introduce Complex Pasts
    by Steve Schwinghamer, Historian (Updated July 20, 2021) Our Museum is located at a National Historic Site: Halifax’s historical immigration facility at Pier 21. One of the principal tasks for the Museum has been to introduce and orient visitors to the historic place as they stand in the converted, …