Heritage Minutes
(1991)Streaming Episode Guide
Season 7
Oscar Peterson
Episode 8 - 2-17-2021
Oscar Peterson is one of Canada's most honoured musicians and widely regarded as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. His interest in music began at the age of five growing up in the Black working-class community of Little Burgundy in Montreal. This Heritage Minute recounts the circumstances in which Peterson was raised and follows his rise to fame.
Haven't Seen
Acadian Deportation
Episode 5 - 8-15-2019
1m
The Acadians are descendants of early French settlers who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1604 and built a distinct culture and society over generations. Their peaceful existence was uprooted in 1755 when over 10,000 Acadians were ripped from their homeland to ensure British rule in North America. This Heritage Minute portrays the deportation through the eyes of an Acadian mother.
Haven't Seen
D-Day
Episode 4 - 5-30-2019
1m
On June 6, 1944, Canadian Forces landed on Juno Beach. D-Day, as this day would become known, was the largest amphibious invasion of all time, led to the liberation of France, and marked the beginning of the end of the Second World War.
Haven't Seen
Vancouver Asahi
Episode 3 - 2-20-2019
1m
From 1914-1941, the Vancouver Asahi were one of city's most dominant amateur baseball teams. In 1942, after Canada declared war on Japan, 22,000 Japanese Canadians were interned in the interior of BC, including the Asahi players
Haven't Seen
Jim Egan
Episode 2 - 6-13-2018
James Egan was a Canadian LGBT rights activist, best known for his role in the landmark Supreme Court of Canada case Egan v. Canada. He is considered Canada's first prominent LGBTQ activist, due to his initial period of activism from 1949 to 1964.
Haven't Seen
Lucy Maud Montgomery
Episode 1 - 3-08-2018
1m
Lucy Maud Montgomery battled depression, rejection, and sexism to become known around the world for Anne of Green Gables and 19 other novels. This Heritage Minute tells her story in her own words, as drawn from her journals.
Haven't Seen
Season 6
Kensington Market
Episode 14 - 10-01-2012
Neighbourhoods like Toronto's Kensington Market have helped shape our country by providing newcomers a first stop in Canada. In the first animated Heritage Minute, a single store is transformed as it passes between generations and cultures.
Haven't Seen
"Boat People" Refugees
Episode 13 - 10-01-2012
A family escapes persecution in Vietnam, traveling by boat to a Malaysian refugee camp before finding a new home in Montreal (1980).
Haven't Seen
Edmonton Grads
Episode 12 - 10-01-2012
The Grads challenge the self-proclaimed 'world champions' the Cleveland Favorite Knits to a two game tournament in 1923. They would go on to become the most successful team in Canadian sports history.
Haven't Seen
Kenojuak Ashevak
Episode 11 - 10-01-2012
As a founding member of Cape Dorset's famed print making cooperative, Kenojuak Ashevak introduced Inuit art to the world (1927-2013).
Haven't Seen
Naskumituwin (Treaty)
Episode 10 - 10-01-2012
1m
The making of Treaty 9 from the perspective of historical witness George Spence, an 18-year-old Cree hunter from Albany, James Bay.
Haven't Seen
Chanie Wenjack
Episode 9 - 10-01-2012
1m
The story of Chanie "Charlie" Wenjack, whose death sparked the first inquest into the treatment of Indigenous children in Canadian residential schools.
7.6/10Haven't Seen
Viola Desmond
Episode 8 - 10-01-2012
1m
The story of Viola Desmond, an entrepreneur who challenged segregation in Nova Scotia in the 1940s.
Haven't Seen
Terry Fox
Episode 7 - 10-01-2012
Terry Fox inspires the nation with his Marathon of Hope, a cross-country run to raise money for cancer research.
Haven't Seen
Nursing Sisters
Episode 6 - 10-01-2012
1m
Nursing Sisters serve at the No. 3 Canadian Stationary Hospital in France during the First World War.
Haven't Seen
Winnipeg Falcons
Episode 5 - 10-01-2012
1m
A team of Icelandic-Canadians serve in the First World War before bringing home the very first gold medal in Olympic hockey.
7/10Haven't Seen
Sir George-Étienne Cartier
Episode 4 - 10-01-2012
George-Étienne Cartier was a dominant figure in the politics of Canada East (now Quebec) overseeing its entry into Confederation.
Haven't Seen
Sir John A. Macdonald
Episode 3 - 10-01-2012
Sir. John A. Macdonald, George-Étienne Cartier and George Brown discuss how to go about uniting the colonies in British North America. The Charlottetown Conference is featured, and highlights the final push toward Canadian confederation.
7.6/10Haven't Seen
Queenston Heights
Episode 2 - 10-01-2012
October 13, 1812, Mohawk Chief John Norton and 80 Grand River warriors surprised hundreds of advancing American soldiers and skirmished with them for hours until reinforcements arrived and the battle was won.
Haven't Seen
Richard Pierpoint
Episode 1 - 10-01-2012
Richard Pierpoint was a formerly enslaved Black Loyalist who, at age 68, enlisted black men to fight in the War of 1812.
Haven't Seen
Season 5
Juno Beach
Episode 8 - 1-01-2005
On the evening of D-Day, musician and broadcaster Johnny Lombardi boosts morale on the edge of a Normandy Beach.
Haven't Seen
Dextraze in the Congo
Episode 7 - 1-01-2005
General Jacques Dextraze of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force rescued a group of hostages from the Katangan rebels in the Congo.
Haven't Seen
Home from the Wars
Episode 6 - 1-01-2005
After WWII, veterans confronted a politician about the lack of shelter, launching the construction of 10,000 units of Veterans' Housing.
Haven't Seen
Andrew Mynarski
Episode 5 - 1-01-2005
A young Canadian gunner stays behind to save his friend in a flaming Lancaster Bomber and dies in the attempt. He was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for bravery.
Haven't Seen
Vimy Ridge
Episode 4 - 1-01-2005
Canadian General Arthur Currie leads Allied forces to Canada's most significant victory of World War I (1917).
Haven't Seen
Tommy Prince
Episode 3 - 1-01-2005
Tommy Prince of the Brokenhead Objibway Nation is one of the most decorated soldiers in Canada's history.
Haven't Seen
Mona Parsons
Episode 2 - 1-01-2005
Mona Parsons was sentenced to a Nazi prison camp for helping dozens of downed Allied airmen escape.
Haven't Seen
Osborn of Hong Kong
Episode 1 - 1-01-2005
In World War II, the troops in Hong Kong were the first Canadians to see combat. During an attack, Sergeant Major John Osborn of Winnipeg protected his company by throwing himself on a live grenade.
Haven't Seen
Season 4
Lucille Teasdale
Episode 25 - 5-22-1995
Surgeon Lucille Teasdale devotes her life to helping the poor in Africa.
Haven't Seen
Frontier College
Episode 24 - 5-22-1995
Frontier College educates those away from the urban centres.
Haven't Seen
Stratford
Episode 23 - 5-22-1995
A look back at the beginning of the Stratford Festival of Canada.
Haven't Seen
Jackie Robinson
Episode 22 - 5-22-1995
Baseball player, Jackie Robinson joins the Montreal Royals on October 23, 1946.
Haven't Seen
John Humphrey
Episode 21 - 5-22-1995
Legal scholar, jurist, and human rights advocate John Humphrey drafts the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Haven't Seen
Expo '67
Episode 20 - 5-22-1995
The planning of the Montreal International and Universal Exposition called Expo 67 is featured.
Haven't Seen
Marion Orr
Episode 19 - 5-22-1995
The story of female World War II pilot, Marion Orr.
Haven't Seen
Syrup
Episode 18 - 5-22-1995
A First Nations family teaches early settlers how to make maple syrup.
Haven't Seen
Avro Arrow
Episode 17 - 5-22-1995
The development of the Avro Arrow (this Heritage Minute was produced based on the 1996 mini-series "The Arrow").
Haven't Seen
Maurice "Rocket" Richard
Episode 16 - 5-22-1995
December 28, 1944 was moving day for 23 year old Maurice Richard. All day he hefted furniture - including a piano - into his new house. That night he scored 5 goals and 3 assists setting an NHL record
7.4/10Haven't Seen
J. S. Woodsworth
Episode 15 - 5-22-1995
Author, lecturer and social activist J. S. Woodsworth convinces Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King to introduce old age pensions.
6.2/10Haven't Seen
Nat Taylor
Episode 14 - 5-22-1995
How Nat Taylor invents the multiplex theater.
Haven't Seen
Grey Owl
Episode 13 - 5-22-1995
Englishman Archie Belaney (played by Pierce Brosnan) rises to prominence as a notable author and lecturer after he took on the First Nations identity called Grey Owl. Adapted from the film of the same name.
6.2/10Haven't Seen
The Paris Crew
Episode 12 - 5-22-1995
The surprise victory of the Paris Crew, a group of unheralded Canadian rowers, at the 1867 World Championships.
Haven't Seen
John McCrae
Episode 11 - 5-22-1995
Author, artist and physician during World War I John McCrae pens In Flanders Fields.
Haven't Seen
Bluenose
Episode 10 - 5-22-1995
The Bluenose, a ship out of Halifax and an important Canadian symbol in the 1930s, wins its last race.
Haven't Seen
Myrnam Hospital
Episode 9 - 5-22-1995
The town of Myrnam, Alberta forms a non-denominational hospital.
Haven't Seen
Winnie
Episode 8 - 5-22-1995
The bear of Canadian soldier Harry Colebourn becomes the inspiration for Winnie the Pooh.
Haven't Seen
John Cabot
Episode 7 - 5-22-1995
Italian navigator and explorer John Cabot discovers the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and runs "aground" on a bounty of fish.
Haven't Seen
Sitting Bull
Episode 6 - 5-22-1995
Native American Chief Sitting Bull seeks refuge in Canada.
Haven't Seen
Flags
Episode 5 - 5-22-1995
Lawyer, judge, and politician John Matheson looks at candidates for Canada's new flag.
Haven't Seen
Water Pump
Episode 4 - 5-22-1995
Canadian Mennonites devise sustainable agriculture practices that aid the Third World.
Haven't Seen
Pauline Vanier
Episode 3 - 5-22-1995
Professional diplomats Georges and Pauline Vanier fight Canadian immigration policy in an attempt to help refugees fleeing Europe in the Second World War.
Haven't Seen
Paul Émile Borduas
Episode 2 - 5-22-1995
The art of Paul-Émile Borduas and the Quiet Revolution are featured.
Haven't Seen
Hart & Papineau
Episode 1 - 5-22-1995
The efforts of politician and lawyer Louis-Joseph Papineau give full equality of religion to Jews in Canada.
Haven't Seen
Season 3
Sam Steele
Episode 15 - 4-30-1993
Major General and police official Sam Steele (portrayed by Alan Scarfe) of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police bars an unruly American (portrayed by Don S. Davis) from entering the Yukon with pistols, despite being threatened at gunpoint.
Haven't Seen
La Bolduc
Episode 14 - 4-30-1993
The story of how Mary Travers becomes a famed popular singer in Quebec.
Haven't Seen
Inukshuk
Episode 13 - 4-30-1993
An Inukshuk a stone landmark or cairn is built on Baffin Island.
Haven't Seen
Maurice Ruddick
Episode 12 - 4-30-1993
Miner Maurice Ruddick recounts the 1958 Springhill mine disaster.
Haven't Seen
Joseph-Armand Bombardier
Episode 11 - 4-30-1993
Inventor Joseph-Armand Bombardier and the beginnings of his passion for engineering.
Haven't Seen
Le Réseau
Episode 10 - 4-30-1993
Engineer Thomas Wardrope Eadie develops the Trans Canada Microwave telecommunications network.
Haven't Seen
Maple Leaf Gardens
Episode 9 - 4-30-1993
Considered one of the "cathedrals" of ice hockey, the construction and history of the Maple Leaf Gardens is featured.
Haven't Seen
Sir Sandford Fleming
Episode 8 - 4-30-1993
1m
Engineer and inventor Sir Sandford Fleming develops the system of international standard time.
Haven't Seen
Nitro
Episode 7 - 4-30-1993
1m
A young Chinese Canadian risks his life helping to build the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Haven't Seen
Étienne Parent
Episode 6 - 4-30-1993
1m
Journalist and government official Étienne Parent demands equality for French and English.
Haven't Seen
Louis Riel
Episode 5 - 4-30-1993
What thoughts ran through Louis Riel's mind as he stood on the scaffold, waiting for the trap door to open to his death?
Haven't Seen
Les Voltigeurs de Québec
Episode 4 - 4-30-1993
1m
The band of this famous French Canadian regiment rehearses for the first performance of O Canada in 1880 at Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations.
Haven't Seen
Marconi
Episode 3 - 4-30-1993
1m
Inventor Guglielmo Marconi receives the first trans-Atlantic radio signals in Newfoundland and is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Haven't Seen
Marshall McLuhan
Episode 2 - 4-30-1993
1m
Philosopher of communication theory Marshall McLuhan coins the phrases "the medium is the message" and "global village."
Haven't Seen
Laura Secord
Episode 1 - 4-30-1993
1m
Canadian heroine Laura Secord aids the British in the War of 1812 with an overland trek to warn of an American military advance.
Haven't Seen
Season 2
Baldwin & LaFontaine
Episode 14 - 6-28-1992
Lawyer and politician Robert Baldwin and Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine build inter-lingual cooperation.
Haven't Seen
Vikings
Episode 13 - 6-28-1992
L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland is settled by Norsemen (Vikings) around the year 1000 CE.
6.2/10Haven't Seen
Emily Murphy
Episode 12 - 6-28-1992
Women's rights activist, jurist, and author Emily Murphy's quest for equal rights for women.
Haven't Seen
Rural Teacher
Episode 11 - 6-28-1992
Teacher Kate Henderson sways school trustees to embrace new methods, and the event is represented in the famous painting by Robert Harris: A Meeting of the School Trustees.
6.4/10Haven't Seen
Peacemaker
Episode 10 - 6-28-1992
The formation of the Iroquois Confederacy presented by a First Nations grandfather explaining the significance of the Great Peace to his granddaughter.
Haven't Seen
Jean Nicollet
Episode 9 - 6-28-1992
French coureur des bois and explorer Jean Nicolet becomes the first European to reach Lake Michigan, but thinks it's the Pacific.
Haven't Seen
Joseph Casavant
Episode 8 - 6-28-1992
Joseph Casavant, world renowned organ maker, builds his first organ.
Haven't Seen
Saguenay Fire
Episode 7 - 6-28-1992
One family's quick thinking helps them to survive the 1870 fire in the Saguenay, Quebec.
Haven't Seen
Basketball
Episode 6 - 6-28-1992
Sports coach James Naismith's invention of Basketball is tested by a group of young students in Springfield Illinois.
Haven't Seen
Joseph Tyrrell
Episode 5 - 6-28-1992
Geologist and cartographer Joseph Tyrrell discovers a plethora of dinosaur bones in Alberta.
Haven't Seen
Emily Carr
Episode 4 - 6-28-1992
The British Columbia painter discovers the artistic muse that will drive her life's work.
Haven't Seen
Agnes Macphail
Episode 3 - 6-28-1992
The first woman to be elected to the Canadian House of Commons Agnes Macphail fights for penal reform.
Haven't Seen
Midwife
Episode 2 - 6-28-1992
A look at the importance of midwives in early Canada.
Haven't Seen
Governor Frontenac
Episode 1 - 6-28-1992
New France, under the leadership of French governor Louis de Buade de Frontenac, repels the British invasion at the Battle of Quebec (1690).
Haven't Seen
Season 1
Wilder Penfield
Episode 13 - 3-31-1991
A Montreal neurosurgeon makes ground-breaking advances in the treatment of seizure disorders.
Haven't Seen
Halifax Explosion
Episode 12 - 3-31-1991
Train dispatcher Vince Coleman sacrifices his own life to save a train from the Halifax Explosion.
8.4/10Haven't Seen
Jacques Cartier
Episode 11 - 3-31-1991
French navigator and explorer Jacques Cartier misunderstands some Natives resulting in the name Canada.
7.2/10Haven't Seen
Orphans
Episode 10 - 3-31-1991
French Canadian families adopt Irish orphans in the 1850s while allowing them to maintain part of their Irish heritage.
7.4/10Haven't Seen
Nellie McClung
Episode 9 - 3-31-1991
Feminist, politician, and social activist Nellie McClung demands the right to vote in Manitoba.
8/10Haven't Seen
Soddie
Episode 8 - 3-31-1991
Prairie settlers build a house of sod.
Haven't Seen
Responsible Government
Episode 7 - 3-31-1991
Queen Victoria decides to grant Canada responsible government after the crushing of the Rebellions of 1837.
Haven't Seen
Peacekeepers
Episode 6 - 3-31-1991
Canadian peacekeepers are stationed in Cyprus to help diffuse tension between Greek and Turkish Cypriots.
Haven't Seen
Superman
Episode 5 - 3-31-1991
Comic book artist Joe Shuster, en route to visit his cousin, Frank Shuster, creates Superman.
7/10Haven't Seen
Jennie Trout
Episode 4 - 3-31-1991
Jennie Trout becomes Canada's first woman doctor.
Haven't Seen
Jacques Plante
Episode 3 - 3-31-1991
Jacques Plante becomes the first NHL player to wear a goaltender mask in regular play.
Haven't Seen
Valour Road
Episode 2 - 3-31-1991
Three men from Pine Street in Winnipeg win the Victoria Cross in World War I, and the street's name is changed to Valour Road in their honour.
7/10Haven't Seen
Underground Railroad
Episode 1 - 3-31-1991
An African American escapes to Canada along the Underground Railroad.
6.3/10Haven't Seen
Top 5 Highest Rated Episodes 8.4/10 8/10 7.6/10 7.6/10 7.4/10
Halifax Explosion
Episode 12 - 3-31-1991
Train dispatcher Vince Coleman sacrifices his own life to save a train from the Halifax Explosion.
8.4/10Haven't Seen
Nellie McClung
Episode 9 - 3-31-1991
Feminist, politician, and social activist Nellie McClung demands the right to vote in Manitoba.
8/10Haven't Seen
Sir John A. Macdonald
Episode 3 - 10-01-2012
Sir. John A. Macdonald, George-Étienne Cartier and George Brown discuss how to go about uniting the colonies in British North America. The Charlottetown Conference is featured, and highlights the final push toward Canadian confederation.
7.6/10Haven't Seen
Chanie Wenjack
Episode 9 - 10-01-2012
1m
The story of Chanie "Charlie" Wenjack, whose death sparked the first inquest into the treatment of Indigenous children in Canadian residential schools.
7.6/10Haven't Seen
Orphans
Episode 10 - 3-31-1991
French Canadian families adopt Irish orphans in the 1850s while allowing them to maintain part of their Irish heritage.
7.4/10Haven't Seen
