It just seems to appropriate to anyone other than teachers and students that there is an August break, although only officially a holiday for some. We’re halfway through the summer months and it’s always nice to take a break. Of course, you’ll be fighting for a place to park at the beach with those that do get the day off …
This year, there’s a couple of things happening at the first of August. This spring, parliament passed recognition of Emancipation Day to be observed on August 1 although it’s been celebrated for years. This is an important step for the country and the link in the previous sentence takes you to the Canada.ca site where there is a nice resource that explains why this day is important and what you could do to fully appreciate the day.
Then there’s an actual “holiday” to be somewhat observed on the first Monday of August. “First Monday of August” hardly seems like a name for a holiday but it’s not universally recognized in Canada. I’ve known it as a day with two names – “Civic Holiday” and “Simcoe Day”. From the Wikipedia, proof that Ontario struggles with the name:
The Civic Holiday is now known by one of a number of local appellations, including, among others:
- “Founders’ Day” in Brantford (named in 1982): each year, the Brantford Heritage Committee submits a report to City Council with the name or organization that is to be recognized on that day.[13]
- “Joseph Brant Day” in Burlington (): celebrating Joseph Brant, the Mohawk Chief who became known for his treaty negotiations and loyalty to the British.[13]
- “James Cockburn Day” in Cobourg (1999): celebrating James Cockburn, one of the “fathers of Confederation“.[16]
- “John Galt Day” in Guelph (2006): celebrating John Galt, the Scottish novelist and businessman who founded the city.
- “George Hamilton Day” in Hamilton: celebrating George Hamilton, the eponymous founder of the city.[17]
- “McLaughlin Day” in Oshawa (1983): celebrating Robert McLaughlin, who brought General Motors to Oshawa.[13][18]
- “Colonel By Day” in Ottawa (1996): celebrating Colonel John By, who led the construction of the Rideau Canal and founded Bytown, which became the city of Ottawa.[19]
- “Peter Robinson Day” in Peterborough: celebrating Peter Robinson
- “Alexander Mackenzie Day” in Sarnia (1998): celebrating Alexander Mackenzie, the 2nd Prime Minister of Canada[20]
- “Simcoe Day” in Toronto: celebrating John Graves Simcoe, the first Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada and the leading proponent of the Act Against Slavery.[21][22][23]
- “Benjamin Vaughan Day” in Vaughan: celebrating the eponymous Benjamin Vaughan[24]
Civic Holiday. (2021, July 31). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civic_Holiday
In Ontario, it’s not officially a holiday and it’s been interesting to see the number of stores around here that are proudly announcing that they’ll be open.
It’s supposed to be a good day so this blogger will be off for a picnic to a beach. I hope that you have plans as well.
doug --- off the record 