Historical Art of Canada

This gallery offers a view into Canadian history, as depicted by masterful artists and historical illustrations. This collection spans centuries, capturing pivotal moments, cultural shifts, and daily life across Canada’s vast and diverse landscapes. From detailed paintings and engravings of early exploration, such as Jacques Car...Read more
170 items in this collection sampler
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1899-20226860
Peace Tower. Ottawa.
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4048-16065293
Quebec City, c. 1770, on the St, Lawrence River, was the capital of New France. It was taken by British forces in 1759 and ceded, with Canada, to the Britain in the 1763 Treaty of Paris (BSLOC_2019_3_22)
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4266-14158
Niagara Falls by Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky, Oil on canvas, 1892, 1817-1900, Russia, Minsk, National Art Museum of Belorussian Republic, 106, 5x183
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4048-16065800
Tecumseh saving American prisoners captured in Upper Canada, June 18, 1812. British guards under Gen. Procter, allowed Native Americans to take scalps as prizes from the wounded and captured (BSLOC_2019_6_54)
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4069-6860
Moose Hunting in Canada, A Night in a Shanty, scenes of the life of trappers, 1873-9, engraving, Canada
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4048-16065624
A VIEW OF THE POST OF ST. JOSEPH AT THE HEAD OF LAKE HURON, by Edward Walsh, July 12, 1804. Lt. Walsh was a British medical officer made many topographical sketches and watercolor drawings of views British forts in the Upper Canada from 1803-1805. The Northwest Territory had been ceded to the US by the Treaty of Paris, 1783. The Island of St. Joseph was important for regional trade and commerce, where British maintained a garrisoned fort. In 1842, the US/Border placed St. Joseph on the Canadian side (BSLOC_2019_5_43)
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4408-8531
Buy Your Victory Bonds, World War I
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4443-19530398
'I Go For Pull Out Now, Boy,' Illustration for Mooswa & Others of the Boundaries (William Briggs, 1900, p. 195), Arthur Henry Howard Heming, American, b. Canada, 1870-1940, Ink on paper, Trial proof for illustration. Snow scene with a hunter on showshoes with three huskies at the door of a log cabin. A young man stands in the doorway., USA, ca. 1905, figures, Print, Print
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4048-16065748
THE ESPLANADE, FORT GEORGE IN UPPER CANADA, by Edward Walsh, June, 1805. Fort George was built by the British Army after Jay's Treaty (1796) required Britain to withdraw from Fort Niagara. It became the regional headquarters for the British Army and was taken by US forces in May 1813 during the War of 1812, but ultimately remained on the Canadian side of the international border (BSLOC_2019_5_44)
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4443-19533561
Coast of Grand Manan Island, Canada, Frederic Edwin Church, American, 1826-1900, Brush and oil paint, graphite on paperboard, Dark cliffs at right; small cove with rock and branch-strewn beach in foreground. Gray skies over still water at left. Small boat with a standing figure with what appears to be a dog, at center close to horizon line., USA, August or September 1851, landscapes, Drawing, Drawing
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4048-16065169
Portrait of a uniformed Major General Richard Montgomery, studying a wall map. He was a Anglo-Irish Veteran of two British wars: Seven Years War and Pontiac's War. In June 1775, he led an American campaign to Canada, capturing Montreal, but was defeated and killed in action in Quebec City on Dec. 31, 1775 (BSLOC_2019_3_102)
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1899-18855557
The Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Force, commanded by Major General James H. Elmsley and authorised in August 1918, was sent to Vladivostok to bolster the allied presence there. Composed of 4,192 soldiers, the force returned to Canada between April and June 1919. During this time, the Canadians saw little fighting, with fewer than 100 troops proceeding 'up country' to Omsk, to serve as administrative staff for 1,500 British troops aiding the White Russian government of Admiral Alexander Kolchak. Most Canadians remained in Vladivostok, undertaking routine drill and policing duties in the volatile port city.
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4048-16066749
JACQUES CARTIER, 1844, painting, oil on canvas by Theophile Hame, after Francois Nicholas. Cartiers three expeditions (1534, 1535-36, 1541-42) to the St. Lawrence River and Gulf established the French claim present-day eastern Canada (BSLOC_2020_1_185)
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4048-16065170
Gen. Montgomery is killed in action with his aide de camp and other officers at a British fortification near the Lower Town of Quebec City, Dec, 31, 1775.The General was hit by artillery shooting deadly grapeshot, as was his aid de camp and other officers. The Americans' failure to take Quebec in 1775 ended their campaign in Canada (BSLOC_2019_3_103)
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4048-16065171
Gen. Montgomery is killed in action with his aide de camp and other officers at a British fortification near the Lower Town of Quebec City, Dec, 31, 1775.The General was hit by artillery shooting deadly grapeshot, as was his aid de camp and other officers. The Americans' failure to take Quebec in 1775 ended their campaign in Canada (BSLOC_2019_3_104)
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995-103084
Three Graves at Beechey Island, First Traces of Franklin's Lost Expedition by unknown artist
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1838-16290246
McGill University, Artist Harley D. Nichols, Photogravure Print by Manhattan Photogravure Co., NY, Published by Harley D. Nichols, 1915
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900-3028
The Death of General Wolfe at Quebec, by Benjamin West, (1738-1820)
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1788-21793669
Niagara falls seen from the Canadian side, illustration from L'Illustration, Journal Universel, No 469, Volume XIX, February 19-26, 1852.
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475-2307
Champlain Exploring the Canadian Wilderness, 1603, from 'The American Continent and its Inhabitants Before its Discovery by Columbus' by Anne C. Cady, 1893 19th Century American School Lithograph Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., USA
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4048-16066511
Hudson Bay Company trading post in Canada, c. 1845-48. This oil on canvas was painted by Paul Kane from sketches he made on his three-year artistic expedition into the northern frontier, 1845-48. At its height, the company dominated the fur trade in British North America and functioned as the de facto government in remote regions (BSLOC_2019_9_170)
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4069-6861
Interior of trappers' cabin, scenes of the life of trappers, 19th century, engraving, Canada
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4048-16066696
Louis Hennepin created the first known image of Niagara Falls. It was published in 1697, as an engraving in, 'New Discovery of a Very Large Country Located in America,' by Louis Hennepin (BSLOC_2020_1_137)
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4048-16065810
War of 1812. Battle of the Thames, aka Battle of Moraviantown, Oct. 5, 1812. Conjectural scene illustrating the death of Tecumseh, by a pistol shot from Col. Richard Johnson of the Kentucky Volunteers (BSLOC_2019_6_64)
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4048-16066272
'Awaiting the Reply,' oil on canvas painting by British artist, Robert Charles Dudley. After the new Atlantic cable was installed at Heart's Content, Newfoundland, Sept. 1866, this group of men listen for the receipt of a signal. The test was successful and trans-Atlantic telegraphic communication was restored (BSLOC_2019_8_156)
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1746-4570
Alexander Mackenzie (1822-1892) Canadian politician. Born in Logieraith, Perthshire, Scotland, he emigrated to Canada in 1842. First Liberal Prime Minister of Canada (1873-1878) and Leader of the Opposition (1878-1880). From The Modern Portrait Gallery (London, c1880). Tinted lithograph.
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4048-16066752
DEFEAT OF THE IROQUOIS AT LAKE CHAMPLAIN, detail of 1613 engraving after a drawing by Samuel de Champlain. In the center, Champlain fires his harquebus into Iroquois warriors, as two other French soldiers prepare to fire harquebuses into their flank. This is the only known actual likeness of Champlain (BSLOC_2020_1_188)
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4048-16066758
French Canadian soldier in war dress walks on snowshoes during the winter. This 1722 engraving relates to the fighting in Newfoundland and Hudson Bay during the Nine Years' War (16881697), also called the War of the League of Augsburg, and War of the Grand Alliance (BSLOC_2020_1_193)
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4048-16065814
Oshawahnah, a Chippewa Chief, was Tecumseh's second in command. He led 500 warriors from the Shawnee, Ottawa, Delaware, Wyandot, Sac, Fox, Kickapoo, Winnebago, Potawatomi, and Creek Tribes. He survived the battle and the war, (BSLOC_2019_6_68)
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4048-16066722
A fish drying station in New France or Newfoundland, in the 18th century. Image details show men fishing for cod, unloading fish from a boat, processing and fileting fish, extracting the oil from the cod livers, drying fish on a rack, and packing it in salt. In the 17th century, New England colonists joined the marine harvest to export dried fish for the expanding West Indian slave labor force (BSLOC_2020_1_160)
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4048-16066753
NATIVE AMERICANS AND FRENCH ATTACK NATIVE AMERICAN VILLAGE. The French colonial soldiers shoot harquebuses down into the Indian town inside the palisade, from a customized battle tower in 1619. Engraving is from 'Travels and Discoveries Made in New France,' 1620 (BSLOC_2020_1_189)
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4048-16065168
Street scene in Quebec City, with soldiers marching, and a Red Coated officer on horseback, and pedestrians. In the foreground are three men in frontier costume, with feathers in their hats. The tracks in the street indicate it is unpaved, which contrasts with the fine architecture modeled after a sophisticated European city. Engraving by Franz, c. 1770-79 (BSLOC_2019_3_101)
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1095-496
Sledge Party Leaving H.M.S. Investigator in Mercy Bay-Sketches in the Arctic Regions Artist Unknown (British) Newberry Library, Chicago
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4048-16065177
French and Indian War. Acadian deportees awaiting transport to the British east coast as far south as Georgia. The British feared disloyalty among the Roman Catholic Acadians during the French and Indian War, 1755 to 1762 (BSLOC_2019_3_11)
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4048-16066759
Quebec, the Capital of New-France, a Bishopric, and Seat of the Sovereign Court, 1759. Engraved and printed by Thomas Johnston and published by Stephen Whiting in Boston. This view of Quebec created after Wolfe's siege and capture, but is based on a French map published forty years earlier, ca. 1720 (BSLOC_2020_1_194)
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4069-226
Canada black grape variety from Ampelographie Traite general de Viticulture 1903 with painting by A Kreyder and E.J. Troncy
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4048-16065311
Major Robert Rogers, Commander in Chief of the Indians on the frontier during the French and Indian War. He commanded the Roger Raiders, primarily in the Lake George and Lake Champlain regions of New York (BSLOC_2019_3_39)
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4048-16066750
SAMUEL DE CHAMPLAIN, early 19th century lithograph by Louis Joseph Cesar. The conjectural portrait is based on a 17th century engraving of Michel Particelli d'Emery, minister of Louis XIV, by Balthasar Moncornet. There is no known authentic portrait of Champlain (BSLOC_2020_1_186)
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4048-16066751
DEFEAT OF THE IROQUOIS AT LAKE CHAMPLAIN. 1613 engraving after a drawing by Samuel de Champlain shows Champlain leading his Indian allies, Algonquians, Hurons, and Montagnais, in battle, on July 29, 1609. The Iroquois, (on right) against defended a fenced fort, but were defeated with the help of three Frenchmen with harquebuses. The depiction is somewhat symbolic in that the Iroquois force was larger, with around 200 warriors (BSLOC_2020_1_187)
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4048-16066757
Martyrdom of Fathers Isaac Jogues, Jean de Brebeuf, Gabriel Lalemand, is depicted in the foreground. That of Anton Daniel, and Charles Garnier, is seen in the background. Both Huron and Iroquois Indians were among the murderers of 'The North American Martyrs'. The separate executions of three Catholic Fathers are identified as, L-R: Isaac Jogues about to be killed by a hatchet on October 18, 1646; Gabriel Lalemand, killed on March 17, 1649, and Jean de Brebeuf being flayed and killed on March 16, 1649 (BSLOC_2020_1_192)
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4443-19602040
The Taking of the Nuestra Senora de los Remedios, Print made by John Boydell, 1720-1804, British, after Charles Brooking, 1723-1759, British, Published by John Boydell, 1720-1804, British, 1753, Etching and line engraving on moderately thick, moderately textured, beige laid paper, Sheet: 13 7/16 × 18 5/8 inches (34.2 × 47.3 cm) and Image: 11 5/16 x 17 5/8 inches (28.8 x 44.8 cm), attacking, battle, cannons (artillery), capture, conflict, flags, galleons, marine art, men, men-of-war, navies, privateers, Royal Navy, sails, sea, seamen, ships, Spanish, Canada, Cape St. Mary's, Newfoundland, North and Central America
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4048-16066271
'Landing the Shore End of the Atlantic Cable', oil on canvas painting by British artist, Robert Charles Dudley. A long line of men pull the end of the cable ashore at Heart's Content, Newfoundland, Sept. 1866 (BSLOC_2019_8_155)
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1095-222
Encampment Of Piekann Indians Near Fort Mckenzie From "History Of The Indian Tribes" 1838 McKenney, Thomas Lorraine(1785-1859 ) Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois, USA
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4048-16065807
War of 1812. Battle of the Thames, aka Battle of Moraviantown, Oct. 5, 1813. Col. Richard Johnson's cavalry engaging the Tecumseh Confederacy on the battlefield. Johnson fights from his horse with his sword. At far right, Tecumseh, stands to rally his warriors (BSLOC_2019_6_61)
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4048-16065314
Odawa war chief, Pontiac, (Obwandiyag) in council. In the early 1760s. After the French and Indigenous War, Pontiac was one of several 'Northwest' (Ohio, Michigan, Indigenousa, Illinois, Wisconsin) Indigenous leaders who fought the victorious British. English settlers and soldiers encroached on their territory, built forts, withheld customary diplomatic gifts, and restricted trade in gunpowder and ammunition (BSLOC_2019_3_41)
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4048-16065295
French and Indian War. Battle of the Plains of Abraham, Quebec City, Sept. 13, 1759. English grenadiers, the largest and strongest soldiers, scale the Heights of Abraham, 1759. Oil painting by Frank Otis Small, 1903 (BSLOC_2019_3_24)
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4048-16065299
Memorial portrait of British Major James General Wolfe, after his death at age 32, during the great British Victory at Quebec, Sept. 13, 1759. The inscription describes the location of his victory as in the 'inhospitable Wilds of North America' (BSLOC_2019_3_28)
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4048-16065809
War of 1812. Battle of the Thames, aka Battle of Moraviantown, Oct. 5, 1812. The death of Tecumseh, at the hands of the Kentucky mounted volunteers, led by Colonel Richard Johnson. In center mounted Col. Johnson (1) and Tecumseh (2) exchange shots, resulting in wounds to Johnson, and death to Tecumseh. In the distance, British General Henry Procter (4) leaves the field in a coach with Lt. Col. James Johnson (5) in pursuit. In the far distance left (3) are Gen. Harrison, Com. Oliver Perry, and General Cass (BSLOC_2019_6_62)
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4048-16065167
Quebec City wharf with a French warship anchored nearby in the St. Lawrence River, c. 1770. On several smaller boats men work in the busy port (BSLOC_2019_3_100)
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4048-16065833
War of 1812, Battle of Chippewa, July 5, 1814. Lt. Col. James Miller taking British guns at the end of the battle. His unit killed many of the gunners in one volley, and captured others with a bayonet charge that drove British from their hilltop position (BSLOC_2019_6_76)