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Heritage  MattersRead more articles about Francophone heritage

Cléo Ducharme et son épouse Flore, Rosanna Généreux et Joseph Ducharme (Rosanna et Jos sont mes grands-parents). Photo courtesy of Joëlle Roy

Descendants de la Vallée du Saint-Laurent

Il est parti au chantier
Y avait à peine 15 ans
Y a moyen de s’en sortir
Pour ça, faut faire d’l’argent
Y …View Descendants de la Vallée du Saint-Laurent

Toronto’s Paroisse du Sacré-Cœur is one of dozens of churches across Ontario that assists in keeping the francophone community a viable part of the entire fabric of Ontario.

Keeping the faith: The Church and French Ontario

The arrival of the Catholic Church in modern-day Ontario can be traced back to New France with the establishment of the …View Keeping the faith: The Church and French Ontario

The family of Simon Aumont. Only Simon himself and Irène (seated, holding a doll), survived the great fire that devastated the region in 1916, Val Gagné (Ontario), [before 1916]. University of Ottawa Centre for Research on French Canadian Culture, TVOntario archive (C21), reproduced from the collection of Germaine Robert, Val Gagné, Ontario.

Developing communities: French-Canadian settlement in Ontario

In 1840, as Upper Canada was about to become Canada West, a grand migratory movement began from the neighbouring colony of …View Developing communities: French-Canadian settlement in Ontario

Plaque at the River Raisin National Battlefield Park in Monroe, Michigan. The Battle of Frenchtown, also know as the Battle of the River Raisin, was a series of conflicts that took place during the War of 1812. (Photo: Guillaume Teasdale)

Choosing sides: French presence on the Detroit frontier during the War of 1812

Battles of the War of 1812, waged on the Detroit frontier, had a significant impact on the lives of the predominantly French …View Choosing sides: French presence on the Detroit frontier during the War of 1812

Pioneers of Penetanguishene. A group of voyageurs – Lewis Solomon, John Bussette, James Laramee and Francis Dusome – from an 1895 photograph (Source: A.C. Osborne, The Migration of the Voyageurs from Drummond Island to Penetanguishene in 1828, Toronto, Ontario Historical Society Papers and Records, 1901).

The early French experience in Ontario

The French came to present-day Ontario as early as 1610, and Canadiens (descendants of French colonists) were established in …View The early French experience in Ontario

Madeleine Meilleur

An interview with Madeleine Meilleur

Recently, the Ontario Heritage Trust interviewed Madeleine Meilleur – Ontario’s Minister of Community Safety and Correctional …View An interview with Madeleine Meilleur

Champlain (George A. Reid, c. 1908, Library and Archives Canada/ George Agnew Reid fonds/C-011016.

Resources: Understanding the French experience in Ontario

Michelle Lafleur celebrating Francophone Day at De La Salle high school.

Young francophones

It was an honour for me to receive the Lieutenant Governor’s Youth Achievement Award for Ontario heritage conservation for …View Young francophones

Raising the Franco-Ontarian flag for the first time at the University of Ottawa, 1974. (Archives of the University of Ottawa, AUO-PHO-NB-6-1983-6).

Waving the flag: A conversation with Gaétan Gervais

In the 1970s, the Franco-Ontarian flag was created – not so much as a symbol against anyone or anything, but more so to create …View Waving the flag: A conversation with Gaétan Gervais

A scene from Le Chien, a play by Jean Marc Dalpé, from Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario’s 1987-88 season. Used with permission.

Arts and culture in francophone Ontario

In the 19th century and the first half of the 20th, Ottawa was the centre of francophone cultural and literary life in Ontario. …View Arts and culture in francophone Ontario

Students demonstrating against Regulation 17 outside Brébeuf School on Anglesea Square in Ottawa’s Lowertown, in late January or early February, 1916 / [Le Droit, Ottawa]. University of Ottawa, Association canadienne-française de l’Ontario archive (C2), Ph2-142a.

Prayers, petitions and protests: The controversy over Regulation 17

In 1912, after an inquiry into the state of Ontario’s bilingual schools, the provincial government of Conservative Premier …View Prayers, petitions and protests: The controversy over Regulation 17

African dance troupe at a south-central Franco-Ontarian festival (Photo: Emanuel da Silva)

Portrait of a growing diversity

Ontario has the largest number of francophones outside Québec. While that number has increased since 1951, it has not grown …View Portrait of a growing diversity

Students of Toronto’s École élémentaire catholique Saint-Jean-de-Lalande, celebrating International Francophonie Day on March 23, 2012. (Source: Journal Canora, Toronto)

Contemporary immigration of francophones to Ontario

Ontario francophone communities are becoming increasingly diverse as significant numbers of immigrants move from various parts …View Contemporary immigration of francophones to Ontario

Photo: Sylvain Marier, from the Festival franco-ontarien

Ontario’s Quiet Revolution

The role of French-speaking people in shaping the history and life of this province reaches back to the early 17th century, …View Ontario’s Quiet Revolution

Interior of Assumption Church, Windsor

Ontario’s rich religious heritage

From the First People who for thousands of years conducted religious and cultural ceremonies at places they believed held …View Ontario’s rich religious heritage

St-Antoine-de-Padoue Cathedral, Timmins (Photo from the collection of the Timmins Museum: National Exhibition Centre)

Our Francophone heritage

Fauquier. Moonbeam. Kapuskasing. Hearst. Val Gagné. Belle Vallée. Sudbury. Timmins. Sturgeon Falls. The history of northern …View Our Francophone heritage