1970 in Canada

Events from the year 1970 in Canada.

Incumbents

• Monarch - Elizabeth II
• Governor General - Roland Michener
• Prime Minister - Pierre Trudeau
• Premier of Alberta - Harry Strom
• Premier of British Columbia - W.A.C. Bennett
• Premier of Manitoba - Edward Schreyer
• Premier of New Brunswick - Louis Robichaud then Richard Hatfield
• Premier of Newfoundland - Joey Smallwood
• Premier of Nova Scotia - George Smith then Gerald Regan
• Premier of Ontario - John Robarts
• Premier of Prince Edward Island - Alexander B. Campbell
• Premier of Quebec - Jean-Jacques Bertrand then Robert Bourassa
• Premier of Saskatchewan - W. Ross Thatcher

Events

January to June

• January 1 - The cities Fort William and Port Arthur are merged to create Thunder Bay, Ontario
• January 16 - The federal government announces plans to convert the nation to the metric system
• February 2 - Canada becomes an official observer at the Organization of American States
• February 5 - An oil tanker runs aground in Chedabucto Bay, Nova Scotia causing a major oil spill
• February 17 - The use of phosphates in laundry detergent is banned
• March 2 - Keith Spicer is appointed as the first Official Languages Commissioner
• March 7 - A total solar eclipse affects the Maritimes
• March 20 - The Francophonie is established with Canada as a founding member
• May 1 - The Capitol Cinema, Ottawa's only movie palace, is closed and later demolished
• May 12 - Robert Bourassa becomes Premier of Quebec after his Liberals defeat the Union Nationale party
• May 22 - The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission issues the first Canadian content rules for television and radio
• May 29 - The Hudson's Bay Company moves its headquarters from London to Winnipeg, Manitoba
• June 26 - The federal voting age is lowered from 21 to 18

July to December

• July 5 - 109 people are killed in the crash of an Air Canada DC-8.
• August 2 - Three Canadians are killed when a ferry collides with a Soviet freighter off British Columbia
• August 17 - Arthur Erickson is awarded at Expo '70 for his design of the Canadian pavilion
• August 20 - A tornado with winds up to 100 miles per hour hits Sudbury, Ontario. It was one of the worst tornadoes in Canadian history killing 6 people, injuring 200, and causing C$17 million dollars in property damage, all in under five minutes.
• October - Canada establishes formal relations with the People's Republic of China.
• October 5 - October Crisis: British Trade Commissioner James Cross is kidnapped by the FLQ.
• October 5 - Award-winning news & current affairs program, 24Hours starts on CBWT in Winnipeg.
• October 10 - October Crisis: Quebec Minister of Labour Pierre Laporte is kidnapped by FLQ.
• October 16 - October Crisis: Pierre Trudeau introduces the War Measures Act to deal with the FLQ threat. Trudeau also addresses the nation in a televised speech explaining why he invoked the War Measures Act.
• October 17 - October Crisis: The body of Pierre Laporte is found in the trunk of a car.
• October 28 - Gerald Regan becomes Premier of Nova Scotia after his Liberals defeat George Smith's Conservatives
• November 6 - Police raid the hiding place of the FLQ's Chenier cell, arresting Bernard Lortie for the kidnapping and murder of Pierre Laporte.
• November 12 - Richard Hatfield becomes Premier of New Brunswick after his Conservatives defeat Louis Robichaud's Liberals
• December 3 - October Crisis: James Cross is released unharmed by FLQ
• December 28 - October Crisis: The FLQ kidnappers of Pierre Laporte are caught.

Full date unknown

• The Royal Commission on the Status of Women reports to Parliament
• TVOntario begins broadcasting
• INCO builds the world's tallest smokestack at Copper Cliff, Ontario
• The Pierre Laporte Bridge opens in Quebec City, at the time it is Canada's longest bridge
• The Don't Make a Wave Committee, the predecessor organization to Greenpeace, is founded in Vancouver
• The first ACTRA Awards are held
• Louis Cyr Monument

Arts and literature

New books

• The Collected Works of Billy the Kid - Michael Ondaatje
• S th story I to: trew adventure - Bill Bissett
• Fifth Business - Robertson Davies
• The Journals of Susanna Moodie - Margaret Atwood
• Il est par là, le soleil - Roch Carrier
• The National Dream - Pierre Berton
• La Rivière sans repos - Gabrielle Roy
• Counterblast - Marshall McLuhan

New plays

• The Ecstasy of Rita Joe - George Ryga

Awards

• See 1970 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.
• Stephen Leacock Award: Farley Mowat, The Boat Who Wouldn't Float
• Vicky Metcalf Award: Farley Mowat

Film

• Paul Almond's Act of the Heart opens

Music

• June 23 - The first Juno Awards for Canadian music are held.

Sport

The Vancouver Canucks joined the National Hockey League on May 22

• February 16 - Police recover the Grey Cup after it was stolen the previous December.
• April 5 - Bobby Orr becomes the first National Hockey League (NHL) defencemen to win the scoring title.
• May 2 - Montreal is awarded the 1976 Summer Olympics.
• May 22 - The Vancouver Canucks join the National Hockey League.
• The first Arctic Winter Games commence in Yellowknife.

Births

January to March

• January 19 - Donald Haddow, swimmer
• February 18 - Raine Maida, singer and songwriter
• February 23 - Marie-Josée Croze, actress
• March 18 - Ian Bird, field hockey player
• March 29 - Krista Sutton, actress

April to June

Naomi Klein

• April 8 - J. R. Bourne, actor
• April 11 - Trevor Linden, ice hockey player
• May 4 - Karla Homolka, convicted murderer
• May 8 - Naomi Klein, journalist, author and activist
• May 11 - Heather Stefanson, politician
• May 12 - Mike Weir, golfer
• May 19 - Mario Dumont, politician
• May 20 - Jason York, ice hockey player
• June 2 - Patricia Noall, swimmer and Olympic bronze medalist
• June 3 - Julie Masse, pop singer
• June 12 - Gordon Michael Woolvett, actor
• June 23 - Kerri Buchberger, volleyball player

July to September

• July 14 - Michelle Sawatzky, volleyball player
• August 6 - Michael Strange, boxer
• August 9 - Rod Brind'Amour, ice hockey player
• August 16 - Tina Connelly, track and field athlete
• August 16 - Daren Millard, sportscaster
• August 19 - James Rajotte, politician

Chris Jericho

• September 1 - Mitsou, pop singer, businesswoman, television and radio host and actress
• September 7 - Keltie Duggan, swimmer
• September 19 - Kathryn Humphreys, CityNews sports anchor
• September 24 - Isabelle Turcotte Baird, triathlete

October to December

• October 5 - Tina Poitras, race walker
• October 8 - Heather Jones, field hockey player
• November 9 - Chris Jericho, wrestler, actor, author, radio and television host and rock musician
• November 10 - Sue Reid, field hockey player
• November 12 - Sarah Harmer, singer-songwriter and activist
• November 15 - Jeff Adams, wheelchair athlete, multiple Paralympic medalist and World Champion
• December 15 - Michael Shanks, actor
• December 19 - Jonathan Cleveland, swimmer and Olympic bronze medalist
• December 23 - Catriona Le May Doan, speed skater, double Olympic gold medalist and World Champion
• December 25 - Stu Barnes, ice hockey player and coach

Full date unknown

• Maher Arar, engineer and rendition victim
• Lynn Coady, novelist and journalist

Deaths

• January 23 - Nell Shipman, actress, screenwriter, producer and animal trainer (b.1892)
• January 29 - Lawren Harris, Group of Seven painter (b.1885)
• February 21 - Louis-René Beaudoin, politician and Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons (b.1912)
• February 27 - Marie Dionne, one of the Dionne quintuplets (b.1934)
• March 23 - Del Lord, film director and actor (b.1894)
• May 9 - Andrew Watson Myles, politician (b.1884)
• May 31 - Terry Sawchuk, ice hockey player (b.1929)
• June 12 - John Keiller MacKay, soldier, jurist and 19th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario (b.1888)
• June 22 - William Melville Martin, politician and Premier of Saskatchewan (b.1876)
• October 17 - Pierre Laporte, Quebec politician and Minister, kidnapped and murdered by Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) (b.1921)
• September 12 - Jacob Viner, economist (b.1892)