2009 in Canada

Events from the year 2009 in Canada.

Incumbents

Crown

Monarch – Elizabeth II

Federal government

Provincial governments

Lieutenant governors

Premiers

Premier of Alberta – Ed Stelmach
Premier of British Columbia – Gordon Campbell
Premier of Manitoba – Gary Doer then Greg Selinger
Premier of New Brunswick – Shawn Graham
Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador – Danny Williams
Premier of Nova Scotia – Rodney MacDonald then Darrell Dexter
Premier of Ontario – Dalton McGuinty
Premier of Prince Edward Island – Robert Ghiz
Premier of Quebec – Jean Charest
Premier of Saskatchewan – Brad Wall

Territorial governments

Commissioners

Premiers

Events

January to March

January 5 – Fourth explosion from 2008-09 [British Columbia pipeline bombings] destroyed a metering shed near the community of Tomslake, British Columbia.
January 8 – Large amount of 2009 [Vancouver gang war|gang violence] in Vancouver starts.
January 15 – A large blackout hits Toronto effecting an estimated 250,000 people.
January 26 – The 40th Canadian Parliament reopens for its second session after a two-month prorogation. Governor General Michaëlle Jean reads the Speech from the Throne.
January 27 – Finance Minister Jim Flaherty presents the 2009 Canadian federal budget to the House of Commons of Canada.
January 28
*Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff announces the support of the Liberal Party for the budget on the condition that his amendment is included.
*The first of the 2009 Canadian Tamil protests begin in front of the Consulate General office of Sri Lanka in Toronto.
January 29 – 2008-09 York University Strike comes to an end with a count of 42–8 ending the strike.
February 19 – Newly sworn American president Barack Obama made his first foreign trip by visiting Canada.
February 22 – Spanish fishing vessel Monte Galineiro sank off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.
March 12 – A helicopter crash off the coast of Newfoundland kills 17.
March 17 – Former U.S. president George W. Bush gave a talk in Calgary, Alberta.
March 29 – Researchers from the University of Toronto discover GhostNet.

April to September

April 2 – Stephen Harper attends the 2009 G-20 London summit.
April 6 – Tamil protesters gather at Parliament Hill, Ottawa for a non-stop, continuous protest requesting Harper to call for a ceasefire to the Sri Lankan Civil War. Six people begin their own hunger strikes.
April 8 – Victoria "Tori" Stafford is abducted from Oliver Stephens Public School in Woodstock, Ontario.
April 26 – First cases of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak are confirmed in Canada.
April 30 – Liberal Party of Canada leadership convention is held in Vancouver, British Columbia.
May 6 – Canada begins negotiations with the European Union on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement.
May 20 – Two people, Michael Thomas Rafferty, and Terri-Lyne McClintic are charged with the abduction and murder of Victoria "Tori" Stafford.
June 17 – School stabbings happen at St. Joseph Secondary School in Mississauga.
June 22 – Start of the 2009 City of [Toronto inside and outside workers strike].
June 24 to July 3 – Death and state funeral of Roméo LeBlanc, former Governor General
July 4 – Natural gas line was bombed for the sixth time near Dawson Creek.
July 8 – Stephen Harper attends the 35th G8 summit.
July 9 – A small plane crashed on final approach to Vancouver International Airport, killing all two people on board. No one on the ground was injured, while an IKEA in the parking lot suffered some damage.
July 17 – R. v. Grant is ruled on at the Supreme Court of Canada.
July 23 – Shawn Atleo is chosen as the organization's new national chief at the Assembly of First Nations leadership convention.
August 1 – One person was killed and seventy-five others were injured, when the stage collapsed at the Big Valley Jamboree due to a severe thunderstorm and high winds.
August 6 – The 67th World Science Fiction Convention is held in Montreal, Quebec at the Palais des congrès de Montréal.
August 19 – CrossIron Mills opens near the Calgary area.
August 20 – 18 Southern [Ontario Tornado Outbreak of 2009|tornadoes] rated up to F2 struck Southwestern Ontario, Central Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area.

October to December

October 17
*Greg Selinger is chosen as the new leader of the Manitoba New Democratic Party and the new premier of Manitoba.
*Danielle Smith is chosen as the new leader of the Wildrose Alliance Party of Alberta.
October 18 – Gilles Taillon is chosen as the new leader of the Action démocratique du Québec.
October 20 – Former U.S. president George W. Bush spoke in Edmonton, Alberta.
October 22 – Former U.S. president George W. Bush spoke in Montreal, Quebec.
October 29 – The premiers of New Brunswick and Quebec sign a memorandum of understanding to sell most assets of NB Power to Hydro-Quebec for C$4.75 billion.
October – Art Battle Canada painting events are started in Toronto.
November 9 – Four by-elections are held to fill vacancies in the House of Commons.
November 10 – Just 23 days after assuming the leadership of the Action démocratique du Québec, Gilles Taillon resigns, citing both caucus infighting and alleged irregularities in the party's financial records which he called on the Sûreté du Québec to investigate.
November 15 – Mike Schreiner is chosen as the new leader of the Green Party of Ontario.
December 10 – The Olympic torch arrives at Parliament Hill and is carried into the House by Barbara Ann Scott.
December 15 – Haitian prime minister Jean-Max Bellerive is welcomed to Canada to talk about security and development of Haiti

Unknown date

The government cryptologic agency, Tutte Institute for Mathematics and Computing, is founded.

Arts and literature

Art

March 6 – Art and Social Responsibility The Interdependence of the Arts and Civil Society conference is held in Toronto, Ontario.

Film

January 23 – 3 saisons is released in Quebec
April 4 – The 29th Genie Awards are held at the Canadian Aviation Museum in Ottawa, Ontario.
September 10 – The 2009 Toronto International Film Festival was held.

Music

March 29 – The Juno Awards of 2009 are held in Vancouver, hosted by Russell Peters.
September 21 – The 2009 Polaris Music Prize is won by Fucked Up for their album The Chemistry of Common Life.

Literature

Scotiabank Giller Prize – Linden MacIntyre, ''The Bishop's Man''

Sport

January 4 – The 2009 World U-17 Hockey Challenge is held in several cities in the Lower Mainland.
January 6 – Canada men's national [ice hockey team|Team Canada] wins the 2009 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships for the 5th time in a row.
February 4 – The 2009 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships is held in Vancouver.
March 12 – The 2009 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships are held in Richmond, BC.
April 13 – The 2009 Allan Cup is held in Steinbach, Manitoba.
May 15 – The 2009 season of the Canadian Soccer League starts.
May 24 – Windsor Spitfires won their First Memorial Cup by defeating the Kelowna Rockets 4 to 1. The Tournament was played at Colisée de Rimouski in Rimouski, Quebec
June 20 – In the 2009 Men's Pan-American Volleyball Cup, Canada placed second in group A.
July 12 – The 2009 Honda Indy Toronto takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto.
July 26
*The Trophée des Champions Final was held in Montreal.
*The 2009 Rexall Edmonton Indy takes place at the Rexall Speedway.
August 12 – 2009 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships is held in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia on Lake Banook.
August 15 – Canada competed at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics
October 12 – The Canadian National Challenge Cup 2009 was held in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
November 28 – Queen's Golden Gaels won their Fourth Vanier Cup by defeating the Calgary Dinos 33 to 31 in the 45th Grey Cup played at PEPS Stadium in Quebec City
November 29 – Montreal Alouettes won their Sixth Grey Cup by defeating the Saskatchewan Roughriders 28 to 27 in the 97th Grey Cup played at McMahon Stadium in Calgary.

Deaths

January

January 1 – Hubert Desbiens, politician,.
January 8 – Richard John Neuhaus, churchman and author
January 10 – Jean Pelletier, politician and Mayor of Quebec City
January 11 – Daryl Seaman, businessman
January 20 – Stan Hagen, politician
January 22 – John Alan Beesley, diplomat and civil servant
January 23
*Helen Maksagak, politician, first woman and first Inuk Northwest Territories Commissioner
*Percy Smith, barrister, lawyer and politician
January 31
*Thérèse Lavoie-Roux, politician and Senator
*Dewey Martin, rock drummer

February

February 2 – Russ Germain, radio presenter
February 5
*John W. Grace, first Privacy Commissioner of Canada
* Leo Orenstein, director, producer and writer
February 6 – George Karpati, neurologist and neuroscientist
February 8 – Bob Stephen, Canadian football player
February 23
*Elizabeth Bradford Holbrook, portrait sculptor
*Scott Symons, writer
February 25 – Molly Kool, North America's first registered female sea captain
February 27 – James Page Mackey, chief of Toronto Police Service

March

[Image:Gilbert Parent.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Gilbert Parent]

March 1 – Alf Pike, ice hockey player and coach
March 2 – Michael Baker, politician
March 3
*Gilbert Parent, politician and 33rd Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada
*Alessandro De Rango, mathematician
March 4 – Yvon Cormier, wrestler
March 9 – Larry Regan, ice hockey player, coach and manager
March 10 – Tom Hanson, photojournalist
March 11 – Harvey Lowe, broadcaster and yo-yo world champion
March 13 – Andrew Martin, wrestler
March 15 – Edmund Hockridge, singer and actor
March 17 – Gaston Labrèche, Chief Justice of Quebec Superior Court
March 18 – Donald Tolmie, politician
March 21
*Walt Poddubny, ice hockey player and coach
*Doug Frith, MP for Sudbury, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
March 22 – Archie Green, folklorist and musicologist
March 26 – Shane McConkey, extreme skier and base jumper
March 29 – Ivor Dent, politician and mayor of Edmonton

April

April 2
*Émilie Lavoie, supercentenarian
* Albert Sanschagrin, Bishop of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec
April 6 – J. M. S. Careless, historian
April 8 – Victoria Stafford, murder victim
April 10 – Frank Morris Canadian football player
April 12
*Derek Weiler, editor and writer
*Danny Cameron, politician
* Kent Douglas, ice hockey player and coach
April 23 – Gordon Gair, lacrosse player
April 24 – Orville Howard Phillips, politician and Senator
April 27 – John Crispo, economist and educator
April 28 – Ted Reynolds, television and radio sportscaster

May

May 3 – Renée Morisset, pianist
May 7
*Robin Blaser, author and poet
*Hugh Stansfield, Chief Judge of the Provincial Court of British Columbia
May 11 – Lude Check, ice hockey player
May 19 – Clint Smith, ice hockey player and coach
May 20 – Arthur Erickson, architect and urban planner
May 22 – Randy Steele, television news reporter
May 26
*Charles Dalfen, chairperson of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
*Peter Zezel, ice hockey player
May 27 – Abram Hoffer, orthomolecular psychiatrist
May 28
*Marcel Béliveau, television host, film director and comedian
*Lawrence Heisey, businessman
* John Tolos, wrestler and wrestling manager
*Betty Tancock, Olympic swimmer
May 29 – Hank Bassen, ice hockey player
May 30 – Eva Dawes, bronze medal-winning Olympic high jumper

June

[Image:Allan King (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|250px|Allan King]

June 3
*David Bromige, poet
*Sam George, native rights activist
*Benoit Marleau, actor
June 8 – Sheila Finestone, politician and Senator
June 8 – Nathan Marsters, ice hockey player
June 14
*William McIntyre, Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada
*Angela Coughlan, swimmer and Olympic bronze medalist
June 15 – Allan King, film director
June 17
*Gordon Wray, politician
*Tony Wong, politician
*Charles A. Barkley, politician, Mayor of South Dundas, Ontario
June 19 – Alex Nicholson, professional ice hockey goaltender
June 20 – Roseanne Allen, Olympic cross-country skier
June 21 – Lorena Gale, playwright
June 22 – Billy Red Lyons, professional wrestler
June 23 – Raymond Berthiaume, jazz musician, singer and record producer
June 24 – Roméo LeBlanc, Governor General & politician
June 27 – Jackie Washington, blues musician
June 28 – Terry Black, singer
June 29
*Jan Rubeš, Czech-Canadian singer and actor
*Pauline Picard, politician, MP for Drummond
*Glen Nicoll, farm writer and photojournalist
*Dave Batters, politician, MP for Palliser

July

Image:ReggieFleming 07.jpg|right|thumb|Reg Fleming

July 4 – Leo Mol, sculptor
July 5 – Waldo Von Erich, professional wrestler
July 6 – Martin Streek, disc jockey
July 9 – Ron Kennedy, ice hockey player and trainer
July 11
*Arturo Gatti, boxer
*Reg Fleming, hockey player
July 13 – Neil Munro, director, actor and playwright
July 14 – Phyllis Gotlieb, science fiction author
July 15 – Brian Goodwin, mathematician
July 16
*Jerry Holland, fiddler and composer
*Charles Gonthier, jurist, Supreme Court Justice
July 18 – Robert Uffen, research geophysicist, professor, and university administrator
July 21 – Les Lye, actor and broadcaster
July 22 – Mark Leduc, Olympic boxer
July 26 – Jerry Yanover, Liberal Party strategist
July 27 – Lee Orr, Olympic athlete
July 30 – Joy Langan, Member of Parliament for Mission—Coquitlam

August

August 5
*Al Tomko, professional wrestler
*Gerald Cohen, Marxist political philosopher
August 6
*Donald Marshall, Jr., Aboriginal wrongfully convicted of murder
*Stanley Haidasz, politician, MP for Trinity and Parkdale, Senator
August 10 – Sylvia Lennick, sketch comedy actor
August 13
*Al Purvis, Olympic gold medal-winning ice hockey player
*Joseph Gilles Napoléon Ouellet, Archbishop of Rimouski
August 14 – Ted "Teeder" Kennedy, hockey player
August 21 – Chris McCubbins, Olympic athlete
August 22 – Muriel Duckworth, feminist and activist
August 29 – Sam Etcheverry, American-born Canadian football player, member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame

September

September 1 – Alexis Tioseco, Filipino-born Canadian film critic
September 7 – Fred Mills, musician
September 9
*Frank Mazzuca, businessman, Mayor of Capreol, Ontario
*Eric Davidson, blind mechanic, survivor of the Halifax Explosion
September 10
*Lyn Hamilton, author
*Kerry Brown, professional wrestler
September 11 – Pierre Cossette, television producer
September 13 – Philip Aziz, artist
September 18 – Doug Fisher, journalist and politician, MP for Port Arthur
September 19 – Gabriel Beaudry, Olympic rower
September 23 – Stuart Robertson, journalist and gardener
September 24 – Nelly Arcan, novelist
September 25 – Pierre Falardeau, movie director
September 27 – Alan Dick, principal of Canadian International School of Hong Kong
September 29 – Ray Nettles, Canadian football player

October

October 1 – Luigi Moro, footballer and football coach
October 2 – Harvey Veniot, MLA for Pictou West, Speaker of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly
October 6 – Douglas Campbell, actor
October 8 – Gerald Ferguson, artist
October 10 – Joan Orenstein, actress
October 11 – Herb Leblanc, musician
October 19 – Joseph Wiseman, actor
October 20 – Margaret Fitzgerald, supercentenarian
October 22 – Howard Darwin, sports promoter, founder of the Ottawa 67's
October 23
*Lou Jacobi, actor
*Jack Poole, multimillionaire, real estate developer
October 28 – Ted Nebbeling, former British Columbia MLA
October 28 – Taylor Mitchell, singer-songwriter
October 29 – Gino Fracas, football player
October 31 – Harry Gauss, soccer coach

November

November 1 – Gus Mitges, politician
November 5 – Adam Firestorm, professional wrestler
November 11
*Bernd Dittrich, Austrian football player
*Tony Anselmo, football executive
November 15 – Richard Carlyle, actor
November 22 – Haydain Neale, musician
November 28 – Gilles Carle, filmmaker
November 30 – George Atkins, radio and TV presenter, founder of Farm Radio International
Date uncertain – Claire Drainie Taylor, actor and writer

December

December 9 – Goldie Semple, stage actor
December 10
*Roy Shatzko, football player
*Jean-Robert Gauthier, MP for Ottawa East
December 11 – Damien Truth, wrestler
December 14 – David Pecaut, Municipal entrepreneur
December 18
* Rex Yetman, bluegrass musician
* Del St. John, ice hockey player
* Harold Lundrigan, businessman
December 28 – Terry Matte, television news producer
December 30
* Michelle Lang, reporter
* Peter Corren, gay rights activist