How the Scots Invented Canada

by Ken McGoogan

Canadians of Scottish descent, who today total over 4.7 million, have never made up more than 16 per cent of Canada’s population. Yet they have supplied thirteen of twenty-two Canadian prime ministers, and have made proportionate contributions in exploration, education, banking, military service, railroading, invention, literature, you name it. Award-winning author Ken McGoogan has written a vivid, sweeping narrative showcasing more than sixty Scots who have shaped Canada. They include fur traders Alexander Mackenzie and the “Scotch West-Indian” James Douglas, who established national boundaries; politicians John A. Macdonald and Nellie McClung, who created a system of government; and visionaries Tommy Douglas, James Houston, Doris Anderson and Marshall McLuhan, who turned Canada into a complex nation that celebrates diversity. McGoogan toasts Robbie Burns, recalls the first settlers to wade ashore at Pictou, Nova Scotia, and celebrates such hybrid figures as the Cherokee Scot John Norton and Cuthbert Grant, father of the Métis nation. In How the Scots Invented Canada , Ken McGoogan uncovers the Scottish history of a nation-building miracle.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Canada, Scotland, Cultural

432 pages

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Maxwell Thornton]

Well this book was an adventure!

Covering Canadians of many professions (e.g., politicians, writers, soldiers, and doctors) of Scottish descent over three hundred years of Canadian history, this book did not hold back from describing the individuals' Scottish traits, ancestry through parents, and kind of upbringing in Canada, whether in Cape Breton Island or British Columbia. Such Canadians included William Lyon Mackenzie, Sir John A Macdonald, Margaret Macdonald, Lucy M. Montgomery, John McCrae, and John Diefenbaker, who without them, our sense of Canada would not exist.

Yet, there are problems with this book. Namely, I found that the book has a liberal bias and portrayed post-modernism and its view on Canadian identity positively, while at the same time unfairly criticising George Grant, a notable Red Tory and author of 'Lament for a Nation'. In addition, when covering the 1982 Constitution Act, the author falsely declared that was the true independence of Canada.

Overall, a very detailed book on Scottish influence in Canada, but just mind the politics and you will enjoy the book. I recommend it to Canadians studying demography, history of Scotland and/or Canada, and those with Scottish ancestry.

[James Edgar]

This is a good read for anyone who wants to know when and how the Canadian West was explored and settled. But, more than that, it's a testament to the Scottish education system and the fruits of those labours.

[Todd McFarland]

What a stretch to try to connect the Scots to the creation of Canada. It indeed happened but wow, this borders on annoying.

[Thebruce1314]

I was expecting more of a cohesive argument for the thesis that the Scots invented Canada, but what I got was probably more enjoyable. Rather than being an academic tome of researched material, this is more of a compendium of brief biographies and tales about those with Scottish blood who helped to shape Canada. Some of the connections seemed a bit contentious, and the repetition of how amazing Scottish people are got to be a bit nauseating (despite my agreement!). While I found some of the chapters to be more enthralling than others (obviously personal interest in historical eras plays a part here), I actually really enjoyed the book as a whole.

Scottishness aside, I learned a few things I didn't know about Canada's history, and the bite-size chunks were perfect for times when I could only get through a few pages.

[Joe Corrigan]

Perhaps a narrative that hasn't aged well. Written in 2011 prior to more widespread awareness of the negative impact of colonialism that came to widespread culture with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report in 2015 and the subsequent widespread discovery of unmarked residential school gravesites, it seems smug and out of touch. I appreciate the insights into the lives and contributions to our Canadian culture of various prominent individuals of Scottish heritage. Never-the-less the title is very much out of place and the author should consider a less cultural insensitive name for his book.

[Andrew]

Not bad. I think he would have been better served to pick 10 or 12 Scottish Canadians and devote a chapter to each. As it is some figures get 3 or 4 pages others a dozen maybe a couple a longer piece. The people left out could have been in an Appendix entitled "Other Prominent Scottish Canadians".

The book drags in the middle but there are some interesting figures in the latter third. I think some more culling of the herd could have been done thus freeing up space to devote to 'favourites'.

[Daniel Macgregor]

Overall not a bad piece of popular history. The main narrative that Scots built Canada, while being interesting, is usually clouded by the rapid jumps into small biographies of notable Scottish immigrants or descendants (of varying degree). However, the biographies themselves are interesting enough to vindicate the book writ large, and there are enough threads drawn though the many chapters to bring the main narrative together well enough.

[Patricia]

Basically started this book when a neighbour of mine lent it to me. He’s from the Scottish highlands, and told me that I may find it interesting. Well, let me Telya I did what an amazing book. This is to know some facts about Canada. It was brilliant! Ken McGoogan is a fantastic author!

[Stephanie Bryant]

I was amazed at how far back he was prepared to go to get a Scottish connection. So this is where that darn work ethic came from. I have to go back two generations for a Scottish connection myself.

[Michael Hopkins]

Simply great!

Easy to follow, yet chock full of content! Really enjoyed this account of how our ancestors contributed to our great country. Thanks for your hard work!

[Joy D]

While providing a small portion of Canadian history from a Scottish perspective, it sure doesn't tell the whole story. I picked this up from a Little Free Library in my neighbourhood, shortly after receiving my ancestry.ca results. I learned I have more Scottish than Irish dna so intended to learn more. And I did. But it took me months to finish because I had trouble accepting this version.
McGoogan recounts the early explorers' drive from east to west but hardly mentions they wouldn't have survived without the guidance & aid of our First Nations people. He shares stories of harsh expedition's through the Northwest Passage without proper acknowledgement of the Inuit. He writes a section on the "leaders" involved with the building our our coast to coast railway, which he entitles Steel Ribbon Blues. But he fails to mention the exploitative conditions forced onto new immigrants to build that railway, in particular the 15,000 Chinese labourers, of which at least 600 died.
If we want reconciliation, we need more truth. All of the truth, not just part of it.

[Joshua Friesen]

Great book. He profiles each Scottish person well in an enjoyable informative way.