1970 in Canada

Incumbents

Crown

• Monarch – Elizabeth II

  Federal government

• Governor general – Roland Michener
• Prime minister – Pierre Trudeau
• Chief Justice – John Robert Cartwright then Gérald Fauteux
• Parliament – 28th

  Provincial governments

Lieutenant governors

• Lieutenant Governor of Alberta – Grant MacEwan
• Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia – John Robert Nicholson
• Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba – Richard Spink Bowles then William John McKeag
• Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick – Wallace Samuel Bird
• Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland – Ewart John Arlington Harnum
• Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia – Victor de Bedia Oland
• Lieutenant Governor of Ontario – William Ross Macdonald
• Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island – John George MacKay
• Lieutenant Governor of Quebec – Hugues Lapointe
• Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan – Robert Hanbidge then Stephen Worobetz

  Premiers

• 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 – G.I. 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 – Ross Thatcher

  Territorial governments

Commissioners

• Commissioner of Yukon – James Smith
• Commissioner of Northwest Territories – Stuart Milton Hodgson

  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 - The Sudbury, Ontario tornado event, with winds up to 100 miles per hour, hits Sudbury and Field, Ontario. It was one of the worst tornadoes in Canadian history — killing six people, injuring 200, and causing C$17 million dollars in property damage.
• September 27 - TVOntario begins broadcasting
• 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 in the 1970 election.
• 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 in the 1970 election.
• 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
• 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

• February 16 - Police recover the Grey Cup after it was stolen the previous December.
• March 7 - Toronto Varsity Blues won their Fourth University Cup by defeating the Saint Mary's Huskies 3 to 2. The Final game was played in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
• April 5 - Bobby Orr becomes the first National Hockey League defenceman to win the scoring title.
• May 2 - Montreal is awarded the 1976 Summer Olympics.
• May 10 - Parry Sound, Ontario's Bobby Orr is awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy
• May 12 - Ontario Hockey Association's Montreal Jr. Canadiens won their fourth and final Memorial Cup by defeating the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League'sWeyburn Red Wings 4 games to 0. All games were played at the Montreal Forum
• May 22 - The National Hockey League adds a third Canadian team as the Vancouver Canucks are established.
• November 21 - Manitoba Bisons won their second consecutive Vanier Cup by defeating the Ottawa Gee-Gees 38-11 in the 6th Vanier Cup played at Varsity Stadium in Toronto
• November 28 - Montreal Alouettes won their Second Grey Cup by defeating the Calgary Stampeders 23-10 in the 58th Grey Cup played at Exhibition Stadium at Toronto.
• The first Arctic Winter Games commence in Yellowknife.

  Births

January to March

• January 6 - David Saint-Jacques, astronaut
• January 19 - Donald Haddow, swimmer
• January 24 - Lynn Coady, novelist and journalist
• 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

• April 8 - J. R. Bourne, actor
• April 11 - Trevor Linden, ice hockey player
• May 3 - Marie-Soleil Tougas, Quebec actress and TV host
• 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
• July 28 - Isabelle Brasseur, pair skater
• 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
• 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 22 - Ted Cruz, politician, and U.S. Senator from Texas since 2013
• 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

  Deaths

• January 23 - Nell Shipman, actress, screenwriter, producer and animal trainer
• January 29 - Lawren Harris, Group of Seven painter
• February 21 - Louis-René Beaudoin, politician and Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada
• February 27 - Marie Dionne, one of the Dionne quintuplets
• March 11 - William Stewart Wallace, historian
• March 23 - Del Lord, film director and actor
• April 6 - :fr:%C3%89mile Coderre|Émile Coderre, French-Canadian poet
• May 9 - Andrew Watson Myles, politician
• May 31 - Terry Sawchuk, ice hockey player
• June 12 - John Keiller MacKay, soldier, jurist and 19th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
• June 22 - William Melville Martin, politician and Premier of Saskatchewan
• October 17 - Pierre Laporte, Quebec politician and Minister, kidnapped and murdered by Front de libération du Québec
• September 12 - Jacob Viner, economist