Events

Dr. Mark Humphries, Laurier History Department presents, The Strange Tale of Alexander Henry, a Con Artist, and the Struggle for the Northwest.

Friday, February 6. 3:00 pm

Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada, 232 King St N, Waterloo.

Alexander Henry is famous as the first English trader to venture into the Northwest after the fall of New France in 1760 where he survived an attack at Michilimackinac, helped found the North West Company, and mapped the foothills of the Rockies. His story was published as a popular memoir in 1809 and helped shape historians' views about the early history of the Northwest and relations between Britain, the United States, and the Indigenous Peoples who lived there down to the present. But...new discoveries show that Henry didn't write the book: it was fabricated by an English children's author and con artist named Edward Augustus Kendall who stole Henry's journals and made-up most of the text. In sorting truth from fiction, we see Kendall consciously constructing a version of history that he hoped would resonate with audiences on the eve of the War of 1812 as tensions grew between Britain and the United States over the future of Western North America.

Light refreshments will be offered.

Organized by the Wilfrid Laurier History Department Events Committee.

Join Professor Karly Kehoe, St. Mary's University, for this Scotland-Canada Academic Partnership annual lecture.

Dr. Kehoe's talk explores the legacy of colonial privilege by looking at patterns of Scottish Highland settlement in Nova Scotia. Catholic Highlanders made use of the spectrum of advantages inherent in the White European settler experience despite facing significant persecution at home. Examining their connections with the process of empire building builds a deeper understanding of the complexities of colonization and helps us to think about Scottish History’s connection with Canada’s reconciliation process. 

This talk will be presented virtually, so register on Eventbrite.

Join the Tri-U's own Emily Kaliel, PhD candidate in history at the University of Guelph, who will give a talk entitled, "Public Health in Rural Alberta and Settler Colonialism as a Structure, 1919-1971."

Kaliel explores which rural populations the Alberta government considered to be a "public" worthy of interwar public health programs.

The event will be held on Zoom. Register for the link on Eventbrite.

If you have any questions, contact Rebecca Beausaert or Ben Bradley.

The 36th Canadian Military History Colloquium by Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada will be held in-person at Wilfrid Laurier University on 8-9 May 2026.

Submissions on all periods and aspects of Canadian military history and war and society are invited. Proposals are welcome from all scholars, including students, faculty and independent researchers.

To apply, send a ~300-word abstract and short bio to cmhc@studyofcanada.ca.

This year’s theme centres on the diversity of methods used to explore the past and the consideration of time and space as part of historical inquiry. How does our work as scholars engage in questions of scope and scale?

Saturday, March 21, 2026, Balsillie School of International Affairs

Registration is now open! Sign up before February 27 to receive complimentary meal tickets for a catered lunch. General registration for conference attendees will remain open until March 21.

Questions? Please contact our committee at triu.conf@gmail.com

The 36th Canadian Military History Colloquium by Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada will be held in-person at Wilfrid Laurier University on 8-9 May 2026.

The 36th Canadian Military History Colloquium by Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada will be held in-person at Wilfrid Laurier University on 8-9 May 2026.