In 1763, when Britain assumed control of Canada, our population was mainly Indigenous peoples, French, and British. In addition to the Indigenous peoples population, Canada had approximately 60,000 French settlers and 500 British fur traders and Hudson Bay Company employees.

After the American Revolution ended in 1783, this started to change. Indigenous peoples and the French were still dominant, even though the number of British settlers increased. The 45,000 British loyalists who emigrated to Canada were farmers and business owners. Another significant group that came to Canada after this revolution was about 3,000 African Americans who were also loyal to Britain.

In 1867, when Canada confederated, our population still reflected the three founding cultures. In the late 1800s, the first of many immigration movements that led to Canada becoming even more of a multicultural society occurred. After that time, people came to Canada from other backgrounds for various reasons.

The information below gives an overview of the major immigration patterns for the past 100 years.

China

     1870s to 1880s

Thousands of men came to British Columbia from China to help build the Canadian Pacific Railway through the Rocky Mountains. Many died doing this dangerous work. They faced persecution after the railroad was finished. 

United States, Europe, and Australia

     1890s

    Gold was discovered in Yukon. About 100,000 people (mostly men) came from goldfields in other countries. They made their way through very tough terrain to Dawson City in Yukon to search for gold.

Great Britain, Europe, and the United States

 1890s to 1914

 Canada feared losing the prairies to the United States if more people weren't living there. The Canadian government offered people in Europe and the US free land if they settled on the prairies. People came to improve their lives or because they had been treated cruelly in their homelands. All hoped for a free and prosperous life in Canada.

Great Britain and Europe

     1918 to 1960s

     People continued to come to Canada to improve their own lives. Most were still from Europe. Some fled wars and strife in their own nations. Others came after the Great Depression.

 After the Second World War, some refugees who had lost their homes during the war came to Canada.   
   

Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America 

1970s to Present day

     Since the 1970s, people have come to Canada from places other than Britain, Europe, and the United States. Many still came for the promise of a better life. Others escaped from war-torn or famine-stricken parts of the world. These people were often refugees who fled with nothing. In contrast to much previous immigration, many of the people who now immigrated to Canada came from racial and religious groups other than Caucasian and Christian.

Religious Groups

     Dates vary

     Canada has been a safe haven for several groups whose culture is based on a particular religious beliefs. These groups usually came from Europe and the United States. Mennonite and Amish people first came to Canada after the American Revolution, but they would later come from Europe where they faced persecution. Hutterites came to Canada from the United States during the first World War so they would not have to join the army and go to war. The Doukhobors escaped persecution in Russia by migrating to Canada. Many of these people settled on the prairies to farm there.