History Docs: Confederation
 

Prince Edward Island and Confederation

This set of primary and secondary sources includes newspaper articles, speeches, and letters that describe the reasons for and against joining Confederation for Prince Edward Island.

Format: PDF
Subject: Social Studies, History
Grade: 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Type of resource: Source Documents
Language: English

Student Tasks

What were the advantages and disadvantages of joining Confederation for Prince Edward Island?

When determining the advantages and disadvantages, you may want to consider the following aspects:

  • the type of government in Prince Edward Island at the time.
  • who owned the majority of land in Prince Edward Island.
  • the social impact of Confederation.
  • the relationship between Prince Edward Island and Britain.
  • the economy of Prince Edward Island prior to Confederation.
  • how people in Prince Edward Island felt about Confederation.

Historical Context for Teachers

Early history

  • The land that is Prince Edward Island was originally a French possession, but became a British colony as part of the 1769 Treaty of Paris.
  • By 1861, Prince Edward Island had a population of 80 000 people—mainly of English and Scottish origin with small numbers of French, Black and Mi’kmaq peoples.
  • After it became a colony, British surveyors divided up Prince Edward Island into 67 lots of 20 000 acres each. The lots were allocated to supporters of King George II through a lottery.
  • In exchange for one of the 67 lots, owners had to pay rent to the British Crown, provide land for a school and ensure settlement for Protestant settlers on at least one third of the land within 10 years of receiving the land.
  • Few of the landlords met these conditions and most never lived on the land. Settlers to the Island often paid high rents to these absentee landlords (proprietors) while living on and improving the land.

Economic and political problems

  • Conflicts arose in the government of Prince Edward Island between the anti-landowner reformers and the Conservatives who supported the rights of the landowners.
  • The economy of Prince Edward Island was based on farming, timber harvesting and shipbuilding. Britain had a preferential trading system with Prince Edward Island that allowed products to be imported to Britain without tariffs (taxes on goods coming from another country). When this system ended in 1847, Prince Edward Island could not afford to pay the high tariffs and continue to trade with Great Britain.
  • Prince Edward Island had a close trading relationship with the American states along the Eastern coast because of their close proximity by sea. Trade with the Eastern states increased as a result of the Reciprocity Treaty of 1854 that allowed free trade between the United States and British colonies.
  • In 1853, the Island government passed the Land Purchase Act that allowed the government to purchase lands from landlords who were willing to sell the land, and then resell the land to settlers. The government ran out of money while purchasing the land and the British government refused to provide funds to the Island government to allow them to continue buying land.
  • In 1862, a conference was held between the United Provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island to discuss building an intercolonial railway to link all the colonies of British North America; however, the colonies could not come to an agreement on how to finance the cost of the railroad.
  • In 1863, the Tenant League was formed to resolve the land problem in Prince Edward Island and the majority of tenants on the island joined. The League urged members to stop paying rent until the absentee landlords agreed to sell their land. The governor declared the League illegal in 1865, which resulted in clashes between farmers and sheriffs who were sent to collect rents. As a result, British troops were stationed on the Island to restore order.

Confederation introduced

  • On September 1, 1864, representatives from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island met at Charlottetown to discuss a Maritime union to gain influence with the United Provinces of Canada to negotiate an agreement to build an intercolonial railway. Nearly all the delegates from Prince Edward Island initially opposed the union.
  • At the conference, representatives from Canada, George-Etienne Cartier and John A. Macdonald, changed the discussion from the topic of Maritime union to Confederation, a union of all British North American colonies. The conference ended with the Island delegates warming to the idea.
  • Based on the success of the Charlottetown Conference, the Québec Conference was organized for October 1864, during which delegates discussed the terms for Confederation. The delegates disagreed over the composition of the Senate, the appointed upper level of government. The Maritime colonies wanted the same number of Senate seats as United Canada to prevent the more populous Canadian provinces from having more power than the other provinces. The previous offer to purchase land from the absentee landlords was withdrawn.
  • At the Conference, the delegates drafted the 72 Resolutions, or Québec Resolutions, an agreement outlining the terms of union and the formation of the country and its government.
  • In May 1866, the legislature of Prince Edward Island, led by Conservative premier James Colledge Pope, rejected the terms of the Québec Conference and Confederation.
  • A renewed offer in 1866 to purchase land from absentee landlords for
  • $800 000 was viewed as a bribe and rejected.
  • In 1866, the United States ended the Reciprocity Treaty—which reduced Prince Edward Island’s exports to the United States. The Island attempted to pass an independent trade agreement with the United States; however, it could not be passed without Britain's approval.
  • In 1869, Canada offered Prince Edward Island a deal known as “Better Terms.” It offered to assume the Island’s debt, provide a debt allowance and a subsidy of 80 cents per person and purchase absentee landlord holdings for $800 000. The offer was rejected in 1870.
  • Prince Edward Island began building a railroad in 1871. Within a year, the rising costs of construction put Prince Edward Island on the edge of financial collapse.

Map of British North American colonies, 1840

Map of British North American colonies, 1840

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