List of Canadian inventions, innovations, and discoveries explained
Canadian inventions and discoveries are objects, processes, or techniques—invented, innovated, or discovered—that owe their existence either partially or entirely to a person born in Canada, a citizen of Canada, or a company or organization based in Canada. Some of these inventions were funded by National Research Council Canada (NRCC), which has been an important factor in innovation and technological advancement. Often, things discovered for the first time are also called inventions and in many cases, there is no clear line between the two.
The following is a list of inventions, innovations or discoveries known or generally recognized to be Canadian.
Inventions and improvements
Notable Canadian inventions and improvements to existing technologies include:
Agriculture, food and beverage
See also: Canadian cuisine.
- Ambrosia apple – first cultivated in British Columbia during the early 1990s.
- B.C. roll – a type of sushi invented in Vancouver in 1974 by chef Hidekazu Tojo.[1]
- Beaver tails and touton – fried dough pastry that is sold in a variety of flavours.
- Butter tart – a filling of butter, sugar, syrup, and egg, baked in a pastry shell.
- Caesar (cocktail) – invented by Walter Chell in Calgary in 1969.[2]
- California roll – a sushi roll with the seaweed wrapped on the inside of the rice, said to be created by the Japanese-Canadian chef living in Vancouver, Hidekazu Tojo, in 1974, although there are competing claims.
- Canada Dry Ginger Ale – a dry ginger ale invented by John J. McLaughlin in 1904 under the name of "Pale Ginger Ale", before it was patented in 1907 under "Canada Dry Ginger Ale".[3]
- Canola Oil – developed from natural rapeseed (a plant from the turnip family) by National Research Council Canada (NRCC) personnel in the 1970s, containing a low-erucic acid content.[4]
- Cheezies – a brand of cheese puff snack food made and sold in Canada by W. T. Hawkins Ltd.
- Cipaille – a Quebec adaptation of sea-pie without seafood.
- Coffee Crisp – a chocolate bar invented by British company Rowntree in Canada.[5]
- Crispy Crunch – created by Harold Oswin in 1930.
- Donair – a regional variation of the doner kebab, using beef instead of lamb. Invented in Halifax, Nova Scotia around 1970 by Peter Gamoulakos.[6]
- Fricot – A traditional stew consisting of clams, chicken and other meats.
- Ginger beef – is a Canadian Chinese dish made from beef, ginger, and a distinctive sweet sauce.
- Hawaiian pizza – invented by the Greek-Canadian cook and businessman Sam Panopoulos, in 1962.
- Instant mashed potatoes (dehydrated potato flakes) – invented by Edward Asselbergs in 1962.
- Jubilee apple – developed by Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in British Columbia.
- London Fog – a hot tea-based drink that consists of Earl Grey tea, steamed milk, and vanilla syrup.[7]
- Maple taffy – a sugar candy made by boiling maple sap.
- Marquis wheat – invented by Charles E. Saunders in 1908 and tested at the Agassiz experimental farm in British Columbia., developed from Red Fife wheat.
- McIntosh apple – developed by John McIntosh in Upper Canada in 1811
- Montreal melon – originally cultivated in the Montreal area but lost due to industrialization. The melon's seeds have recently been rediscovered and its cultivation revitalized.[8] [9]
- Nanaimo bar – a dessert bar that requires no baking, invented in Nanaimo around 1953.
- Pablum – infant cereal, invented by Frederick Tisdall, Theodore Drake, and Allan Brown in 1930.
- Peanut butter – Canadian chemist Marcellus Gilmore Edson patented a way to make "peanut paste", also known as peanut butter in 1884.[10]
- Pizza Pops – a calzone-type snack produced by Pillsbury.
- Poutine – created in the Centre-du-Québec region in the 1950s.[11]
- Ragoût de boulettes (Meatball Stew) – traditional Canadian comfort food from Quebec.[12]
- Ragoût de pattes (Stewed Pig's Feet) – French-Canadian stew with leg or feet, originating in Quebec.[13]
- Red Fife wheat – a Canadian landrace descendant of Western Ukrainian (Galicia) wheat, first grown by David Fife in Upper Canada in 1842.
- Spartan apple – an apple similar to the McIntosh introduced to Summerland, British Columbia in 1936, developed by R. C. Palmer.
- Tourtière – a French Canadian meat pie common during holidays, invented in the early 1600's, with the first recipe in 1840.[14]
- Yukon Gold potato – invented by Gary Johnston in 1966.[15]
Computing, film, and animation
Communications
Climate-related
Defence
Domestic life and fashion
- The first coloured coins used in circulation
- Easy-Off – an oven cleaner invented by Herbert McCool in Regina in 1932
- Egg carton – invented by Joseph Coyle of Smithers, British Columbia, in 1911
- Electric cooking range – invented by Thomas Ahearn in 1882
- Garbage bag – invented by Harry Wasylyk in 1950
- Green ink – invented by American Thomas Sterry Hunt in 1862 while teaching at Université Laval; used for various U.S. banknotes
- Igloos – a type of shelter from the Arctic
- Incandescent light bulb – invented in 1874 by Henry Woodward, who sold the patent to Thomas Edison
- Jolly Jumper – a baby jumper invented by Olivia Poole in 1959
- Kerosene – discovered in the 1840s by Abraham Gesner[30]
- Lawn sprinkler – invented by Elijah McCoy
- LongPen – invented by Margaret Atwood[31]
- Parka – invented by the Inuit in the Arctic to protect the wearer from the cold[32]
- Plexiglas – made practical by William Chalmers' invention for creating methyl methacrylate, while a graduate student at McGill University in 1931
- Snow goggles – used by Inuit to prevent snow blindness in the Arctic due to the glare from snow and ice and were made typically from ivory, bone or other materials[33]
- Snowshoes – perfected by First Nations to traverse through deep snow more effectively[34]
- Wonderbra Model 1300 (aka Dream Lift) – the modern plunged-style push-up bra, designed by Louise Poirier in 1964. Though the term Wonder-Bra was coined by an American named Israel Pilot in 1935, the brand itself was popularized by Canadian Moses Nadler, who licensed (and later won) the Wonderbra patent from Pilot. Nadler made his first Wonderbra in 1939 at his Montreal-based Canadian Lady Corset Company, and directed Poirier, his employee, to design the Model 1300 bra
Science and medicine
Sport, music, and entertainment
Tools and manufacturing
Transportation and mobility
Animal breeds
Holidays and events
See also: Public holidays in Canada.
See also
External links and further reading
Notes and References
- Web site: Kwiatkowska . Dominika . 2022-11-11 . Was the California Roll Invented in Vancouver? Evolution 107.9 . 2023-06-27 . en-US.
- Web site: Caesar Cocktail . 2023-06-29 . www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca . en.
- Web site: Canada Dry History .
- Web site: https://www.facebook.com/SmallFootprintFamily . 2021-08-10 . The Inconvenient Truth About Canola Oil Small Footprint Family™ . 2023-06-29 . www.smallfootprintfamily.com . en-US.
- Web site: 2023-02-03 . Coffee Crisp – Sweet Taste Of Nostalgia – Snack History . 2023-06-27 . en-US.
- Web site: corusadmin . 2022-04-27 . The Delicious History Of The Halifax Donair . 2023-06-27 . Food Network Canada . en-CA.
- Web site: Marchyshyn . Katelyn . Canadian DYK: The London Fog tea latte was invented in Vancouver . Eat North . 9 June 2020 . Eat North Inc. . 17 April 2023.
- Web site: Matei . Adrienne . The Strange Story of the Montreal Melon . Nuvo . 4 July 2017 . Nuvo Magazine Ltd. . 23 March 2022.
- Web site: Basen . Gwynne . Return of the Montréal Melon . Montréal's Urban Landscape . Véhicule Press . 23 March 2022.
- Web site: 16 amazing things invented by Canadians. 10 July 2017. 11 May 2023.
- Book: Fabien-Ouellet, Nicolas. Atsuko. Ichijo. Ronald. Ranta. Venetia. Johannes. 21 February 2019. The Emergence of National Food: The Dynamics of Food and Nationalism. 13. The Canadian Cuisine Fallacy. 161–162. https://books.google.com/books?id=TKJ-DwAAQBAJ&dq=poutine+nation&pg=PA161 . Bloomsbury Publishing. 9781350074149.
- Web site: Ragoût de boulettes. 14 July 2005 . 11 May 2023.
- Web site: French Canadian Ragoût de Pattes de Cochon Recipe (Stewed Pig's Feet). 19 December 2014 . 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Cuisiniere . Sarah-Curious . 2021-12-20 . Tourtière (French Canadian Meat Pie) . 2023-06-29 . Curious Cuisiniere . en-US.
- Web site: Yukon Gold Potato Research Program Department of Plant Agriculture University of Guelph . www.uoguelph.ca . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110314160002/http://www.uoguelph.ca/plant/research/potato/history/yukongold.html . 2011-03-14.
- Web site: 16 amazing things invented by Canadians CBC Television.
- Web site: Bellis. Mary. 2020-02-28. Top 100 Inventions Made in Canada. 2021-08-29. ThoughtCo. en.
- Web site: Acland. Charles. 2015-06-24. IMAX Systems Corporation. 2021-08-29. The Canadian Encyclopedia.
- Web site: Brown. Julie. The History of IMAX – IMAX Sydney. 2021-08-29. www.imax.com.au.
- Web site: More than 30 inventions you wouldn't expect to be Canadian. 11 May 2019.
- http://www.ieee.ca/millennium/computer_animation/animation_honoured.html "Retired NRC Scientists Burtnyk and Wein honoured as Fathers of Computer Animation Technology in Canada"
- Web site: Oral-History:Ralph Benjamin – Engineering and Technology History Wiki. 26 January 2021.
- Web site: 50 great gifts Canada gave the world. 2021-08-30. The Art of the Great Media Interview. 30 June 2013 . en-CA.
- Web site: Young. Jessica. 2020-09-18. Roland Galarneau. 2021-08-29. The Canadian Encyclopedia.
- "An Unsung hero: Reginald Fessenden, the Canadian inventor of radio telephony," ieee.ca. Retrieved 2021-08-29
- 2017-07-01. With Glowing Hearts: Reflecting on a few things that Canada has brought to the world. Canadian Family Physician. en. College of Family Physicians of Canada. 63. 7. 556–557. 0008-350X. 28701451.
- Web site: Canadian military developing stealth snowmobile. 21 August 2011. CTV news. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20111106052545/http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories/20110821/canadian-military-developing-stealth-snowmobile-110821/. 2011-11-06.
- Web site: Ottawa testing $620K stealth snowmobile for Arctic | CBC News.
- Web site: Issenman. Betty Kobayashi. The Art and Technique of Inuit Clothing. McCord Museum. 2007. 2012-04-02. 24 December 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211224212351/http://collections.musee-mccord.qc.ca/scripts/printtour.php?tourID=CW_InuitClothing_IK_EN&Lang=2. dead.
- Web site: kerosene. Encyclopædia Britannica. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Christensen . Bill . Long-Distance Pen Devised by Author Margaret Atwood . Live Science . 21 February 2006 . Future US . 23 March 2022.
- Web site: Parka. The Canadian Encyclopedia. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: History & Evolution of Glacier Goggles . 20 November 2020 .
- Web site: Snowshoes | the Canadian Encyclopedia .
- Web site: Meet the Canadian engineer who casually invented the pacemaker CBC Canada 2017.
- Web site: Dianne Croteau Inventions, Patents and Patent Applications – Justia Patents Search. 2021-08-29. patents.justia.com.
- Web site: 2018-07-01. Celebrating All Things Great And Canadian. 2021-08-29. Canada Protection Plan. en-CA.
- Web site: Fact Sheet – VSV-EBOV – Canada's vaccine for Ebola. 2 August 2013.
- Web site: Ideas That Made History. 2022-02-01. mcgillnews.mcgill.ca. en.
- Web site: Chemical Institute of Canada. CIC Fun Facts Handbook. February 1, 2022.
- Web site: 2019-04-24. A celebration of achievement: Honouring the work of Dr. Harold Jennings. 2021-08-30. National Research Council Canada.
- Rutherford, E. . Owens, R. B. . Thorium and uranium radiation . Trans. R. Soc. Can. . 2 . 1899 . 9–12.
"The radiation from thorium oxide was not constant, but varied in a most capricious manner", whereas "All the compounds of Uranium give out a radiation which is remarkably constant."
- Web site: Made In Canada – Canadian Inventors and Inventions. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Four Olympic sports that you did not know were invented by Canadians. 5 August 2021. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Contrabass bugle, G, F. National Music Museum, University of South Dakota. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: The All-Canadian Game: Crokinole. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Quantum Valley Investments Quantum Valley History . 2021-08-29 . en.
- Web site: 1999 . 2021-08-29 . Oscars.org Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . 19 February 2015 . en.
- Web site: The Invention of the 'Jock Strap' – Guelph Heritage. 2021-08-29. www.guelphheritage.ca.
- Web site: Take a deep dive into the history of snowmobiling. . 22 March 2022. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Eskimo violin / Inuit fiddle / Tautirut. 18 January 2014 . 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Honour of the Qilaut Drum Masterclass March 25–28, 2022. 22 March 2022. 11 May 2023.
- Web site: Collerette ladder in London. 2021-08-29. Service de sécurité incendie de Montréal. en.
- Web site: 11 Inventions to Celebrate – Canada's History .
- Web site: The Canoe. 11 May 2023.
- News: Kinova. 7 June 2010. Kinova Reach your potential. 12 June 2010.
- News: Radio-Canada. 3 November 2009. Découverte – Le bras robotisé Jaco. 12 June 2010.
- News: United States patent and trademark office. 3 November 2009. United States Patent. 12 June 2010.
- Web site: Veteran had indomitable spirit: Paralyzed airman invented bus that accommodates wheelchairs. Halifax Daily News, Wednesday 26 September 2007. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131019134754/http://www.rusi.ca/Veteran%20had%20indomitable%20spirit.pdf. 19 October 2013. 26 June 2013.
- https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2194&dat=19500823&id=vbsvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fNwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=887,1549248 Ottawa Citizen – 23 Aug 1950
- Web site: History: October 16 Birth of the Canadian who revolutionized aviation. 16 October 2015.
- Web site: Labrador Retriever History: Behind America's Most Popular Breed . 22 August 2022. 12 May 2023.
- Web site: 21 January 2016. Public holidays. 9 May 2021. Canada Revenue Agency. https://web.archive.org/web/20170716182452/https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/public-holidays.html . 16 July 2017 .
- Web site: The History of Thanksgiving in Canada. 4 October 2018. 12 May 2023.
- Web site: Thanksgiving in Canada. 12 May 2023.