Until this great work is completed, our dominion is little more than a geographical expression - Sir John A. Macdonald

Travel through the eras of  history and the development of the various nations that make up Canada today.

The Vikings | Columbus | John Day | John Cabot | Martin Frobisher | Jacques Cartier | John Guy | Henry Hudson | Samuel De Champlain | Native Perceptions | Francis Drake | Humphrey Gilbert

The question of how far Francis Drake travelled north along the West Coast of the Americas is an interesting and difficult one. Recent theories speculate that he may have actually entered through the Straits of Juan de Fuca and explored the Straits of Georgia. He was in need of a beach to pull his ships up onto and clean them and briefly considered present day Jericho Beach in Vancouver but due to the thousands of natives inhabiting the shores of English Bay he was hesitant to enter into a situation which would leave him vulnerable to their potential attacks. He therefore sailed back south to the Oregon coast and completed his refit there. This may have been the first overseas encounter with the Coast Salish people of British Columbia and European sailors. Due to the sea Otter and their valuable pelts it would not be long before Spanish, English, Russian and than America traders would be appearing regularly along the coast looking to trade with the natives.