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.

Sir Hector Louis Langevin's political career touched the heights - and the depths. He was born in Quebec, Aug. 25, 1826, the son of Lt.-Col. Jean Langevin.

He became a lawyer, studying for a time in the Montreal office of Sir Georges-Etienne Cartier and was called to the bar of Lower Canada in 1850. Soon afterward he entered politics and form 1857 to 1867 represented Dorchester riding in the Canadian assembly. From 1864 to 1866 he was the solicitor-general for Lower Canada and at the time of Confederation postmaster-general. With Confederation, he became federal member for Dorchester and secretary of state in the first cabinet of Sir John A. Macdonald.

He held that office until 1869 when he switched to the public works portfolio, which he held until the fall of the Macdonald government in 1873. With the return of Sir John to power he became postmaster-general from 1878 to 1879 and then for a second time public works minister from 1879 to 1891, during which time he had been knighted. In 1891, however, he was compelled to resign as the result of charges of corruption that had arisen in his department. He was personally exonerated but found guilty of negligence. He died at Quebec, June 11, 1906.