CANADA HISTORY - DOCUMENTS FRONTIER

1906 Report of the Superintendant of Immigration

Analysis of the Document - (The Document follows below the Analysis)

The 1906 Report of the Superintendent of Immigration paints a vivid picture of the increasing volume of immigration to Canada during a period of rapid growth and expansion. The report highlights a surge in administrative work, reflecting a substantial increase in immigrant inquiries and correspondence. The 102,956 attachments and over 2.9 million pamphlets distributed showcase the government's commitment to attracting settlers to Canada's western provinces, an integral part of its national development strategy. The report underscores the scale of Canada’s immigration drive, which shaped the demographic and economic landscape of the country.

This period was critical for Canada, as the country aimed to populate its vast western territories to fuel agricultural and economic expansion. By actively promoting settlement, particularly from Europe and the United States, Canada sought to secure its western regions against potential American encroachment and create a robust agricultural economy. The high volume of pamphlets and responses indicates an aggressive campaign to entice settlers, promoting Canada as a land of opportunity.

The implications of this report are broad, both in terms of Canada’s demographic growth and its national identity. The influx of immigrants, largely from Eastern Europe, the British Isles, and the United States, dramatically altered the cultural fabric of the country. While Canada’s open-door policy helped to settle the Prairies, it also led to social and cultural tensions, particularly concerning the integration of non-British, non-French immigrants. This immigration wave fostered both economic growth and challenges related to assimilation, cultural identity, and language, issues that would persist in Canadian society well into the 20th century.

In terms of governance, the 1906 report highlights the increasing bureaucratic demands placed on Canadian institutions as they managed the complexities of large-scale immigration. The sheer volume of attachments and inquiries processed by the Department of Immigration illustrates the central role that government infrastructure played in managing the flow of newcomers. The administrative apparatus needed to support such growth became a crucial part of Canada's national development strategy.

In retrospect, the report’s figures reflect the scale and ambition of Canada’s immigration policies in the early 20th century, policies that had profound and lasting implications for the nation's economic and cultural trajectory. The influx of settlers would help establish the agricultural foundations of Canada’s western provinces, contribute to the nation’s emerging industrial capacity, and set the stage for the social and political dynamics that would shape modern Canada.

The volume of work at headquarters has not shown any diminution. In the nine months ending March 31, 1906, 90,557 attachments were made to our files; during the similar period covered by this report the number of attachments was 102,956, and during this same period 226,358 requests for information, direct and indirect, were attended to, and 2,957,027 pamphlets, etc., were sent out.

The following is a statement showing immigration literature ordered during the nine months referred to:

Gaelic pamphlet 10,000

The Canadian West 1,500

Symposium of Ideas and Prophecies 1,500

The Canadian West 100,000

Reliable Information 2,000

Western Canada, A Land of Unequalled Opportunities 2,000

Great Growth of Western Canada 2,000

Western Canada, a Land of Unprecedented Progress 2,000

Book of Lectures 200

The Story of Western Canada Crop 300,000

Farm and Ranch Review 5,000

Canadian Year Book 5,000

Prince Edward Island pamphlet 30,000

Immigration Act 40,000

Canada in a Nutshell 100,000

Home Building in Canada 115,000

Classes Wanted in Canada 50,000

Land Regulations 50,000

Canada Wants Domestic Servants 50,000

A Travers le Canada 20,000

Illustrated Pamphlet of Winnipeg 1,000

Everyman's Geology of the Three Prairie Provinces of the Canadian West 5,000

Eastern Townships 30,000

Reduced Rates for Settlers 100,000

How to Succeed in Canada 200,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (English) 200,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (Danish) 20,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (Norwegian) 20,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (Finnish) 20,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (German) 20,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (Swedish) 20,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (French) 20,000

Canada, Work, Wages and Land (Belgian) 20,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (English) 200,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (Swedish) 50,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (Norwegian) 50,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (Finnish) 50,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (Danish) 50,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (Flemish) 50,000

Canada, the Land of Opportunity (French) 50,000

Western Canada 500

Climate of Canada 500

Western Canada Early Days 500

Western Canada Crop Prospects 500

What Canada Possesses 500

Letters from Successful Settlers (French) 20,000

Hangers 50,000

Facts for Settlers 100,000

Last Best West 375,000

MAPS

School Map of Canada (English) 30,000

School Map of Canada (French) 5,000

Battleford Map 10,500

Where and How (Folder Map) 100,000

Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta Map 11,000

Small Dominion of Canada Map 5,000

NEWSPAPERS

Alberta German Herald 10,000

Morning Chronicle, Halifax 15,000

Le Courier de l'Ouest 10,000

Saskatoon Phoenix 10,000

Hungarian paper, Winnipeg 15,000

Polish Paper, Winnipeg 10,000

German Paper, Battleford 25,000

The Canada (Swedish Weekly) 18,000

Der Nordwestern (German) 36,000

Logberg (Icelandic) 36,000

Outdoor Canada 450

Canadian Life and Resources 4,500

Danebrog (Danish) 9,000

Canada, London, England 18,750

Christmas Globe 200

There has been an extraordinary demand in recent years for farm help in the Province of Ontario, and in order to assist as far as possible in meeting this demand the plan will be tried this year of employongt agents on commission. We have in view somewhere in the neighbourhood of 200 men, residing in agricultural centres in this province, who will, I think, be found willing and able to render valuable assistance in the distribution of immigrants of the farm laborer class. A wide distribution of the help coming in will thus be insured, and the expense to the department will be very moderate, as we will only pay for work actually done.

The operations of the department for the fractional fiscal year in the United States are reported on by the Inspector of Agencies, Mr. White, and the medical service id dealth with in Dr. Bryce's report.

I have received a report from the Women's National Immigration Society, 87, Osborne Street, Montreal, showing that during the nine months ending the 31st March, k1908, 393 immigrants passed through the home maintained by this societ at the above address, and the secretary states that the class of women arriving was most satisfactory, and that all are doing well.

The Ottawa Valley Immigration Aid Society, which received some financial assistance from the department, has continued to do good work during the year, the society's register showing an average of something over 200 visitors per month, and a large distribution of advertising matter. From the annual report I learn that the society arranged for ten lectures, and directed the placing of 661 settlers -- 350 in New Ontario, 190 in New Quebec, and 121 in the Western Provinces.

The active and useful work carried on for a number of years by the Quebec and Lake St. John Repatriation and Colonization Society for the Province of Quebec has now been taken over by our department and some other members of the staff of the society have become employees of the department. Offices in connection with this special work are now maintained in Quebec and in Biddeford, Maine, and the arrangement is, I think, likely to be productive of good results.

Your obedient servant, W. D. Scott, Superintendent of Immigration