historical society of mecklenburg upper canada historische geselschaft von mecklenburg

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Introduction

Did you already know that the first German-speaking pioneers settled in Canada more than 300 years ago ...

...that in the year 1788 Governor Dorchester named the four districts of Upper Canada Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Nassau and Hesse, that two of the Fathers of Confederation were of German origin, and that the Germans are -- after the British and French -- the third oldest and third largest European ethnic group in Canada?

Did you ever wonder why so little is known about the considerable German contribution to the development of Canada and why the Germans as an active, articulate ethnic group are hardly recognizable in Canada, why in comparison with other ethno-cultural groups they play only a minimal role in Canada's public life?

Until a few decades ago such lack of knowledge regarding the history and culture of one's own country could perhaps still be excused by referring to customary apathy, since for a long time Canadians paid no attention to their own history and were unsure of their own identity. Today, this evasion from civic and cultural responsibility is no longer possible. For, since the Canadian federal government set its multicultural model off from the "melting pot" concept of the United States, the individual ethnic groups have not only been given the right, but even the duty to add their contribution to the colorful and multi-layered mosaic of Canadian culture.

If you are of the opinion that the German ethnic group, one of the European founding groups of today's Canada, should be more clearly profiled within the framework of Canadian "multiculturalism" , that this group should point to their of achievements based on historical research and that the group should do more to promote the fertile synthesis of the German cultural heritage and Canadian citizenship, then you belong to our HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MECKLENBURG UPPER CANADA. A person without knowledge of history has no culture; cultural achievements and historical consciousness are closely connected. The "Historical Society of Mecklenburg" aims to sharpen the historical consciousness of German-Canadians and to let them become thereby more conscious citizens of their country.

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Our Goals

The goals of our society are -- according to its by-laws -- as follows:

a.) to promote research into the achievements and contributions of German-speaking people and those of German origin,

b.) to awaken the interest of the public in these contributions,

c.) to assemble and publish historically accurate research data,

d.) to collect objects and documents of historical interest with the aim of assembling these in a museum,

e.) to cooperate with other organizations with similar missions to achieve the above-named goals

f.) to receive -- in line with Canadian taxation guidelines -- donations, gifts, and bequests of money, material assets and property according to conditions formulated by the donor.

We need the financial and moral support of many members in order to be able to realize our ambitious goals.