Senate committee approves bill recognizing Charlottetown as Confederation birthplace

A Senate committee has approved a private member’s bill recognizing Charlottetown as the birthplace of Confederation, despite some concerns voiced by senators from other provinces.

P.E.I. Senator Diane Griffin told the legal and constitutional affairs committee on Thursday that while Confederation grew out of a number of conferences, the process began in Charlottetown in 1864.

“In P.E.I. we are really proud of having hosted the first meeting of the Fathers of Confederation,” she said, adding that most visitors arrive to the island via the Confederation Bridge, and P.E.I.’s licence plate reads “Cradle of Confederation.”

Historian Ed MacDonald of the University of Prince Edward Island said having the designation is important in the teaching of Canada’s history, and for its impact on Island tourism.

He said people are fascinated to learn that while many countries were formed at the point of a sword, Canada was born at the tip of a pen.

“This was a watershed moment. All things flowed from that agreement in principle to a confederation, if terms could be arrived at,” MacDonald said.

Quebec Senator Serge Joyal noted that meetings were also held in Quebec prior to Confederation, and in fact P.E.I. was the seventh colony to actually join Confederation.

“That’s why I feel uneasy with the bill,” Joyal said. “To give the impression that P.E.I. has been there for the first one, were there to push, to animate, to convince and to celebrate and what not – this is not the historical case.”

But MacDonald noted that while that may be an ironic statement on history, the designation is for the city of Charlottetown, where the first conference was held, not for Prince Edward Island.

A number of amendments to the bill were made, to acknowledge that while the first meeting was in Charlottetown, other places had a role leading up to Confederation in 1867.