Ahead of Remembrance Day, poll suggests most Canadians don't know much about their history

As people gather to remember those who fought and died to protect this country in past wars, a new poll suggests many Canadians know little about their country's history.

That's likely because high school students in most provinces and territories are not required to take a Canadian history class before graduating, experts say.

Many Canadians are in the dark about the people who helped build this country and the seminal moments that define its past and could inform its future, according to an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Historica Canada, the educational charity best known for producing the Heritage Minutes.

One question that stumped most poll respondents was about Viola Desmond. The pioneering Black beautician-turned-civil rights icon has been on the $10 bill for the last six years — but she's an obscure figure to more than half of the 1,001 Canadians surveyed for the poll.

As for acclaimed writer Lucy Maud Montgomery — author of Anne of Green Gables, arguably Canada's most famous literary export — about 56 per cent of those surveyed said they'd never heard of her. Another 15 per cent said they knew the name but couldn't tell pollsters what she did.

Poll respondents were also largely clueless about celebrated author and historian Pierre Berton (57 per cent said they're not at all familiar with him) and pioneering surgeon Norman Bethune (63 per cent drew a blank). And 71 per cent of poll respondents said they couldn't identify Rosemary Brown, Canada's first Black major party leadership candidate.

As for identifying certain Canadian history moments or factoids, 82 per cent of people surveyed got a failing grade on Historica's quiz, according to the poll results.

Of the 30 true-false questions asked, fewer than one in five respondents (18 per cent) managed to pass the quiz with 15 or more answers right.

"Our respondents fared terribly. It was bad," said Anthony Wilson-Smith, president and CEO of Historica.

While some of the questions asked were obscure (knowing comedian John Candy's birthday is on Halloween doesn't tell you much about Canadian history), Wilson-Smith said the poll identifies a general trend.

"There's not a great knowledge of history. It's getting lost in the bushes right now," he said.

"We need to know what was done well, where we could have done better and how we came to be this way. We're all collectively hamstrung by this absolutely infuriating belief that Canadian history isn't interesting — and that's demonstrably false."

Historica's data also shows that Desmond is becoming less known as the years go by, despite her prominent place on the currency.

"Canadians really should know about one of our great civil rights pioneers," Wilson-Smith said.