List of Canadian heroes and heroines

This List of Canadian heroes and heroines contains people that Canadians especially admire. A hero or a heroine is traditionally the protagonist of a story, legend or saga, commonly possessed of abilities or character far greater than that of a typical person, which enable him or her to perform some truly extraordinary, beneficial deed (a "heroic deed") for which he or she is famous. These heroes and heroines represent the best that Canada has offered the world.

Since ice hockey has been called Canada's national religion, it is not surprising that hockey players have a prominent place in a list of Canadian heroes.

• Anne of Green Gables was heroine of a book by Lucy Maud Montgomery that became a part of Canadian mythology.
• Dr. Frederick Banting isolated insulin for treatment of diabetes and was awarded the 1923 Nobel Prize for medicine.
• Alexander Graham Bell, invented the telephone in Brantford, Ontario (Scot/Canadian/American).
• Marilyn Bell is a long distance swimmer and the first person to swim across Lake Ontario.
• Lt.-Col. William Barker, VC, DSO, MC was a World War I ace fighter pilot who remains the most decorated war hero in Canadian history.
• Billy Bishop was a World War I ace fighter pilot who downed 72 enemy aircraft, the highest number for a British Empire pilot.
• Roberta Bondar is Canada's first woman astronaut.
• Major-General Sir Isaac Brock fell at the head of his troops while defending Canada from an American invasion during the War of 1812.
• Johnny Canuck was the personification of Canada in early political cartoons.
• Emily Carr was a painter and author who changed the way Canadians view the forest landscapes and the First Nations people of the British Columbia coast.
• Leonard Cohen is a poet, novelist, songwriter and singer of international renown.
• Vince Coleman sacrificed his own life to save others from the Halifax explosion
• Louis Cyr has been called "the strongest man in history."
• Lt-Gen. Romeo Dallaire tried to stop the Rwandan Genocide despite the apathetic opposition from his superiors, but still saved thousands of Tutsis
• Tommy Douglas, as premier of Saskatchewan, was first to introduce medicare in a Canadian political jurisdiction and defied tremendous political opposition in doing so. In November 2004, Canadians voted Tommy Douglas "The Greatest Canadian" of all time following a nationwide contest.
• Sir Sandford Fleming played a leading role in the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway and proposed Universal Standard Time, dividing the world into 24 time zones.
• Terry Fox raised money for cancer research by running across the country on his one leg.
• Marc Garneau is Canada's first astronaut.
• Glooscap Sometimes a god, sometimes a giant, always a hero in the First Nations legends of the East. Also called Gluskab in Abenaki mythology
• Wayne Gretzky is considered by many to be the greatest ice hockey player of all time.
• Ned Hanlan was a world champion sculler and Canada's first international sports hero.
• Rick Hansen circumnavigated the world in a wheelchair to raise money for spinal cord research, promote disabled athletics and show what the disabled can do.
• Paul Henderson scored the goal in the 1972 Canada-USSR match that saved his country's honour.
• Kiviuq is a hero of many Inuit legends.
• René Lévesque was the founder of the Parti Québécois and premier of Quebec. He almost led Quebec out of confederation and was thus a hero to many. He earned the respect of many opposed to his sovereigntist program due to his integrity, intelligence and resolute commitment to democratic means.
• Jeanne Mance, one of the founders of Montreal, established the first hospital in North America, the Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal, in 1644.
• Nellie McClung, was a novelist, essayist and political activist, who with four other women ("The Famous Five") challenged the Canadian government and won the right to be classed "persons" in 1929.
• Jos Montferrand Lumberjack and pugilist of the Outaouais region in the 19th century, his exploits were amplified by oral history.
• Poundmaker was a visionary Cree leader known as a peacemaker and defender of his people.
• Pierre-Esprit Radisson was a coureur des bois, who with des Groseilliers, reached Hudson Bay overland in 1661 and initiated the company that was to change the northwest--the Hudson's Bay Company.
• Maurice Richard was a legendary ice hockey player for the Montreal Canadiens.
• Louis Riel was a leader of the Métis people in the North-West Rebellion.
• Stan Rogers was, in the opinion of many, the greatest Canadian folksinger of all time.
• Laura Secord saved a British force during the War of 1812 by warning it of an impending attack.
• Barbara Ann Scott was the first North American to win the World Figure Skating Championships.
• Sam Steele was a legendary RCMP officer.
• David Suzuki is a scientist, broadcaster and environmental activist
• Tecumseh was a Shawnee leader who was allied with the British in the War of 1812 and joined Brock to force the surrender of Detroit, in August, 1812, an early turning point in the war that would lead to the salvation of Canada.
• Pierre Elliott Trudeau was one of the most emblematic Canadian politicians and top Canadian newsmaker in the 20th century; he was Prime Minister from 1968 to 1979 and 1980 to 1984. He took swift and firm action opposing terrorists in the October Crisis and patriated the Canadian Constitution in 1982.
• Tom Thomson was one of the most important Canadian artists of the early 20th Century; created a distinct approach to portraying rugged Canadian landscapes characteristic of the Group of Seven.
• Gilles Vigneault is a poet, chansonier and ardent nationalist who wrote such anthemic songs as Mon pays and Gens du Pays that spoke to Québecers and many beyond Québec.

See also: Asian-Canadian, Richest Canadians, List of people by nationality, List of Canadians

External links

• Heroes of Yore and Lore: Canadian Heroes in Fact and Fiction (http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/2/6/h6-209-e.html)
• Celebrating Women's Achievements (http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/2/12/index-e.html)
• The Greatest Canadian (http://www.cbc.ca/greatest/)