1973 Royal Visits

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip made two trips to Canada in 1973:

1. Royal Tour - June 25 to July 5
2. Ottawa Visit - July 31 to August 4


1. Royal Tour - June 25 to July 5

On their first visit from June 25 to July 5, the royal couple toured Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, to participate in events marking the tercentenary of Kingston, the centennial of P.E.I. into Canadian Confederation, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police centennial and the opening of the R.C.M.P. museum in Regina.

The eleven day tour took the regal couple to the following cities and towns:

Toronto, Cobourg, Kingston, Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo, London, St. Catharines, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Scarborough, Brampton, Malton, Ontario; Charlottetown, Summerside, Mount Carmel, P.E.I.; Regina, Sask.; Calgary, Alberta.

Toronto : Ontario Place


Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at Ontario Place, Toronto

300th Anniversary of Kingston

The Queen and Prince Philip visited Kingston on June 27, 1973.




Distinguished Visitor's Book
(Queen's Archives)










The Kingston post office was supplied a slogan cancellation to celebrate Kingston's 300th anniversary:

HISTORIC PASSAGE PROMISING FUTURE
1673 - 1973
PASSE HISTORIQUE FUTUR PROMETEUR


Kingston, November 14, 1973


Southern Ontario : Royal Train

Two Governor General's private rail cars were used by the Queen and the Duke for their travels through southern Ontario.




Royal Train Souvenir Covers






















Niagara-on-the-Lake

On her visit to Niagara-on-the -Lake, the Queen officially opened the Shaw Festival Theatre and visited Fort George.


Queen Elizabeth II and Philip Duke of Edinburgh at
Fort George, Niagara-on-the-Lake


Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at Formal Dinner,
Niagara-on-the-Lake


Kitchener: June 28, 1973

The Concordia Club Choirs sang for the Royal couple at Kitchener’s railway station. After arrival Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip disembarked and proceeded by car to downtown Kitchener to rededicate the Kitchener Cenotaph.



Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip
Rededication of Kitchener Cenotaph

Brantford: June 29, 1973

Although the Royal Train did not stop in Brantford, 3,000 people lined the platform at the station trying to get a glimpse of the Queen.


Regina

Queen Elizabeth II approved a new badge for the RCMP.


Queen Elizabeth II accepts a peace pipe from Chief David Ahenakew
during a visit to the RCMP Training Depot at Regina, July 4, 1973.


RCMP Commissioner Higgitt and Her Majesty,
Queen Elizabeth II,during RCMP Centennial
Celebrations, Regina, Saskatchewan, 1973

Calgary: July 5 - 6

Queen Elizabeth opened the 1973 Calgary stampede and attended grandstand performances, departing from the Calgary airport on July 6.


2. Ottawa Visit : July 31 - August 4, 1973

Queen Elizabeth returned to Canada on July 31, 1973 for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Ottawa. Prince Philip had his own program over four days.



Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings (CHOGMs) take place at two-year intervals. They give Heads of Government the opportunity to engage indiscussions on matters of common interest to all Commonwealth members. The 1973 CHOGM was held in Ottawa between August 2 and 10 August 10 1973, and hosted by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. The 32 members of the Commonwealth were represented at the biennial summit by 18 prime ministers, five presidents or heads of state, three vice-presidents and six senior ministers. Queen Elizabeth, Head of the Commonwealth, was received heads of government in audience at Rideau Hall.

On August 2, the Canada Post Office issued two commemorative stamps in recognition of the visit in the National Capital from July 31 to August 3 of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, and of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Ottawa August 2 - 10, 1973.



The portrait of Her Majesty the Queen was taken from a photograph by the English photographer Anthony Buckley.


First Day Covers

Kingswood (Fleetwood)




Rosecraft (Senate)




Canada Post Office "Official"






Schering






Canada Envelope Company (Rosecraft)






The Royal Trust Company (Rosecraft)









David Pritchard






Usage

Surface letter to the United States


Montreal to Richmond, Hill, N.Y., October 28, 1973
8 cents surface letter rate to the United States


International Letter Rate

Willowdale to Vienna, Austria, October 29, 1973
15 cents international letter rate

Jack Layton (1950 -2011)

[We lost a great Canadian today. This article was posted prior to Jack Layton's stunning electoral victory in the 2011 federal election. It was a brief review of the dedication to public service which is a legacy of the Layton family. I thought it might be appropriate to post it again...Thank you Jack!]

2008 Guide Dogs and Montreal Association for the Blind

Canada Post issued a commemorative Guide Dog stamp on April 21, 2008, as well as a commemorative envelope celebrating the centenary of the Montreal Association for the Blind ("MAB") founded by NDP leader Jack Layton's great grandfather Philip Layton.

1. Guide Dogs



The Guide Dog stamp features "Luke" who was in training at the Lions Club of Canada facility in Oakville when this photo was taken. The 52 cent denomination of the stamp was embossed in Braille.


Lions Club Dog Guides

The Lions Club was celebrating the 25th year of its guide dog program.




Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind

The Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind was founded in 1984 by Jane Thornton.


Autographed by Jane Thornton


VoicePrint

VoicePrint is a national reading service that broadcasts news and information to Canadians who cannot independently access newspapers and magazines. VoicePrint picture stamps printed by Canada Post have been sold by the organization to raise funds.







2. Montreal Association for the Blind

A commemorative envelope was to commemorate the MAB's 100 years was issued on April 21, 2008, as well. The envelope featured the Braille inscription for "Montreal Association for the Blind". The Guide Dog stamp was affixed to the commemorative envelope and received an April 21, 2008 Montreal cancellation.

The commemorative envelope below was autographed by Thomas Davis, President of the MAB-Mackey Rehabilitation Centre.





The back of the envelope features a photograph of MAB founder Philip E. Layton and a brief description of the founding of the MAB.





"When Philip E. Layton arrived in Montreal from England in 1887, there were not services for English-speaking children with vision loss in Quebec, and none of any kind existed to meet the needs of Canada's adult population. In 1908, after years of hard work and dedication, Mr. Layton founded the Montreal Association for the Blind (MAB) to educate and offer rehabilitation to the blind and visually impaired. Today, the MAB is the oldest rehabilitation centre of its kind in Canada serving people with vision loss."


The Laytons
Philip Layton's descendants have dedicated themselves to political service.

Son : Gilbert Layton

Gilbert Layton (1899-1961), Philip's son, was a businessman and politician in Quebec. Gilbert Layton was elected to Quebec's legislative assembly in 1936 as a member of the Union Nationale. He served as minister without portfolio in the Maurice Duplessis government until he resigned in 1939 to protest the Quebec government's opposition to conscription in World War II.






Grandson : Bob Layton

Robert "Bob" Layton (1925 – 2002), Gilbert Layton's son, was elected to the Federal Parliament in the 1984 election as the Progressive Conservative member for the Quebec riding of Lachine. He was elected in the general elections of 1984 and 1988, and served as Minister of States for Mines in the federal cabinet of Brian Mulroney from 1984 to 1986.






Great grandson : Jack Layton

Jack Layton

Philip Layton's great grandson, Jack Layton was national leader of the New Democratic Party and Leader of the Opposition. Jack Layton (1950-2011) dedicated himself to public service throughout his life. He served on Toronto City Council, also serving at times during that period as acting mayor and deputy mayor of Toronto. He became federal NDP leader in 2003 and Leader of the Opposition in 2011, months before his death.






Autographed by Jack Layton






Great great grandson : Mike Layton
Mike Layton, son of Jack Layton, was elected to Toronto City Council in the 2010 city council election. Layton had worked for Environmental Defence a national environmental charity that fights to protect the environment and human health and reduce Canada’s contributions to climate change.