Shows / History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical Education
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical Education
Canada’s history is full of triumphs, tensions, and turning points. Yet too often, it’s reduced to headlines or overshadowed by present-day debates. History Matters was created to give space for deeper conversations — ones that connect the past to the present, and help us see why context matters more than ever.
Episodes
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationR.H. Thomson on The World Remembers Project
Allan welcomes actor and arts advocate R.H. Thompson to discuss his book By the Ghost Light: Wars, Memory, and Families, and his monumental international…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationKen Cuthbertson on the British Home Children
Allan welcomes journalist and author Ken Cuthbertson to discuss his new book, Seven Bucks a Head: The Scandalous Child Resettlement Scheme That Built a Nation…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationJason Kenney on Western Alienation and the Alberta Referendum
Allan welcomes Jason Kenney, former Premier of Alberta, former federal cabinet minister, and spokesperson for the stay-in-Canada campaign, to discuss the…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationMichael Hill on The Lost Prime Ministers
Allan welcomes guest Michael Hill, former history teacher, former artistic director of the Mariposa Folk Festival, and author of The Lost Prime Ministers…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationBarbara Messamore on the King-Byng Affair
Allan welcomes back Barbara Messamore, Emeritus Professor of History at the University of the Fraser Valley, to discuss the 1925 Canadian federal election, the…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationBarbara Messamore on Canada's 1921 General Election
Allan welcomes historian Barbara Messamore, Emeritus Professor of History at the University of the Fraser Valley, to discuss her book Times of Transformation…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationJohn English on writing about Canada’s prime ministers.
Allan welcomes historian John English, Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Waterloo, to discuss his long career of teaching and writing about…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationShannon Kyles on The Story on Ontario Architecture
Allan talks with architectural historian Shannon Kyles about her book, The Story of Ontario Architecture: What We Built and Why We Built It. They discuss how…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationNeville Thompson on Mackenzie King, Churchill and Roosevelt
Allan talks with Neville Thompson, emeritus professor of History at Western University, about Mackenzie King and his relationships with Winston Churchill and…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationGreg Koabel on his "Nations of Canada" Podcast
In this episode, Allan talks with Greg Koabel, creator and host of the Nations of Canada podcast, to discuss his mission of bringing Canadian history to life…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationAlan Sears and Carla Peck on How History Education can Help Save Democracy
In this episode Allan speaks with Carla Peck and Alan Sears about their 2026 book, Rescuing Reason: How History Education Can Help Save Democracy. The…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationJohn Boyko on Sir Sandford Fleming
In this episode Allan talks with historian and author John Boyko about his latest book, In Pursuit of Tomorrow: The Inventive Life of Sandford Fleming. While…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationDonald Wright on the Canadian Historical Association and Donald Creighton
In Episode 26, recorded at the annual meeting of the Canadian Historical Association in Charlottetown, Allan talks with Professor Donald Wright, past president…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationPatrice Dutil on Mackenzie King and Conscription
In this episode Allan talks with Patrice Dutil, professor of Politics and Public Administration at Toronto Metropolitan University, about his edited volume The…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationDuncan McDowall on the Life and Legacy of Sir John A Macdonald
In this episode Allan talks with Professor Duncan McDowall, University Historian Emeritus at Queen’s University, about the life and legacy of Sir John A…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationTy Seidule on the ‘Myth of the Lost Cause”
In this episode of History Matters, host Allan Williams speaks with historian and former U.S. Army officer Ty Seidule about how history is remembered…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationJoanne Archibald on Business History
In this episode, Allan speaks with Joanne Archibald, Executive Director of the Canadian Business History Association, about the role of business history in…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationEric McGeer on Vimy Ridge: the Battle and the Memory
In this episode, posted on the April 9th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge in 1917, Allan talks with military historian Dr. Eric McGeer about the battle…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationJerry Amernic on his book Sleepwoking
In this episode, Allan talks with journalist Jerry Amernic about his book Sleepwoking, published in November 2025. The conversation opens with an anecdote…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationRichard Stursberg on the ‘Collapse’ of Canadian Book Publishing
In this episode, Allan talks with writer and media executive Richard Stursberg to explore the rise and decline of Canadian book publishing. The conversation…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationChristina Blizzard Fifty Years in Journalism
In this episode of History Matters, Allan speaks with veteran journalist Christina Blizzard about her fifty plus years in journalism, a career that began at…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationMadelaine Drohan on 250 Years of Canadians Fending Off Americans
In this episode of History Matters, journalist and author Madelaine Drohan joins the program to explore a question that feels contemporary, but is anything but…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationGordon Henderson on The Trial of Egerton Ryerson
In this special episode of History Matters Allan welcomes Gordon Henderson, a veteran television producer, documentary film maker, and historical novelist to…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationRuth Abernethy on telling history in bronze
DESCRIPTION EP15 Public monuments shape how Canadians encounter their past. Yet the process of representing historical figures in bronze raises important…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationChristopher Dummitt on Canadian history in the Age of AI
In this episode of History Matters, Allan Williams speaks with Professor Christopher Dummitt of Trent University about the events leading to Ontario’s 1954…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationCharlotte Gray on Canada’s national archives and ‘popular’ history.
In this episode of History Matters, Allan is joined by Charlotte Gray, one of Canada’s best known and most prolific popular historians, for a wide-ranging…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationNick Rogers on Henry Dundas
In this episode of the Canadian Institute for Historical Education podcast, host Allan Williams speaks with distinguished historian Nicholas Rogers, Research…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationChristopher Dummitt on Responsible Government
What if one of the most defining moments in Canadian democracy wasn’t Confederation, but a riot that burned Parliament to the ground in Montreal? In this…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationNigel Biggar and Margaret MacMillan in Conversation on Colonialism
This episode is the second of two taken from a CIHE event held in March 2025 with Oxford Professor Nigel Biggar, recently appointed to the UK House of Lords…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationNigel Biggar on Colonialism: A Moral Reckoning
This episode is the first of two taken from a CIHE event held in March 2025 with renowned historians Professor Nigel Biggar, recently appointed to the British…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationAllan Levine on Canada’s ‘Dollar a Year Men’ in World War Two
Did you know that in World War II, Canada’s “best business brains” traded Bay Street boardrooms in support of the country's war effort? In this episode of…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationSean Conway on Separate School Education in Ontario
In this episode, host Allan Williams welcomes historian and former Ontario cabinet minister Sean Conway for a wide-ranging discussion that connects…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationDavid Wilson on The Dictionary of Canadian Biography
What happens when a national biography doesn’t just celebrate—or condemn, but strives to understand? In this episode, I sit down with historian David A. Wilson…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationJ.D.M. Stewart on The Prime Ministers
Host Allan Williams welcomes J D M James Stewart, author, broadcaster, podcaster, and veteran teacher, to discuss The Prime Ministers, Canada’s Leaders and the…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationTribute to Historian Tim Cook
Host Allan Williams welcomes J.D.M. Stewart, Eric McGeer, and Christopher Dummitt for a special tribute to Tim Cook, the award-winning Canadian military…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationDavid Frum on ‘Settlers & Colonialists
What does settler colonialism really mean, and how does it shape the way we see Canada’s past? In this special live episode of History Matters, we feature…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationPatrice Dutil on Sir John A Macdonald
What if one year and one election defined Canada’s destiny? In this first episode of History Matters, I speak with historian Patrice A. Dutil about his new…
History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical EducationVickery Bowles on public libraries and parliamentary democracy
How does a library protect democracy? In this episode, I speak with Vickery Bowles, former City Librarian of Toronto, about how the Toronto Public Library…
- History Matters by Canadian Institute for Historical Education
Introducing History Matters a Podcast By Canadian Institute for Historical Education
Canada’s history is full of triumphs, tensions, and turning points. Yet too often, it’s reduced to headlines or overshadowed by present-day debates. History…