All aboard the train to experience a ride of a lifetime.

During the 20’s the unemployment percentage hit a new all time high in Canada. More than 70,000 men were unemployed and were wondering around the streets aimlessly looking for jobs, but none could find any work. Prime minister Bennett proposed the idea of work relief camps to give the unemployed jobs.

(This is what a work relief camp looked like)

Although it seemed a good idea in the beginning, many problems with the work camps arose. These camps were located throughout northern Canada in the middle of nowhere, which cause many problems. Hard manual labour was expected every day for the workers, for example digging ditches, clearing bushes, building roads and planting trees. All this hard work was not rewarding as your pay would only be 20 cents per day, which is a 10th of what a regular wage would be. Housing would normally consist of 40 to 80 very squished people also not to mention but the food was horrible as well. Full of anger and frustration, 1500 men started a protest and decided to go to Ottawa and demand for improvements.

(I wrote a journal entry about an unemployed man who ventured to find and job and ended up on a runaway train to Ottawa.)

This rile up caused the world renown “On-To-Ottawa Trek“, were these 1500 unemployed men would hop on a train all the way from Vancouver to Ottawa and say their demands to the government. Their demands were, to be payed more and work less hours, protection and money if injured, to form a union, the work camps to be no longer run by the national defence, welfare and finally give them the right to vote.

(This is what the train traveling to Ottawa looked like with all the unemployed men climbing aboard.)

After many days of overcrowded boxcars, the train came to a hauling stop in Regina, Saskatchewan and the 1500 men were forced off the train except for 8. A serious meeting occurred with the Prime minister but nothing was resolved. As the 8 men returned to Regina with baring the bad news the men were disappointed and began to riot.

(Scene from the Regina riot)

The Regina riot caused a lot of commotions, the 8 leaders who attended the meeting with the prime minister were thrown in jail, and more than 130 people were arrested. According to the police more than 39 people were injured and two people died including an officer. In the end nothing was resolved and all the protesters were forced back into the work camps. After a while the government disbanded the camps and several of the workers demands were met over time.